battens wearing holes in new sail !!

[pcatterall]

The sail is just 2 years old and has had only light use. You can see on photos 2 and 3 that the pocket ends are being worn through.
The battens are quite badly rounded and I can smooth off the corners but I don't think that will stop the wear. They are also very tight in the pocket and perhaps a few mms can be taken off.
Even so there seems to me to be something basically wrong here.
Advice please!!

 

[scruff]

Looks like you have lost the baton endcaps.

 

[knuterikt]

Missing something like this
http://www.bainbridgeint.com/Variants.aspx?Item=PRD-903366

 

[neilf39]

As others have said you should have soft rubber end caps on the battens. They should be a reasonably tight fit.

 

[pcatterall]

Thanks guys, I just used the battens as supplied with the sail. Do the caps have to be glued on to prevent them being lost when the battens are withdrawn?

 

[Poignard]

Advice?

Take it back to the sailmaker and complain.

 

[Spyro]

Thanks guys, I just used the battens as supplied with the sail. Do the caps have to be glued on to prevent them being lost when the battens are withdrawn?

I had that problem with mine. I found that after the first use when I withdrew the battens the endcaps stayed in place and the battens came out. After a bit of fiddling I managed to get them out. I secured them on with some electrical insulating tape.

 

[Praxinoscope]

Thanks guys, I just used the battens as supplied with the sail. Do the caps have to be glued on to prevent them being lost when the battens are withdrawn?

Fixed mine in place with ‘Evostick’ contact adhesive, they are still in place 3years down the line.

 

[Clive]

Fixed mine in place with ‘Evostick’ contact adhesive, they are still in place 3years down the line.

Hi

I have glued webbing around the end of the battens to smooth off the end/corners.

clive

 

[Norman_E]

My battens use a different method. The mast ends enter a pocket in the receptacle and the outer ends are held firmly in place by velcro faced webbing straps that are pushed in over the ends of the battens. Its a good system used by Elvstron Sails with full battens and Rutgerson cars.
EDIT It looks as if the OP has 3/4 battens so definitely needs protectors on the inner batten ends. If the batten pockets in the sail are not wide enough to allow end caps on the battens I suggest getting some stick on Velcro, using the soft part only to stick over the batten ends, and using Elvstom's velcro method to keep the battens tightly in place once fitted.

 

[pcatterall]

My battens use a different method. The mast ends enter a pocket in the receptacle and the outer ends are held firmly in place by velcro faced webbing straps that are pushed in over the ends of the battens. Its a good system used by Elvstron Sails with full battens and Rutgerson cars.
EDIT It looks as if the OP has 3/4 battens so definitely needs protectors on the inner batten ends. If the batten pockets in the sail are not wide enough to allow end caps on the battens I suggest getting some stick on Velcro, using the soft part only to stick over the batten ends, and using Elvstom's velcro method to keep the battens tightly in place once fitted.

Yes my neighbours sail had a 'receptacle' sewn in to the mast end, it looked very sturdy and made me think that perhaps my sails were 'missing something'! His sails also used Velcro to hold the battens in place, they were quite difficult to get out, we had to push in a spare batten to break the Velcro 'seal' , not sure how they get back in though!.

The soft Velcro over the inner ends sounds like a good idea, I think I will try that for a season and see how it works!.

Thanks all

 

[dom]

Yes my neighbours sail had a 'receptacle' sewn in to the mast end, it looked very sturdy and made me think that perhaps my sails were 'missing something'! His sails also used Velcro to hold the battens in place, they were quite difficult to get out, we had to push in a spare batten to break the Velcro 'seal' , not sure how they get back in though!.

The soft Velcro over the inner ends sounds like a good idea, I think I will try that for a season and see how it works!.

Thanks all

There are many batten systems and equally many ways to restrain battens in a sail without causing excess wear and tear.

Yours is not one of them and it will always be prone to tearing. Worse, if the batten tears out of its pocket in the midst of a blow it can shred the sail in no time before falling out.

As Poignard suggested, I would most definitely take the sail back to the sailmaker for snagging/remedial work.

 

[Daydream believer]

Not wishing to be disrespectful to the Op, but I think it demonstrates the difference between a cheap sail & quality sail. I suspect that sail was bought on price. If it was expensive then take it back.
You pays your money
I would suggest that the batten pockets in my sail do look somewhat better finished.
But then it should do, having cost an arm & a leg, plus a pint of blood.

 

[ghostlymoron]

If it's possible, get the maker to reinforce the pockets. The sail should be 'fit for purpose' regardless of the price. If not - sew in some reinforcement to the pocket and get some end caps for the battens.

 

[Old Harry]

Not wishing to be disrespectful to the Op, but I think it demonstrates the difference between a cheap sail & quality sail. I suspect that sail was bought on price. If it was expensive then take it back.
You pays your money
I would suggest that the batten pockets in my sail do look somewhat better finished.
But then it should do, having cost an arm & a leg, plus a pint of blood.

Like button pressed
For an experienced sailor the OP does seem to have lots of problems, others seem to simply cope with

 

[dom]

For an experienced sailor the OP does seem to have lots of problems, others seem to simply cope with

Ouch!

 

[knuterikt]

His sails also used Velcro to hold the battens in place, they were quite difficult to get out, we had to push in a spare batten to break the Velcro 'seal' , not sure how they get back in though!.

Sounds like the same system my sailmaker use, the Velcro goes inside the batten pocket and locks on to the Velcro inside the pocket. Have a tool that came with the sail, it’s a short piece of batten with a hole for a pull cord in one end.
To lock the batten in place you simply put the tool into the small pocket sewn to the end of the strap, push into the pocket until the tension is ok making sure the extraction line is not getting in the way of the Velcro.
removing is easy break the bond between the Velcro parts with the tool and pull the extraction line,
https://youtu.be/jrZexayGVjE
https://www.northsails.com/sailing/en/2018/06/velcro-stuff-batten-pocket-installation-guide

 

[Daydream believer]

Like button pressed
For an experienced sailor the OP does seem to have lots of problems, others seem to simply cope with

Perhaps we are being a little unfair.

 

[pcatterall]

Like button pressed
For an experienced sailor the OP does seem to have lots of problems, others seem to simply cope with

Thanks for that bit of offensive twaddle.
Our yacht is in group ownership and I seem to get landed with all the repair jobs. I am just back from 3 weeks on board and lots of jobs have built up hence a bit of a flurry of jobs now I am back.
I try to ask sensible questions and ones where the answers may help others. If anyone thinks my questions are rubbish then please don't respond.
I do get fed up with some people who need to belittle others, does it somehow make you feel good?

 

[Old Harry]

Thanks for that bit of offensive twaddle.
Our yacht is in group ownership and I seem to get landed with all the repair jobs. I am just back from 3 weeks on board and lots of jobs have built up hence a bit of a flurry of jobs now I am back.
I try to ask sensible questions and ones where the answers may help others. If anyone thinks my questions are rubbish then please don't respond.
I do get fed up with some people who need to belittle others, does it somehow make you feel good?