Cruising laminate genoa

[flaming]

I have two carbon/technora laminate headsails from Sanders -- a 95% blade and a 120% yankee jib --

I'm still in my first season with them, so can't say yet how well they hold up, but the new laminates are bonded in an autoclave, and I have high hopes that they will be pretty durable. Mine have taffeta on both sides.

The Sanders laminates on my Dad's boat are 10 years old and going strong. Only very minor mildew and a little bit of flogging damage to the leach of the main. Shape is pretty good still too.
Kind of annoying really, I was hoping to persuade him to splash out on some new sails...

 

[Shuggy]

Would it be possible for people to post photos of their sails in this thread? With the array of choices on offer then accompanying pics would be really helpful...

 

[Boat441]

We bought a suite of sails about 6-7 years ago. No1 and no3 are triradial cruising laminate, main is Dacron. All by Doyle.

Headsails do suffer from mildew in the seams and have both required repairs including a new uv strip on one. Main has required nothing.

If you can afford it, or need it for racing go for laminate; but just for cruising Im not convinced it's worth the extra money.

As for cleaning; they either just pressure wash it or put it through a chemical bath. I had the no1 done by the latter method and it stained the laminate, so have never used it again nor recommended it.

You certainly have a lot of choice and options when buying sails. Biggest thing is to be clear on how you intend to sail and how you will use each sail; eg we don't have a no2, so specified a no1 with a suitable weight cloth so it can be used furled to a no2 size.

Good luck.

 

[sailorman]

As a matter of interest having spent a few weeks in The Netherlands this summer, they mostly use socks not a uv strip. obviously the sail sets better without a uv strip due to less weight on the leech. Have we got it wrong

 

[Resolution]

As a matter of interest having spent a few weeks in The Netherlands this summer, they mostly use socks not a uv strip. obviously the sail sets better without a uv strip due to less weight on the leech. Have we got it wrong

No. I also have a sock. It is a pain to slide it up past the furled clew (which is too high to reach even standing on the pulpit). Once up it flaps and makes a noise even when the drawstrings are pulled as tight as we can manage.

 

[sailorman]

without the uv strip the bulk at the clew will be less & the sock could be too tight.

 

[johnalison]

No. I also have a sock. It is a pain to slide it up past the furled clew (which is too high to reach even standing on the pulpit). Once up it flaps and makes a noise even when the drawstrings are pulled as tight as we can manage.

We used a sock for several years with our first laminate jib. it was less of a problem to erect than to lower because friction made it hard to loosen the cords. I never had a problem with excessive flapping in general use and when leaving the boat would wind the spinnaker halyard round in a tight spiral to control it even further.

The problem that caused me to give it up was that repeated raising and lowering caused chafe around the exposed leach, so I settled for a U/V strip instead. Contrary to Sailorman's comment, I thought that the Dutch and especially the Germans seem to be using socks much less than ten years ago, when about half of jibs would be covered regularly.

 

[Lucky Duck]

I was advised against a UV sock by my sailmaker when looking at a new sails earlier this year.

An alternative to the UV strip or a sock cover is a 'paint on' protection which is available and reportedly lasts around 5 years before requiring re-treatment.

 

[dunedin]

I was advised against a UV sock by my sailmaker when looking at a new sails earlier this year.

An alternative to the UV strip or a sock cover is a 'paint on' protection which is available and reportedly lasts around 5 years before requiring re-treatment.

That's the coating we have. Length of time it works for depends on location and degree of sunshine. This has not lasted well on our sail, which spent 3 years in France. Muchof the exposed stitching has come apart. We spent nearly a day sewing emergency repairs a couple of weeks back when the sail started to come apart in a breeze

 

[snooks]

I spoke to one sail maker who pointed out that while the paint on solution was good for the sail, it's black and tar-like and wasn't great for the sail maker that produces mostly white sails. They basically have to set aside a fair size of the loft to paint this stuff on. Any contamination with a new white sail is very bad news.

 

[Resolution]

I spoke to one sail maker who pointed out that while the paint on solution was good for the sail, it's black and tar-like and wasn't great for the sail maker that produces mostly white sails. They basically have to set aside a fair size of the loft to paint this stuff on. Any contamination with a new white sail is very bad news.

My North also has painted UV protection, but is bright white and rather rubbery. At North's suggestion I painted a second layer for extra protection after the first year's use. It was easy to apply and dried quickly in the sun. My only complaint is that it wears off where the foot of the sail rubs on the lifelines. As I have only had the sail for two summers it is too early to say whether it is effective against UV.

 

[Lucky Duck]

The paint being offered was semi-transparent (hopefully the semi bit stopping the UV light). I know one owner who went with this option but he still uses a sock when leaving the boat during the working week.

 

[Boat441]

Our came with a sock and we used it a few times; but as mentioned by others it's not that easy to lower due to loosening the pull strings and it flaps about a bit.

 

[johnalison]

If you are using a sock, you can reduce friction by dividing the line into segments. I split mine in two, so that the friction was roughly halved, and I have seen one with it split into three. It still wasn't enough to make it an easy job, though having rollers at each turning point might help somewhat.

 

[sailorman]

Our came with a sock and we used it a few times; but as mentioned by others it's not that easy to lower due to loosening the pull strings and it flaps about a bit.

If it "flaps" after fitting,you are doing it wrong

 

[Resolution]

If it "flaps" after fitting,you are doing it wrong

Mine does; what am I doing wrong?
Peter

 

[johnalison]

Mine does; what am I doing wrong?
Peter

Not tight enough

 

[Birdseye]

My last cruising laminate jib was my first one if that makes sense, I was so impressed by its shape holding after 9 years of hard all year use that I bought a triradial cruising laminate jib from Sanders. Excellent service and the shape is lovely . Recommended.

 

[westhinder]

Our came with a sock and we used it a few times; but as mentioned by others it's not that easy to lower due to loosening the pull strings and it flaps about a bit.

These socks seem to have all but disappeared compared with 15 years ago.
My first boat originally had a sock, but it was a nuisance to put on and had far too much windage. When it shredded in a storm, the then owner did not replace it and I certainly did not want one either.

 

[Resolution]

Not tight enough

But the cylinder of material has to be loose enough to pull up over the clew. The circumference of the rolled up clew is far larger than the top third of the sail. Hence there is an excess of sock material high up when fully hoisted. Even with all the pull on the lacings that we can manage the top is still somewhat loose and flogs relentlessly.