Damaged headsail

[Crinan12]

Hi, after some advice again please. I have some damage to my headsail as you can see in the photos. The sail material feels quite weak/brittle if you know what I mean. Do I just give the sail to a sailmaker to repair or is this something I should try and repair myself ? The rest of the sail seems okay but i am sure a trained eye may tell me otherwise. I don't know anything about sails or sail repairs.

The sails is old - 2007. A new one would cost roughly £1500 (from Hyde sails).

Thanks

 

[Refueler]

If not mistaken .. damage is on the luff where it slides in the furler .... I would be looking at the furler as well .. see if any rough edges / damage ..

Problem here if you try repair yourself - keeping repair still able to enter furler ..

 

[tillergirl]

Seems to me it is UV damage. Of course it can be repaired. Whether you can do it depends on your skills. You are going to have to buy the right material as well. I think the rest of the sail needs critical assessment. Personally I would be taking it to the sailmaker and I am sure they would give you a quote and an opinion. I would trust our locals for an honest opinion.

 

[RunAgroundHard]

The top of my new furling genoa was damaged in a similar way. It was caused by me leaving the spinnaker halyard on the pull pit when alongside to prevent frapping. Being above the Genoa halyard it slowly wore away the head area which then shredded.

Local sail maker, Owen’s, repaired. Was not that expensive.

 

[oldmanofthehills]

If you find decent local repairer should be under £250 to repair but my local chap (semiretired like me) charged about £100

Trouble is on an old sail is that if repairs become frequent costs add up to greater than sail actual value - however OPs looks otherwise sound

 

[wilkinsonsails]

It’s not an expensive repair ,but to do it properly I would remove the webbing and Replace a short section of tape with a diagonal join so it wouldn’t be to lumpy on the joints.
You could alternatively trim it back down beside the webbing .Stopping a few cm before the end of the strap. .The head of the sail is held against the foil with the swivel , so there should not be much load at that point.

 

[Refueler]

I am simply amazed at some replies ...... how such summation can be made and then proposed solution.

Personally ? Get the sail to a sailmaker and get their opinion and advice.

 

[thinwater]

Refueler is correct about the exact repair. But ...

The cause is far too common. The UV protection at the head of the sail does not include some of the tape and the webbing at the head. My current jib is very good that way, but with others, the smart solution was to paint the few small exposed areas with with two coats of a flexible vinyl paint, such as used on inflatables, but if that is not available, even house paint. Very easy, completely invisible, and prevents repairs like this 5 years down the line. Just a little permanent sunscreen for where the cover missed.

This can also apply to mainsails. Any bits the cover does not cover, often just a little webbing an a few inches of leach. It's a big help.

 

[MontyMariner]

A new luff tape isn't too expensive to get replaced.
Look for an upholst that does sail repairs and is not VAT registered,such as Lake Sails, Poole.

 

[William_H]

The problem is that when you show it to a sail maker he will probably condemn the whole sail as too old then quote for a new sail that is way out of proportion to the value of the boat. Or at least that is what I found with a jib failure. He would not want to be associated with a make do repair when he thinks more failure is imminent. You may be able to convince him otherwise. Good luck there.
Which all leaves you with the option of repair yourself. Even if it is a bodge. hand stiching and patches of old sail cloth might be in order. ol'will

 

[Refueler]

Check out 2nd Hand sails ?

 

[ylop]

The problem is that when you show it to a sail maker he will probably condemn the whole sail as too old then quote for a new sail that is way out of proportion to the value of the boat. Or at least that is what I found with a jib failure. He would not want to be associated with a make do repair when he thinks more failure is imminent. You may be able to convince him otherwise. Good luck there.

That’s not my experience of sailmakers in Scotland (perhaps their customers frugal reputation is a factor). But they will say “we will fix it but beware it might be a sign of future failure” then next time they say “we’ve fixed it but it’s likely to happen again, you need to weigh up repeated repair and time waiting for repairs v cost of a new one”.

 

[oldbloke]

Did anyone notice the professional opinion given above?

 

[Crinan12]

Did anyone notice the professional opinion given above?

Yes

 

[wilkinsonsails]

I often find I’m being asked to repair sails that should have been retired to the bin .
Sadly sometimes needs must in order to keep your boat on the water .
When I have explained a sail will let you down at some point ,when you really need to get somewhere safe ,maybe there is the odd rethink .
A customer yesterday told me he was about to head off long distance with a mainsail ,I would not cross the Channel with .
There can be no guarantees as to a repair lasting if the fabric surrounding it is going to let go .
Basically if you can tear it easily or the stitching pulls apart it’s dead .
For the OP ,the head of the sail should have had the strip covering the strip of exposed luff tape, this can be done easily to conceal the repair .
The rest of the luff tape has probably been protected with the sac strip rolled over it .