Downwind sailing, What to buy?

for ease of use, reliability and safety on your own I would still plump for a big genny on a roller furling with a pole goosewinged with a preventer on the main. It's soooo.. easy and gives oudles of flexibility in all areas of sailing! Then go for a spinnaker after that. When you first experiment with this you can always reef the main and use a little of the genny to give you the stability to gain confidence.
I came 10 hours out of 12 accross the channel doing that 3 years ago and I couldn't have relaxed as I did on my own in a F5 with a spin/shoot/whatever. /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Betty Dee T66. o/a 54th out of 1566 finishers in the RTIR 2009.
for sale £60K or straight swap for a Jeanneau 45.2 /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

I'm in Turkey last week of July, love to meet up and discuss your rig,
Scotty
 
Yes agree with you in F5. Most of the issue in my opinion is getting good progress in F2, without resorting to the malodorous greasy stuff!

I would second Kemps. I would advocate a tri-rad or star cut, not for better/higher angles, just less distortion, as a boat over 30odd feet will put a fair load on the sail.
I have seen some quite 'orrible horizontal cut chutes that are only a few miles old.
 
Sadly I will be stuck in the UK until early September, end of July can be too damn hot for comfort in Turkey.

I have looked on all the sailmakers websites, and found cruising chutes that are OK between 60 and 130 degrees off true wind, which is no good for me at all as the boat makes good speed until the wind falls off behind the beam. I want something that works from a beam reach backwards and will drive the boat when the wind is as far as about 160 degrees.

I found this on the Hood sails website, and it looks as if it might be what I need. Anyone have one?
 
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I found this on the Hood sails website, and it looks as if it might be what I need. Anyone have one?

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What is the difference between that and a cruising chute? (Apart from a name and a claim that is can be used on a run). /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
That is what I am trying to find out, because I want something I can use on a run, (though not necessarily a dead run) without using a pole.

Hood, usefully, have an agent in Marmaris, where my boat is based.
 
It certainly looks like my cruising chute, except for the stripes across the middle (and that is just a cost saving measure, I think).
 
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I have looked on all the sailmakers websites, and found cruising chutes that are OK between 60 and 130 degrees off true wind, which is no good for me at all as the boat makes good speed until the wind falls off behind the beam. I want something that works from a beam reach backwards and will drive the boat when the wind is as far as about 160 degrees.



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Are you sure that's 130 degrees true? 130 degrees apparent would sound about right. That would for example be 155 deg true in 7kts apparent, 7kts boat speed, 13kts true. I would find that credible.
 
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