Head Sail advice?

[AndCur]

Folks

I am considering changing to a furling head sail my Achilles 24. After talking to a couple of sail makers I am getting totally different advice on sail choice. I was planning on a Dacron sail but am getting conflicting options on the design.
Is a Radial or cross cut the best way to go? Also which reefing gear would you recommend?

As always thanks for your input.



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[Robin]

A sailmaker will be the most qualified to answer you but I suspect that there is no need to go bi-radial or tri-radial on a relatively small sail. Try Crusader on 01202 670580 for advice, they sell the roller systems from several manufacturers (Rotostay,Harken, Furlex etc), as well as making sails, and they do package deals.

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[Talbot]

I assume you mean a reefing system - as furling and reefing are not the same.

Triradial is beloved by the racing people as it provides the best shape for a limited periods. The bi-radial cut is normally used for cruising folk, who are not so interested in ultimate performance, but much more in longevity of the sails.

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[AndCur]

The main confusion is that some sail makers are telling me that Radial is the way to go but others are saying that dracon is not suitable for a radial because if
the lye of the cloth and the sail should be cross cut.

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[racingron]

Dacron is designed to made in a cross cut pattern. The way the polyester is weaved means that it has plenty of strength in the "warp", the "fill" (at 90 degrees to the warp) and the "off threadline" or "bias" (the other angles).

Your sailmaker should be able to recommend a high ratio or low ratio Dacron depending on your rig set-up (different bias properties if you've a high aspect or low aspect rig).

There is some Dacron designed to be made in a radial fashion - i.e. more strength on the warp than conventional Dacron - however, to the best of my knowledge it's not proved to make better performing or durable sails and the construction process is more complex and the sail costs more (some would argue it looks more Gucci though).

We strongly recommend against radial Dacrons - I have a good booklet from Bainbridge (cloth manufacturers) which explains this pretty well from an unbiased viewpoint - send me a pm with an address and I'll pop one in the post.

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[rwoofer]

Dacron is usually a fairly standard weave, therefore it does need as specific an alignment to the forces in the sail as more complex orientated cloths.

Dacron can be used in a tri-radial, but it is not making the most of what is a much more expensive design of sail. I think that is why a lot of sailmakers don't think it is a very good compromise and therefore guide people from cross-cut dacron to tri-radial laminate without bothering with the in-between.

RB


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[Talbot]

I think that racingrons answer about the dacron covers it completely Suggest that you go to Crusader as they both have a good reputation for decent cruising sails that do not break the bank.

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[ships_parrot]

I put roller reefing on my Achilles this winter, and have a genoa from Crusader. I honestly couldn't tell you what cut it is, I let them make it the way they thought best. We've used Crusader for a long time, and they seem to come up with decent sails at a good price - genoa was around £300 - their budget line and I'm pretty sure it's dacron..
So far seems to be to their usual high standard.. If you race seriously, of course, your requirements might be a little different to mine.
As for the roller spar, I have an ancient (apparently) rotostay, which seems to do the job ok so far.

Hope this helps..

Robin.

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[sophie4]

Try Kemps, Rob Kemp is extremely helpful, both in finding out what the best sail is for your needs and importantly after delivery he will help to iron out any problems . The new sails on my Halcyon27 look fantastic and it's like sailing another( much faster and more balanced) boat.

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[FullCircle]

I have been through the exercise this year, and I went with Crusader, because of their care with the proposal and the price structure too. I got quotes from the larger and smaller sail lofts too, and spoke to each of the furling gear manufacturers.
They supplied a complete setup, all the lines, blocks for stanchions, rivets screws, even the correct drill bits.
I chose the Facnor S60 because it is twin luff groove and telescopic - no cutting. It also seemed the best engineered at the lowest price. Personally I thought Plastimo was v. cheap but was just that.
Sailspar at Brightlingsea also seemed well made, in a hand made old fashioned heavy sort of way.
I have the bi-radial Genoa, using Bainbridge Contender sailcloth as recommended by Crusader. This is apparently the mid choice between a racing section and the cross cut real cruising sails. I wanted a compromise with extra performance and longevity. I restricted my sail size to 135%.
They also supplied a forestay at very reasonable cost, with quality fittings.
Added a Tri Radial cruising chute in 7 colours to it, and the whole package was around £1250.
Impressed with the manufacture and the communication.
Speak as you find I guess.........

Jim

<hr width=100% size=1>Second Chance - First Love. Bzzz!!,Phut! Jim Is it supposed to smoke like that? Of Course it is Love