Stack Packs...

langstonelayabout

langstonelayabout

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Its been suggested that I consider a stack pack to complement my newly-ordered mainsail.

My boat is 25' loa. Should I be stack-packing or should I keep to a conventional sail cover. I already have the lazy jacks fitted.

Your thoughts please - does anyone love or hate the stack pack?
 
I like our new stack-pack, because for some reason putting the sail covers on was my least favourite regular job on Kindred Spirit. It's much nicer to be able to just do up the zip.

It is a bit ugly to look at, though, and also distorts the shape of the bottom of the sail a bit. We have straps to allow it to be lowered and rolled up along the boom, but currently it's a bit fiddly as the straps are too long, the buckles are the wrong sort, and there's nowhere to belay the falls of the lazy jacks. So it's fairly rare for me to bother. I hope to fix this over the winter and then stow the stackpack under sail more often.

Pete
 
I have a stackpack on my Nic26. I love it. It makes single handing so much easier and means that I spend much less time out of the cockpit when entering or leaving harbour. I'm not sure I'd get one if I already had lazyjacks, but I didn't and it's a guddle flaking and using sail ties on your own.
 
I have a stack pack and lazyjacks. I am very happy with them. I single hand a fair bit and they make mainsail handling much simpler especially dropping and covering when it is windy.

My boat is 44ft.

If I was to buy a boat of similar size without them they would be very high on the list of items to be fitted.
 
I removed a stack pack and set of lazy jacks from a 41' yacht. I occasionally single hand and can manage the sail without much extra hassle. The reason I removed it is personal taste, I don't like the look of them and lazy jacks. If that doesn't bother you, then as said by others, they are labour saving items of equipment; I have used them on charter yachts. On a smaller yacht I would probably have one fitted as a safety feature for reducing time spent on a small deck, as suggested by others.
 
Hated the one we had - it was on the boat when we bought her and soon after the zip started spraying bits of white plastic everywhere until eventually it failed completely - the effects of UV. It was always an effort to get the sail to squash down into the bag sufficiently to do it up and the cover for the mast end was as much effort again to fit.

We took it all off (it was riveted either side of the boom) and replaced the whole thing with a sail cover. Much easier to fit and we reused the supporting lines as lazy jacks for when we are well lazy and just want to drop the sail without struggling to fold it neatly eg when its very windy or rough :-) Ten years later and I still don't miss it.

S
 
sailorgirl said:
Hated the one we had - it was on the boat when we bought her and soon after the zip started spraying bits of white plastic everywhere until eventually it failed completely - the effects of UV. It was always an effort to get the sail to squash down into the bag sufficiently to do it up and the cover for the mast end was as much effort again to fit.
S
Click to expand...
Well if it was made as a load of rubbish then you would not like it
I have a good one & love it. I wish i had had one on my last boat - a stella
 
Have had a stackpack fitted with a fully battened main on my Feeling 286 and love it. I think they come into their own with full length battens. Mine was done by Gowens in their Weathermax material, which is fabulous, and the design negated the need for a cover in two parts and can be folded right out of the way. Excellent.
(Added a downhaul line on the mainsail)
 
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