Standard Vs Fully-battened mainsail on cruisers or racers

[horatio_nelson]

A fully battened sail works better, looks better, flakes easier, reefs easier.

So why doesn't everyone have them? I'm genuinely tempted to get one.

(Fwiw I've sailed thousands of miles with one on other boats so it's an informed opinion)

Any thoughts / opinions / advice?

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Because they cost more (I went for Ronstan cars which were over £1k in total).

But the whole set up was worth every penny.

 

[DJE]

Very few racing boats use them so maybe they're not so perfect. Perhaps not worth the extra weight at that level of performance?

 

[mrming]

You don't see fully battened mains much on smaller racing monos. I've never sailed on a boat with one in 20+ years of handicap racing. The reason is definitely not cost.

Personally I like to be able to ease the kicker and depower the main when sailing downwind with the kite up in gusty conditions.

Also I think a standard main responds better to the kind of bendy fractional rig I prefer. How do you get a fully battened main with a big roach really, really flat?

 

[TQA]

Well I am pure cruiser, you know "hoist the rags on the sticks and wait till we get there." My stick don't bend and it is a rare day when I think about halyard tension or vang.

I love my full length battens and Rutgers with lazy jacks and a stack pack.. At the end of the day as I singlehand my 44 ft cutter into an anchorage I can release the halyard and hear my main rattle down unattended and stow itself while I carry on to the bow and worry about anchoring for the night.

If I was to shred it today I would order another exactly the same.

 

[ronsurf]

I have a Corribee with two main sails - a 'regular' sail and a fully battened loose footed sail. I use the regular one while the fully battened one rests in it's bag. Is there any reason I should use one over the other? I don't race, so I guess I must be cruising.

 

[AndrewfromFal]

As well as the additional cost, I believe they are more prone to chafe, less easy to depower, and for racing they certainly used to have an unfavourable effect on your rating.

Having said all that, they'd certainly be my choice.

 

[Birdseye]

I have a Corribee with two main sails - a 'regular' sail and a fully battened loose footed sail. I use the regular one while the fully battened one rests in it's bag. Is there any reason I should use one over the other? I don't race, so I guess I must be cruising.

Dont ask the question! Tell us the answer why you use one rather than the other

 

[GrahamM376]

I can release the halyard and hear my main rattle down unattended and stow itself while I carry on to the bow and worry about anchoring for the night. If I was to shred it today I would order another exactly the same.

+1

Never went to the expense of changing to full battens on previous boats but this one came that way and I like it. Better shape at low winds and, as TQA says, it drops nicely into stack pack. Only drawback is it's heavier to hoist.

 

[ronsurf]

I use the regular sail because I've always used the regular sail! I was kind of keeping the fully battened one as a spare... Maybe it should be the other way round if the fully battened one offers better performance.

 

[michael_w]

I've just had a new mainsail made with the same batten arrangement as the old one:

2 full length battens at the top and another 3 short ones. No need for fancy track, reduced chafe problems, sets very well and good longevity. I estimate the old dacron sail had done 4 + Atlantic crossings, it was pretty ripe! All in all, a good compromise.

 

[Baggy]

Just want to know, is it easier to reef when going down wind with with a fully batten main
with cars ?

As apposed to a standard main .... That won't

 

[LadyInBed]

I don't race.
My full battens don't use fancy cars, just normal D toggles, so they are much cheaper to retro fit or specify from new. They give the sails good shape and make them easier to handle single handed. I wouldn't go back to short battens.

 

[dom]

Just want to know, is it easier to reef when going down wind with with a fully batten main
with cars ?

As apposed to a standard main .... That won't

No! I know Mr Cunliffe bangs on about this, it's doable, marginally more so with a stack-pack, but still a sail trashing exercise IMHO.

I personally think stack-packs are almost essential for those sailing light handed with big deep mains; modern sports boats have gone this route as it creates a better airfoil. As one drops below 35m^2 they become more optional and other cheaper solutions work just as well. Costs can be kept down a bit by using plastic slugs, etc., but as with most things the cost/complexity of the final solution will be proportional to the size of the rig.

Re handling/de-powering, a fully battened main behaves very differently to a partially battened one when de-powered. But unless you are into the scandalising trick, fully battened sails are highly predictable and user friendly animals; they don't flap so much when head to wind which helps extend sail life and prevents the boom from being flung around so much.

 

[LadyInBed]

Just want to know, is it easier to reef when going down wind with with a fully batten main
with cars ?

As apposed to a standard main .... That won't

Yes, if the sail is sheeted in tight first and topping lift raised (as you normally would), but if I'm going to turn down wind I drop the main and use twin headsails

 

[LadyInBed]

Dom, it looks like pistols at dawn!

 

[Joker]

I've had a fully battened main for years and love it; the one gripe is that you've got to be head to wind to drop it, and reefing with the wind more than about 30 degrees off the head is almost impossible.

 

[dom]

Yes, if the sail is sheeted in tight first and topping lift raised (as you normally would), but if I'm going to turn down wind I drop the main and use twin headsails

OK if you're dead downwind I'm going to fly the white flag. But I hope you have a good AP if you're attempting that trick in any wind

 

[prv]

I've had a fully battened main for years and love it; the one gripe is that you've got to be head to wind to drop it, and reefing with the wind more than about 30 degrees off the head is almost impossible.

+1

In some ways I do miss Kindred Spirit's gaff mainsail - with hoops sliding on a round mast, it didn't matter which way the hull underneath happened to be pointing, the sail could still slide up and down. And letting out a few feet of peak halyard to instantly halve the sail area and go into "first gear" was brilliant for sailing in or out of an anchorage under control. The twin topping lifts worked like rudimentary lazy jacks so the sail didn't go everywhere. I did hate putting the sail cover on though, being able to simply do up a zip on Ariam's stackpack is very nice.

Pete

 

[Twister_Ken]

I'm half way. Three full length battens at the top, two 3/4 length one at the bottom. No, I don't know why but North recommended it, and I reckon they know a deal more about sails that I do. Seems to work pretty well