[Public-list] #2

[Gordon Laco]

Good morning - 

Shorter luffs were common in the 'old days' because of the good effect of
lowering the centre of area on stability.  Today people tend to like longer
luffs because it is felt narrow sails perform better upwind.  Both are right
... but I went long luff for my sail.

The seam pattern is called 'mitre cut' and until somewhat recently was the
normal way to set up the seam patterns of a sail.  It is not in fashion now
but it did allow the sailmaker to build very subtle shapes in a sail...but
was more work.  You generally don't see them anymore.

I believe in going one weight up from what the sailmaker recommends for a
particular sail... It will cost you a little more but you will end up with a
good strong sail that will keep its shape longer.  I did not do this with my
140 genny, but did with the #3 and will when I have a main built (hopefully
this winter).

Cheers - 

Gord #426 Suprise







> Past Association Commodore Bob Kirk was kind enough to give me his old #2. I
> measured it last night with a friend in the middle of my street and the
> dimensions I found are as follows:
> 
> Luff 31'4" with a 3'4" wire pendant at the top
> Foot 14' 11.5"
> Leech 30' 4"
> LP 14' 2.25" (this makes it a 135% sail)
> Height of LP 4' 8.75"
> 
> This sail was very old and I did not have tackle to stretch it really hard,
> so we were just doing that by hand on my driveway. It says 'Ulmer" which
> apparently is UK before they were UK.
> 
> There is a lot of leech hollow.
> 
> I was surprised at the short luff. This seems strange to me for a #2. I
> expected the sail to be full hoist (luff dimension of at least 34 ft). I
> would be interested in hearing people's thoughts on these measurements -
> whether they are good numbers to shoot for, or whether they are too big or
> too small (particularly LP, foot dimension, and luff length).
> 
> There was kind of a strange seaming pattern. One seam ran from clew to luff,
> ending a few feet above LP. Below this seam, panel seams ran vertically
> (more or less parallel to the luff). Above this seam, panel seams were cross
> cut (more or less parallel to the foot).
> 
> I have gotten concrete sail quotes from UK, North, and Sail Rite. The Sail
> Rite guy assures me that if I build one of his sails it will be just as good
> as a brand name sail. My thought is not only will I save some money, but I
> will also get to learn how to do canvaswork which would enable me to do my
> own sail, cover, and upholstery repairs in the future.
> 
> All the quotes seem to be built around cloth weight of 6.5 Oz to 7 Oz. Any
> thoughts on that?
> 
> I appreciate y'alls patience and input on this. Sorry to be so dense. I just
> want to be an informed customer rather than just asking the sailmaker to
> figure everythign out for me. Since I am kind of an idiot when it comes to
> sailmaking, I am probably asking things that some of you think are silly.
> Again, preciate your patience.
> 
> Kind regards,
> 
> J Bergquist
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