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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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Roller Furler Headsail

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GaryB
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4303 Posts

Initially Posted - 07/05/2008 : 18:43:24

I'd like to get a recommendation on headsail size for the roller furler I'm about to purchase. Winds seem to be in the 10-15 knot range most of the time down here on Galveston Bay. I'm thinking a 135 would work for most of the conditions I sail in. I think a 150 might be too big.

Any suggestions on sail weight and options to add to the sail?

Thanks in advance for your help and support!

Association Member

GaryB
Andiamo
'89 SR/WK #5862
Kemah,TX

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3448 Posts

Response Posted - 07/05/2008 : 23:37:01

Gary,

Perhaps a search going back a few months will yield past postings of mine (and others) regarding sailcloth, recommendations, etc. It really depends on how much you really want to know to determine proper weight. Many want to know what others have bought at reasonable cost and if they recommend it. That is probably as good a way to start to narrow down to your choice. If researching this a bit more is okay with you, then I recommend you go to 2 websites for the detailed info.

www.macksails.com
http://www.challengesailcloth.com/

Most Dacron sails sold in USA are made from Challenge sailcloth. Challenge Sailcloth has 4 main grades/quality of cloth. The differences between the grades has mostly to do with how prone they are to stretching and then by how much they do stretch. The higher grades that do not stretch as much are then able to be utilized by the sailmaker with stitching that is of matl less prone to stretching. The cloth fabric and the stitching are sort of compatible in stretch characteristics.

As you would expect, sails sold for less are generally made out of the less expensive sailcloth. These sails will generally have a higher weight than a sail made out of a higher quality sailcloth. So...weight alone does not determine what is suitable for specific size sailboat and the winds expected to encounter. The Challenge website has many tables and graphs and so it may be a bit confusing or for many... not worth the effort to delve into such specifics....so then go by recommendations from others as to what worked for them. However, Challenge does have a table/graph that cross references sailboat size to sailcloth and applicable weight. So....if you really want to find out what the numbers indicate...the info is in the Challenge Website data.

Edited by - on

GaryB
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4303 Posts

Response Posted - 07/05/2008 : 23:46:36

Thank you Larry I forgot you'd done a lot of posts a few months ago on this subject. I'll look into those posts and the sites you listed above.

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3448 Posts

Response Posted - 07/06/2008 : 10:42:46

Gary - I bought my sails from Quantum. I am very satisfied. They came down and took measurements on the boat (in DC off the Potomac River/Anacostia River area). The sails were custom designed and made in their South Africa loft, then shipped back to Quantum in Annapolis and then I chose shipping to me to save on paying Md sales tax (I live in VA). Going with what is probably the #2 sailmaker in the USA and having them come down and take measurements and having the sails made out of High Aspect (vs High Modulus or Performance Sailcloth) matl adds addl to the cost for sure. But that is the way I wanted to go. Mack Sails is another sailmaker that mostly sells sails made out of Challenge High Aspect Matl and since their site has a wealth of info on the differences of the matls, I included that web link. (I believe Mack Sails is out of Florida.)

Others have been very happy with their purchases whether on-line, by mail or locally (Ullman, FX, etc).

I think it is not apparent how much Dacron Sails stretch until 2-3 years or more later and so for many that keep their boats...perhaps 3 years or so at most after buying new sails, may never realize any major concerns with stretch. Dacron sails typically will lose performance/stretch/blow out way before they structurally deteriorate. That is why many of us either bought used boats with original sails still on them or have had the boat for say 15 years with same sails.....They were good enough for our sailing and perhaps did not notice the slight annual stretching to the sails...and in some cases...also our stomachs . LOL But if blown out sails are on your mind...then check stretch characteristics ! Dacron sails are not all the same.

I think that almost any sail purchased these days by going with someone's recommendation here on the Forum is going to result (regardless of what sailcloth it is made out of) in a better sail than what was originally supplied by the mfr. That is my gut feel. However, the weblinks provide the info to at least know what one sailmaker is offering versus another. That is the real value of researching this info. In the end, you are buying sailcloth ! Reviewing a sailmaker's website with a lot of hype that he makes the best sails, offers them at a reasonable cost....and then does not give any clue as to the sailcloth....then how do you make a comparison against other sails you are considering from other sailmakers ?????? Such a big purchase and most know nothing as to what they are buying ! At least if you research what it is you are buying, you can purchase making an informed decision. A less expensive sail may be the way to go....but at least you then know exactly what is you are buying. We all have the things we look into regarding boats and the thing we just go out and buy. I am no different. I took an interest in this...but not in some other things....so no problem for those that do not get into this on sails. You will have other boat stuff where you get into details and will share that info with the rest of us.

To get you started on reviewing the Challenge Website, perhaps the following links will get you to some helpful detailed info:

Both my main and 150 Genoa are made out of High Aspect 5.6 matl - Here is the spec data on that matl:
http://www.challengesailcloth.com/high_aspect/5_6.pdf

Looking at the Challenge application chart (below link) - The best grade matl is Marblehead with weave numbers ending in "77" as in 8.77. High Aspect ends in "6" or "2" such as my sails which are 5.6. Then next in performance is High Modulus-High Aspect and High Modulus-Low Aspect which end in "3" and the least expensive lowest performance sailcloth is actually called....Performance Cruise which has weaves ending in "8". Now armed with that info you take a look at the below weblink which is the Challenge Application chart and you can then see what the cloth mfr rcmds for a specific size sailboat and sail categories. Regarding the sail categories...you will have to figure that one out...best I can make out of it is Super Race is better than Race...so going to the right of the chart is the higher performance categories.

For a typical 21-26" sailboat having Dacron Sails - They rcmd in the "Super Race" category - "5.6" which is High Aspect Matl. In the other categories, you can see the corresponding other cloth matl grades they rcmd and if you go to their corresponding individual spec data sheets, you can check out their matl weight ! For High Aspect 5.6 it's actual weight, stretch at 10# and 50# is listed on the spec data sheet (above link). The 10# and mainly the 50# stretch can be compared with High Modulus and Performance Cruise matl and then you know what stretch for a given weight matl. This is very confusing interpreting the info that a sailmaker provides because there is a difference between the sailcloth weave number and it's weight. High Aspect 5.6 has a weight of 5.96 when looking at the spec data sheet.

Application link:
http://www.challengesailcloth.com/pdf/ap_chart.pdf

So...after all of this ...better to just go sailing and think about all of this another day !

Gary -- Happy Sailing !

Edited by - OLarryR on 07/06/2008 10:48:07

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The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.