What Sail Is This?

Aug 22, 2011
1,113
MacGregor Venture V224 Cheeseland
Always meant to ask and its -20 so...

We were becalmed in a light fog not far from another boat. After languishing quite a while this other boat hauls out this sail and sticks er up and soon he ghosted right into the bay. We sat right there in our light little boat with its light little sails continuing to languish......until it was finally iron jenny time.
side sail.JPG
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,323
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
Probably an asymmetrical spinnaker or some variant, like a gennaker.
 

capta

.
Jun 4, 2009
4,766
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
Most extremely light air sails are not hanked on or connected to any stay. I had a racing boat with a few tissue paper thin sails (one tore right in half when rounding Angel Island and the wind went from 4 knots to about 9). They were huge and had a light wire in the hoist, connected to the bow with a snapshackle and hoisted on a spin halyard. We called them drifters.
I have also used these sails on schooners and they went from the end of the bowsprit to the end of the main boom and to the tops of both mast topmasts. I believe they were called gollywobblers back then, and what are now called golleywobblers were then called a fisherman.
 
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JRT

.
Feb 14, 2017
2,039
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
My drifter is hank on and is excellent for light air. It is in my avatar as red, green and yellow. I'm told by sail makers what I want is a code 0 but this old sail works and it is paid for.
 

DArcy

.
Feb 11, 2017
1,691
Islander Freeport 36 Ottawa
Probably a Code 0. This isn't a very good shot of the sail but this one got us between one and two knots of boat speed in less than four knots of wind. You can see the sail is full with not even a ripple on the water.
 
Aug 22, 2011
1,113
MacGregor Venture V224 Cheeseland
The more I think of it I do believe the sail was just hoisted to the mast head and both bottom corners just shackled to the toe rail and the sail was paper thin, I could see right through it - almost transparent. We were both headed dead east, and if there had been any breeze it would have been from dead south. The other boat was larger and heavier and ghosted right away from us.

Got to find me a paper thin big sail like this....
 
Oct 29, 2016
1,915
Hunter 41 DS Port Huron
Don't know what you call it, but it looks like a spinnaker from a boat far smaller than the one its being flown on, this is from an ad on yacht world for a 41DS
Funny Spin.JPG
 
Oct 29, 2016
1,915
Hunter 41 DS Port Huron
The ad for this boat lists this as an asymmetrical "included with boat" surely it can't be referring to the pictured sail? The way the sail is being flown in the picture sure does resemble the OP's sail question diagram though.

"This Hunter 41 DS is exceptionally clean and well maintained.
A two stateroom boat with en suite full heads and shower stalls make this a very comfortable boat for cruising and living aboard.
Large cockpit with seating for eight also means great for entertaining.
This boat shows exceptionally well and you will not be disappointed or we pay for the survey.
NEW Doyle mainsail and genoa in 2016; hardly used
Also an Asmmetrical spinnaker included."

I guess the missing letter indicates a shorter sail.......
 
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Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
... They were huge and had a light wire in the hoist, connected to the bow with a snapshackle and hoisted on a spin halyard. We called them drifters. ....
Maybe a "whomper", like in the movie "Wind"?
 
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Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
To @topcat0399 's original point...

Most sailors quickly learn that the typical sail-set for a marconi-rigged sloop is really designed to do exactly one thing well; go upwind in moderate breeze. Start playing with the wind angle and wind speed, and you need to change things to stay efficient.

As the wind angle goes back, you need to move sheeting points outward, and then switch out sail completely. As the wind gets lighter, you have a choice of options, but it totally depends on what you have available! You sometimes have to get creative, and its can be fun because the lighter airs mostly remove the chance of some science experiment going totally wrong.

Our 66nm 'Around the Islands' race normally finishes with most of the 30-40 foot boats eeking the last 3 miles from Grants Point light to the Bayfield dock in very light dawn breeze. You will see EVERY type of set imaginable. Some boats with asyms and wide angles. Free-flying drifters. Boats dropping genoas and setting jibs. Boats dropping jibs and setting Zeros. Boats dropping the foresail altogether and going main only. All in an attempt to find and keep flow attached. Nothing surprises me anymore.

My guess on that picture? They tacked their asym to the leeward rail between the bow and mast, and flew it outside of the jib.
 
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Aug 22, 2011
1,113
MacGregor Venture V224 Cheeseland
To @topcat0399 's original point...

Most sailors quickly learn that the typical sail-set for a marconi-rigged sloop is really designed to do exactly one thing well; go upwind in moderate breeze. Start playing with the wind angle and wind speed, and you need to change things to stay efficient.

As the wind angle goes back, you need to move sheeting points outward, and then switch out sail completely. As the wind gets lighter, you have a choice of options, but it totally depends on what you have available! You sometimes have to get creative, and its can be fun because the lighter airs mostly remove the chance of some science experiment going totally wrong.

Our 66nm 'Around the Islands' race normally finishes with most of the 30-40 foot boats eeking the last 3 miles from Grants Point light to the Bayfield dock in very light dawn breeze. You will see EVERY type of set imaginable. Some boats with asyms and wide angles. Free-flying drifters. Boats dropping genoas and setting jibs. Boats dropping jibs and setting Zeros. Boats dropping the foresail altogether and going main only. All in an attempt to find and keep flow attached. Nothing surprises me anymore.

My guess on that picture? They tacked their asym to the leeward rail between the bow and mast, and flew it outside of the jib.

I plan to be that experimenter. I hate being adrift for too long.

So I got some quotes for both a new Asym and a Code Zero, the Code 0 costing more than double the Asym.

I had never really planned to run a large free flying head sail but since it seems I can use this on days that I am becalmed to actually move, I need to do it. I mostly single hand.

I have shopped for used sails of this type but most seem to be for much larger boats than a 25 footer.

Is a Code Zero worth the added cost over an Asymmetrical?
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
I plan to be that experimenter. I hate being adrift for too long.

So I got some quotes for both a new Asym and a Code Zero, the Code 0 costing more than double the Asym.

I had never really planned to run a large free flying head sail but since it seems I can use this on days that I am becalmed to actually move, I need to do it. I mostly single hand.

I have shopped for used sails of this type but most seem to be for much larger boats than a 25 footer.

Is a Code Zero worth the added cost over an Asymmetrical?
If your goal is just to get moving, no. Probably not. A Code 0 actually very specialized sail design for racing. They allow the boat to go as close to the wind as possible on the free flying sail. The cost is built into the strength required to do that. I would never recommend anyone that doesn’t race to buy a true code 0
 
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Aug 22, 2011
1,113
MacGregor Venture V224 Cheeseland
You ju
If your goal is just to get moving, no. Probably not. A Code 0 actually very specialized sail design for racing. They allow the boat to go as close to the wind is possible on the free flying sail. The cost is built into the strength required to do that. I would never recommend anyone that doesn’t race to buy a true code 0

you just saved me a boat buck - a thousand thanks Jackdaw....
 
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