This spring will be starting my second season with my, clean/solid, 1978 C27.
The boat was raced on Lake Michigan two owners ago. So, of course, it came with 5 head sails including a laminate 150%, as well as the old main with the C27 logo. All of them in great to good/usable condition except that the 150% laminate is starting to breakdown.
The most recent P.O. had installed a headsail furler 10 yrs ago and had only the 150% laminate set up with a luff tape, so that explains the breakdown. This was the, seemingly, obvious choice because it was the only headsail that was "High Tech" laminate. The other headsails that came with the boat were a 170% woven genoa, a 130% woven Jib, and a smaller (storm?) woven jib, and a unused Jenaker?/Spinaker?(not sure?), all hank-on of course. The new main is a loose footed one so I assume it is a step up from the original and of course in better condition so it doesn't really figure into any of this.
Now, I've read that some consider the 150% actually a little over powered, for a C27, in my typical sailing conditions on Lake Michigan (windy!). But of course it can be partially fureled which is quite often the case!
Would you consider forgoing the deteriorating 150% laminate as the primary headsail and install a luff tape on the 130% woven and use it as the primary instead, (because of it's "theoretically" more appropriate size and its good condition), while hanging on to the other unused sails?
Would you sell the unused sails to offset the price of a new laminate headsail? And if so, would it be a new 130 or a 150?
Would you absolutely keep the unused sails "just in case", and just bite the whole bullet on a new one?
Thanks in advance, for what I hope will be a lot of feedback!
Joel H.
The boat was raced on Lake Michigan two owners ago. So, of course, it came with 5 head sails including a laminate 150%, as well as the old main with the C27 logo. All of them in great to good/usable condition except that the 150% laminate is starting to breakdown.
The most recent P.O. had installed a headsail furler 10 yrs ago and had only the 150% laminate set up with a luff tape, so that explains the breakdown. This was the, seemingly, obvious choice because it was the only headsail that was "High Tech" laminate. The other headsails that came with the boat were a 170% woven genoa, a 130% woven Jib, and a smaller (storm?) woven jib, and a unused Jenaker?/Spinaker?(not sure?), all hank-on of course. The new main is a loose footed one so I assume it is a step up from the original and of course in better condition so it doesn't really figure into any of this.
Well anyway, now that you have all that information, here are a few random question I have floating around in my head that I'm looking for consensus on:
Important to note here: I sail mostly solo!
#1:
Would you consider forgoing the deteriorating 150% laminate as the primary headsail and install a luff tape on the 130% woven and use it as the primary instead, (because of it's "theoretically" more appropriate size and its good condition), while hanging on to the other unused sails?
OR
#2:
Would you sell the unused sails to offset the price of a new laminate headsail? And if so, would it be a new 130 or a 150?
OR
#3:
Would you absolutely keep the unused sails "just in case", and just bite the whole bullet on a new one?
Thanks in advance, for what I hope will be a lot of feedback!
Joel H.
