I am new to sailing and wanting to learn as much as possible. One question I have is about head sail sizes. I see 135, 150 as well as types such as genova, storm etc. Can someone explain what all these mean. Thanks.
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Welcome to the addictive world of sailing !!!!
The 135, 150, etc. relates to essentially how much the jib is behind (overlapping) the mast in percent, where 100 percent being a jib that totally covers the distance from the front of the boat all the way back to the mast ... but not behind the mast. A 150 (%) would cover all the distance (called the "J" dimension) between the front of the boat all the way to the mast then an additional 50% of that distance running aft of the mast. Inotherwords, a 150 jib/genoa is approximately 50% large than a 100. This is not an exactly precise answer but is close enough for the explanation. Hope this helps ;-)
The 135, 150, etc. relates to essentially how much the jib is behind (overlapping) the mast in percent, where 100 percent being a jib that totally covers the distance from the front of the boat all the way back to the mast ... but not behind the mast. A 150 (%) would cover all the distance (called the "J" dimension) between the front of the boat all the way to the mast then an additional 50% of that distance running aft of the mast. Inotherwords, a 150 jib/genoa is approximately 50% large than a 100. This is not an exactly precise answer but is close enough for the explanation. Hope this helps ;-)
Overlapping terms ...
I am speaking in general terms since I am sure there are more precise ways to measure and calculate the sail sizes ... It seems that a "genoa" or "genny" is a term basically used for the larger headsails such as a 150 or 135. I generally use the term "jib" for the smaller ones, such as a 110 or 100. A "storm" sail is generally less than a 100, say 90 or 80 or even less I suppose. Like Rich says, the 150% is generally (not precisely - because somebody actually knows how to calculate the measurement) a headsail that overlaps the mast by about 50%. A 100% basically has the clew about as far back as the mast, and 80% has its clew in front of the mast. You will also hear numbers used to describe the sails. #1 is a 150 (or thereabouts), #2 is a 135 (or thereabouts), #3 is a 110 (or thereabouts), #4 is smaller, #5 is smaller yet - most likely your storm sail. This goes back to the days when sailors actually hanked on their headsail according to the wind strength. Nowadays, many sailors just roller furl/reef their headsail to the size they want and avoid the need for carrying multiple sails. So if you are shopping for a boat, you may see these terms used to describe the sail inventory. If the boat has a 135 set up for roller furling, they may or may not have other headsails to in their inventory; but, you can reef the sail to smaller sizes. However, you won't have a 150, which you may want if you sail light air conditions frequently. Our boat came with a 110 hanked-on jib - that's it. One of our first acquisitions was to get new sails so we bought a 150 because I hate being under-powered in light air. It's a big sail that many people may not like so much because it generally means more work for the crew. Also, ours was cut to be deck sweeping, which does limit the forward visibility. Many people would rather sacrifice the performance to have a better view of what is ahead. These are fun decisions to make! Enjoy sailing in Alpena, Michigan?
I am speaking in general terms since I am sure there are more precise ways to measure and calculate the sail sizes ... It seems that a "genoa" or "genny" is a term basically used for the larger headsails such as a 150 or 135. I generally use the term "jib" for the smaller ones, such as a 110 or 100. A "storm" sail is generally less than a 100, say 90 or 80 or even less I suppose. Like Rich says, the 150% is generally (not precisely - because somebody actually knows how to calculate the measurement) a headsail that overlaps the mast by about 50%. A 100% basically has the clew about as far back as the mast, and 80% has its clew in front of the mast. You will also hear numbers used to describe the sails. #1 is a 150 (or thereabouts), #2 is a 135 (or thereabouts), #3 is a 110 (or thereabouts), #4 is smaller, #5 is smaller yet - most likely your storm sail. This goes back to the days when sailors actually hanked on their headsail according to the wind strength. Nowadays, many sailors just roller furl/reef their headsail to the size they want and avoid the need for carrying multiple sails. So if you are shopping for a boat, you may see these terms used to describe the sail inventory. If the boat has a 135 set up for roller furling, they may or may not have other headsails to in their inventory; but, you can reef the sail to smaller sizes. However, you won't have a 150, which you may want if you sail light air conditions frequently. Our boat came with a 110 hanked-on jib - that's it. One of our first acquisitions was to get new sails so we bought a 150 because I hate being under-powered in light air. It's a big sail that many people may not like so much because it generally means more work for the crew. Also, ours was cut to be deck sweeping, which does limit the forward visibility. Many people would rather sacrifice the performance to have a better view of what is ahead. These are fun decisions to make! Enjoy sailing in Alpena, Michigan?
Measuring a sail
The numbers are the distance between the base of the mast and fore stay. The distance is not measured along the deck but by extending the line from the mast base to the fore stay so that it intersects the fore stay at a 90 degree angle. They call this dimension the length perpendicular (LP). Drifter, asymmetrical spinnaker, genoa, jib, storm jib, hurricane jib are the generally the largest to smallest head sails and are generally the lightest fabric to the heaviest fabric in their construction. A great book to get is Chapman's Piloting.
The numbers are the distance between the base of the mast and fore stay. The distance is not measured along the deck but by extending the line from the mast base to the fore stay so that it intersects the fore stay at a 90 degree angle. They call this dimension the length perpendicular (LP). Drifter, asymmetrical spinnaker, genoa, jib, storm jib, hurricane jib are the generally the largest to smallest head sails and are generally the lightest fabric to the heaviest fabric in their construction. A great book to get is Chapman's Piloting.
LP
LP The luff perpendicular of the largest area headsail measured as the shortest distance from the clew point to the outside of the luff or luff tape. For a cutter rig with more than one forestay, LP is measured as the shortest distance from the aftmost clew point of any jib or headsail when set on the centre line of the boat, to the foremost forestay. The Above is from the US sailing site. The attached link is from North's Cruising Direct sails site and gives a more understandable explanation
LP The luff perpendicular of the largest area headsail measured as the shortest distance from the clew point to the outside of the luff or luff tape. For a cutter rig with more than one forestay, LP is measured as the shortest distance from the aftmost clew point of any jib or headsail when set on the centre line of the boat, to the foremost forestay. The Above is from the US sailing site. The attached link is from North's Cruising Direct sails site and gives a more understandable explanation
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