main sail diminsions

[Greg17947]

Does someone know the luff and the foot for a 1979 27' Cherubini? The manual I have specifies 32'4" (luff) and 9'11" (foot). I ran a tape measure up the mast. 32'4" would put the foot almost on the cabin.
This is a shallow draft version.

 

[Island Girl 34]

Does someone know the luff and the foot for a 1979 27' Cherubini? The manual I have specifies 32'4" (luff) and 9'11" (foot). I ran a tape measure up the mast. 32'4" would put the foot almost on the cabin.
This is a shallow draft version.

The 32'4" quote is for the Tall Mast version. For your boat the luff is 29'0" and the foot is 10'0". Bacon Sails is a great source of sail dimension data...

http://www.baconsails.com/database/boatspec.php

Ken

 

[Paul F]

As you have found, it is always better to measure the actual luff and foot than use any general specification. My mail sail is also to long in the luff. More so when the bimini is up as then the boom is kept higher to clear the bimini. I normally sail with the cunningham tight to compensate for the longer sail luff. The main's next repacement will be a shorter sail.

 

[Benny]

Yes, always measure as it is not unusual for older boats to have been refitted with different masts or other components.

 

[Greg17947]

Thanks for your replies. I would have hated to order a sail based on the manual only to find it to be too long.
I checked with Bacon Sails (online). All of their in stock used sails of 29' have a foot of over 14'. will Keep looking. If you know of another source of sails please post.

 

[jcherubini]

Mauri Pro Sailing

See the excellent web page of sailmakers' collected data at mauriprosailing.com which gives the dimensions forour boats (plus the right way to term them and decipher the data). I checked and they were within 2 inches of what I already assumed/measured, so I went by them.

http://www.mauriprosailing.com/techinfo/boatspecs/Rig H.htm

 

[Paul F]

Currently doing the same thing - looking for a mainsail. These are the sites that seem to have a reasonable supply of used and new sails. I will likely buy a used sail in the Fall.
http://shop.hunterowners.com/sail_loft/index_loft.htm
http://www.nationalsail.com/
http://www.mastheadsailinggear.com/
http://www.usedsails.com/

There are many other sail lofts around. These will give you a basis to compare other sail outlets.

 

[fawcettandrew]

This is a great post. i am completely confused as to what the dimensions i should use for ordering a main sail. A friend of mine who knows a lot about these things actually measured the boat and came up with the attached. I'm not sure if the dimensions will translate well in the attached picture so here they are again for the main:

Luff: 30.5"
Foot 11.3"

And for the Jib:
Luff 35.5"
Foot 11.2"

Is there some convention whereby i deduct 6 inches from the actual measurement?
how come my boom is so much bigger than these other measurements?
Thanks in advance,

Andrew

 

[Jerry Latell]

Andrew,
Sails are never cut to maximum dimensions. There is some allowance for stretch and spars are often longer than the designed dimensions of the sails. The "book" numbers are what the boatbuilders have assigned as maximum dimensions. A maximum luff of 30.5 is about right for a sail built with a 29' luff. This allows for stretch and some room for the headboard. If you built a sail with a luff of 30.5' the headboard would probably get jammed against the backstay. Often booms are significantly longer than the designed foot length. Booms with end-boom sheeting are often a couple of feet longer than the foot of the sail.
A used genoa really needs to be fit to the the allowable luff of your headstay. Certain furling systems require a luff that is very close to the maximum size while others will accomodate a much shorter than max luff. A foot of 11.2 is quite short for an all-purpose sail. I would look for something in the 120-130% range which would have a foot closer to fourteen feet. Recutting a used sail can get expensive very quickly and negate any savings from buying a used sail. The used sail outfits are very good at helping with these issues. I make new sails so am biased in that direction but you can find good deals on used sails. Cast your net wide when looking for used sails and don't settle for something that doesn't fit well.