Mainsail repair

[Sloopjb14]

Friends,
Perhaps this topic has been discussed in the past. Please forgive me if this question has been asked and answered over and over again. I have an old Oday Javelin with and old baggy mainsail. When sailing it carries a large bag down by the foot. As you might see by the pictures it appears that the luff has shortened over time pulling up on the tack. Any suggestions? Possible to take apart a seam and sew it back up to take out the bag? How about taking tuck without pulling apart a seam? You will also note a tear - suggestions here will be welcome as well.
Thank you.

 

[dlochner]

The sail looks beyond reasonable repair. If you are handy with a sewing machine and have a good enough machine you might try making a new one. Check Sailrite.com.

 

[capta]

I doubt it'd cost that much for a new sail. No matter how much time you invest, you'll be a lot happier w/a new sail. The difference would be like getting a new boat.

 

[Sloopjb14]

Thank you, gentlemen.
Yes, indeed, this sail might be beyond repair. I like that sailrite.com website. I may try my hand at a repair since the boat gets very little use. I have an old Singer sewing machine that seemingly will sew through armor plate.

 

[DougM]

That sail is well past its useful life. It looks like the bolt rope in the luff has shrunk, which is fairly common. You can usually loosen the lock stitching in the foot end and pull the luff of the sail down, then restitch it.You might be surptised as to the amount of shrinkage in that rope.
If you don't want to spend for a new sail, try to find a source like Bacon Sails in Annapolis that sells used sails. You could find one that is in better condition.

 

[dlochner]

Over time the sail cloth loses its coating that helps the fabric to keep its shape and overs some UV protection. If the cloth is soft as silk, the coat is gone and the underlying dacron has begun to deteriorate. Sail cloth should be hard and crisp. The upshot is if you try to repair and reshape the sail, a lot of time and effort will go into a sail that has a very short life with poor performance.

At $270 for a main sail kit at Sailrite.com adding a new main is not that expensive (by boat part standards). Your efforts at building a new sail will be rewarded with much improved sail performance and a sense of accomplishment.

 

[Ron20324]

I have an old Singer sewing machine that seemingly will sew through armor plate.

I started sewing as an adult with a $100 Montgomery Wards machine. It would sew the six layers of Sunbrella in the corners. I moved up to a Sailrite Machine when I retired. Inherited my mom's very nice Singer that I use for all the "home" sewing. I just hemmed 4 pairs of pants during my "spring vacation". Sewing your own is a good way to get it done the way you want it done.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Sloopjb14
I would suggest if you are going to make your own sail, see if the panels will be cut and sold to you. You may save on labor but unless you know exactly how the sail shape should be, sewing for the luff rope, putting in metal grommets and so on, you may want to consider looking for a used sail or bite the bullet and buy a new one. Researching, I did not see any for an ODay Javelin used. However, there are several sites I recall that you might want to search as I use to be a former sailboat dealer. They are:
Odayjavelin.com
Sailing Texas (photos)?
Small boat dealers who specialize in small boat sales and sails i.e. Masthead Enterprises in St. Pete, Florida

If you do decide to bite the bullet, stick with a sailoft specializing in small boats. The fellow who started Odayjavelin.com is in North Carolina.

 

[SailormanDan]

SloopJB14, here are some thoughts based on my experience:
I was new to the whole boat ownership thing and a cruiser, not a racer, so I didn't know any better and my mainsail was the original 35 year old main before I replaced it. We initially did some patching using my wife's Singer with a heavy needle and heavy thread. The patches were sail repair tape applied and then we stitched the edges down to hold them. I found a Sailrite machine on craigslist and did my own after that and sailed it anyways. For the one wear spot I could see on yours, figure out what's causing the wear and fix that first; I'm not sure I'd agonize over patching it other than maybe using a lighter to melt the edges and keep the fraying down since you are looking at replacing it.
Depending on your time & boat bucks, the suggestions above are good and useful, doing some patching/fixing now will save you some time & money. If you feel comfortable sewing your own sail, you could make that a winter project and take your time with it (don't give up summer sailing for it). If you didn't see a kit in Sailrite's database, email them and ask, they are very helpful people an may have one or can spec one out. I didn't sew mine because of the size and effort involved, I took the old one to Bacon Sails in Annapolis and talked to them before ordering anything and am quite happy with it.
A used one is a viable option to trade some time & money and put off a new one for now. Post the boat make & model and the dimensions on craigslist and see if someone has one stashed away somewhere, or look online and see what a sail loft might have that you can go look at.
If you order one, at least take it in to have them measure it, possibly with a boat like yours they are pretty standard, but it turned out I have a tall rig and wasn't aware of it.
Spring is here, I'm ready for it!

 

[Bill Roosa]

Very hard to tell what is "wrong" with this sail without seeing it deployed. Taking your word for what is wrong you can restitch just about anything to give it more life. I'd recommend "the Sailmakers Apprentice" for a complete understanding of what is needed to refit sail.
https://www.amazon.com/Sailmakers-Apprentice-Guide-Self-Reliant-Sailor/dp/0071376429

 

[Sloopjb14]

Thank you all for the informative replies and information. I think I will shop for a used sail while still contemplating some type of repair. Oday sold quite a few of these little Javelins and many other 14 or 15 foot boats probably have sails with the same or similar measurements. It's not a boat that I want to spend much money on since it simply gets used very little.

 

[dlochner]

You might try inquiring here: Oday Owner Forums | SailboatOwners.com Forums

 

[Sloopjb14]

Thank you, Dave. I will explore there. My wife looked at the sail last night and seems to think she can put in a seam from the tack up to the first batten or thereabouts. She is pretty good with the sewing machine. When we put in a fold in that area it seems to flatten out the bag quite nicely. It might not be a perfect repair but it will likely be better than what we have now. If not, we'll put a new/used sail on the boat shopping list.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

That is a good route to go at this time since you do not plan on using the boat that much.

 

[Joe]

Have your wife rip out the seams in the middle panels, cut away an appropriate amount of material, then sew them back... also follow DougM's suggestion on restoring the shrunken bolt rope. Your goal is to get a full hoist on the sail to insure a tight luff, and to remove the bagginess by performing a "tummy tuck". I don't think adding more cloth to the sail will help it.... removing some certainly will, though.
Another important item is make sure your boom's outhaul functions... this means the foot of the sail will need to slide in its groove and the outhaul rigging is working... The outhaul's function is to reduce draft depth in the bottom half of the sail....so if it isn't working right you're magnifying the problem.
BTW, you should use the zig zag attachment, along with the proper polyester thread, for the seam work.