Max Wind you would sail a .4oz spinnaker in?

[rpwillia]

Curious.

 

[RichH]

Do you mean .75 or 3/4 oz.?

Ripstop nylon is the common spinnaker material and is made in 1/2, 3/4, & 1.5oz. plus special 'heavier' weights. 3/4" oz. is used between 3-20Kts.; 0.5 oz. is used between 2-12kts.

 

[Bill Roosa]

Sailrite indicated that our 0.5 oz spinaker was not to be flown in winds over 15 knots.

 

[thinwater]

True or appartent? Apparent, I would think, just for clarity.

And of course, this depends on the size of the chute,but since everyone has posted their boat size, that information is clear.

 

[Patrick S/V Shangra-La]

I usually will drop mine as the winds approach 15 kts. If I am running down wind the sail can stay up with actual winds over 20 kts as long as the apparent wind stays below 15 kts.

Remember to use the main to block the chute before trying to douse it with the sock.

 

[rpwillia]

Seller says .4

Said he had it checked out at North Sails. Have not seen it myself.

Seems like 15 knots would be too much unless you were racing. I am thinking it may be a great light air sail (<5 knots of wind).

 

[njsail]

Not all spinnakers are created equal even if they are the same weight fabric. A spinnaker should have a leech line in the leech of the sail. This helps reduce the chance of the sail splitting. There's nothing quite like the sound of a multi thousand dollar piece of fabric blow apart in a breeze (don't ask). If you have a spinnaker made don't forget to ask for one.

 

[Nicholson58]

The max apparent wind speed is also dependant on the point of sail and the characteristics of the boat. If you are cruising, take it down early due to the rediculous expense of shredding. Off the wind, you can carry it in higher true wind. Reaching, you will stretch the heck out of the windward 1/4 of the sail, rendering it only useful well off the wind. We had our side panels of the reaching kite doubled on the boat I raced. This sail remained flat well past normal wind speeds.

If you are unfamilliar with the sail, hoist it at peaceful conditions with sufficient crew to deal with trouble. Try it at various points and at progressively higher wind speed until you know its capability. You will know when it or the boat is over-powered. Look for the sail panels beginning to pucker between the seams and then back off. When the sail can no longer hold its shape you have gone too far.

 

[tommays]

The problem comes when you broach with the light spinnaker and it refills and gets really stressed from the the loss of boat speed