Sail Area

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Greg G.

Just visited my 320 for the first time and noticed in the manual that it states that I only have 480 sq. ft of sail area as compared to the 540 in the spec sheet. This is due to the in-mast furling mainsail. Should have compensated by getting a larger headsail (150%)? I thought the whole idea with B &R rig was to have nice large mainsail. Guess I lost this with the furling :( ... Trade - off's...
 
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Jon Bastien

You may be right...

Congratulations on your purchase! I think you're right about losing sail area with the furler. I'm not clear on how the in-mast furling works (I've never seen one), but you may have lost some of the sail area from the leading edge of the sail. If the leading edge is trimmed back about 18 inches, That would take approximately 60 square feet of sail area... (The rough math: If the leading edge of the sail is 40 ft long, multiply that by 1.5 ft [18 inches], equals approx 60 sq. ft of sail area taken away. 540 - 60 = 480.) I'm just guessing, though. I'm by NO means an authority on this! :eek:) --Jon Bastien H23 '2 Sheets to the Wind' H25 'Adagio'
 
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Bruce Grant

I think its the roach

I believe that with the furling main, you lose the roach as they can't support the area withou battens. Don't know for sure, but that would be my guess. Congrats, your going to love the boat. Bruce. Neon Moon
 
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Wally Boggus

Yep...

They have to cut the roach for the furling main. Believe me you will still have plenty of sail to reef :) I have the same config on my 320 and still reef. However, I have found that reefing the jib is more effective than reefing the main . The furling main is another new system to learn but well worth it IMHO. Congrats!! W Copa Cabana/320
 
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Bryan C.

B&R rigs

One of the main advantages of the backstayless B&R rig is that you can put a large roach, full batten mainsail on the boat (no backstay to interfere) and that gives the boat extra power. You need battens to support the roach; but battens don't mix with a roller reefing system. Really, IMHO, a B&R rig and a roller reefing mainsail don't make a lot of sense, since you have the disadvantages of a B&R (including swept back stays that limit your downwind ability) without the advantage (a big powerful main). Would be nice if your dealer discussed this with you while you were commissioning. On the other hand, unless you're into racing (in which case you would have known to skip the roller furling and gotten the big full battened main) who cares about an extra knot? Have fun and enjoy the boat. PS. I would be hesitant about buying too big of a foresail. The fractional rigged boat is not made for a large headsail, it is questionable how much more it will help (you're putting the wrong sails on for the rig design) and if you get in strong weather you can only roll the sail in so much before it becomes a bag. I still have the orginal 110 jib on my '88 35; I thought about getting a bigger sail too, but after getting into a couple 30 knot squalls I was glad to have the smaller sail I could reef in to a manageable size and still maintain shape. That is a big advantage of a frac rig. If you are really concerned about speed maybe you can trade back for a full battened main. Or if you want extra light wind power get a large lightweight assymetrical spinnaker/flasher/drifter/gennaker. Several people have commented favorably on the Doyle model sold here on the HOW (plug). I haven't gotten one because, while I like a well trimmed boat, I'm usually not going that far in a straight line that it would be worth messing with. And if I wanted to go fast I would have bought a penis powerboat. It's all about chillin'.
 
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Doug

Congrats and info....

Remember that sail area is calculated on 100% foretriangle (a 100% jib). A great way to increase your sail area total is like you said....get a bigger headsail like a 150. We just put a 150 genny on our 33.5 and it has 360 sq. ft by itself. We have larger roach main than stock UK (UK kevlar tape drive mylar "Batmain". Upper to battens are full..lower are partial)that hits the backstay a tad though. We dont have B&R but standard 53' mast with franctional rig and double swept back spreaders. We have nearly 700 sq. feet for light to medium wind. As another poster said, you will still find yourself reefing often in winds above 15-18 kts. Trust us, you have plenty of sail to go hull speed, especially with larger headsail. Congrats and happy sailing your new gal. Doug
 
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Jeff and Marguerite

Love Our Furling Main

We get to hull speed just fine with the same sail configuration that you have. The ease of just getting out and sailing and of quick reefing are so great. As someone else remarked, go for a sninaker; if the wind is so light you need more sail area, what anyone needs then is a spinaker. Have fun with your 320 - we are!
 
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