Sail Shopping.....oh my!

Apr 4, 2016
7
Precision 16 Savannah, GA
So I've just begun shopping around for a new set of sails for my '84 Precision 16. Trying to decipher all the information on the web is making my head explode!

My current main has a bolt rope luff and foot, and I'm contemplating changing these up while I have the opportunity. I want to go with slugs for the luff, just to make it easier to rise, lower and reef the main by myself. Other than possibly needing to install a mast gate, are there any other significant downsides to this change? For the foot, I'm fine with the bolt rope.

Now I need to decide what size Jib/Genoa to go with.
 
Aug 28, 2006
578
Bavaria 35E seattle
Check with the folks at thesailwarehouse.com They're very helpful. I'm thoroughly pleased with the Rolly Tasker mainsail I got from them. Great prices and super fast shipping, too.
 
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Nov 9, 2012
2,500
Oday 192 Lake Nockamixon
I'm not sure that slugs are going to make your experience any easier. They are very good to have for a boat in a slip or on a mooring, where the sail is kept on board. They make it easier to flake the sail on the boom. That being said, I used to flake my bolt rope main on the boom for lunch stops all the time. A bolt rope will allow better sail shape. Slugs will not really make it easier to reef, either. What does make it easier to reef is have a Wave Front Marine Tiller Clutch on the tiller, to allow you to reef while hove-to. (I used to have a Harpoon 4.6, very similar to the P-16. If you have a reefing hook on a fixed gooseneck, I would make sure the sail loft puts 2 welded rings linked by sewn webbing into the tack reef point, to make it easier to lower the tack, fasten, re-tension the halyard, then tension the leech. Also, I ran my leech reef line forward on the boom to about 18" behind the mast. That way, I could turn from setting the luff and have the leech reef line right at hand. I think a loose foot main is a no-brainer, as it will allow you to see how much draft you have, and draft position easier than a bolt rope foot. Also, specify a draft stripe about half way up the main, again to see draft position. Look for a sailmaker who will discuss your sailing style and sailing area. This will help with the design of the sail. Also, if they aren't local, they should send you measurement forms so that you can get exact measurements of the rig, including things like tack reef hook position, etc. I chose Judybsails.com because of these reasons, and Judy is experienced designing small boat sails. For my Harpoon, I had chosen a sailmaker who reportedly made winning sails for a Harpoon 5.2, and who also raced Buccaneer 18s. My sails for the Harpoon seemed ok, but I didn't receive the level of measurement support, cloth options, and discussion that I got from Judy with my 192. I have not had experience with the sails here at Sailboatowners, but buying from them would certainly support this forum. You could contact Precision Boat Works, and they could tell you who the OEM supplier of the sails was, and contact them for a suit. They would at least have the sailplan drawings and measurements from Jim Taylor.
 

druid

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Apr 22, 2009
837
Ontario 32 Pender Harbour
One quick comment (since I'm getting a new main as well!): forget the bolt rope on the foot and go loose-footed. Easier to get proper sail shape, WAY easier to get the sail on and off...
Also: have you noticed the price of sails has gone WAY up in the last few years? Seems I looked at a main a few years ago and it was under $2000, now it's almost $3000 for my 32-footer.

druid
 
Apr 4, 2016
7
Precision 16 Savannah, GA
Brian, great info, thanks a ton! I would have never thought to go loose footed.....but the more I read, the more I see the benefits of it. Mine does have a reef hook on a sliding gooseneck, but I'm still trying to figure out how to properly reef it. I had to reef once, and I think I may have flattened out the sail too much, because it would NOT go windward at all, and I ended up dropping the sails and motoring around instead, haha.

druid - I have not noticed the price, since I have never had to sail shop before......and thank goodness that it looks like I'll get away with both sails for under a grand!
 
Nov 9, 2012
2,500
Oday 192 Lake Nockamixon
A properly set up leech reef line will allow you to loosen it a bit to put some camber in the sail. Since you have already reduced sail area to depower, and lowered the center of effort by lowering sail, you shouldn't heel as much, and allowing some camber to the reefed sail will allow some power to punch through the waves that are obviously there if you needed to reef in the first place.

Old baggy sails will not go to windward too well, and will have excessive heeling and weather helm.
 

Ward H

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Nov 7, 2011
3,788
Catalina 30 Mk II Cedar Creek, Bayville NJ
Ditto to the above. Brian explained things very well.
I do emphasize the point of finding a sail maker who will talk to you about what kind of sailing you do and what you want out of the sail.
I went with a new main last year from a Rolley Tasker dealer. He was highly recommended by several people with very good reputations. I got the sail I asked for with one minor problem in the cut, which he has offered to fix this winter. But if I didn't ask for it, he didn't offer it. Cunningham, draft stripe, insignia, I had to know to ask for. I appreciate not being pushed or upselling but when I asked What can I do for better performance, I was offered loose foot and 2 x 2 batten arrangement. I wished he talked to me about sail cloth and measurements.

Do a search on this site for posts by Judy (Brian references her) she has made some good posts on sail purchases. I will be putting in an order for a new jib from her shortly.

Also, the SBO store has a good reputation for sails.
 
Apr 4, 2016
7
Precision 16 Savannah, GA
I do emphasize the point of finding a sail maker who will talk to you about what kind of sailing you do and what you want out of the sail.
I was hoping this statement would come up! I'm dreading the conversation that I will have when I'm asked.....simply because I would have no idea how to explain "what kind of sailing I do." I learned to sail a Sunfish when I was in Boy Scouts.....that's the only formal training I've ever had. So I really have nothing to base it off, so my kind of sailing is just hoping to make it back to dock alive! I know it sounds silly, but I really enjoy sailing and maybe someday I can find a small group of small-boat sailors in the area.....it just has not happened yet.
 
Nov 9, 2008
1,338
Pearson-O'Day 290 Portland Maine
J,
Can you sew? We made the mainsail for our Lancer 25 last winter. It's about 110 SF A long weekend will get it done. You buy the kit from Sailrite.com. All parts are computer designed, machine cut and numbered, specifically made for your boat. All the hardware is included. And as long as you have a decent sewing machine with metal parts, you should have no problems getting it done. Some will insist that you must pay the $1100 for an LZ100 sewing machine but that's poppycock. Our Kenmore, circa 1980, punched thru up to 10 layers of Dacron. It didn't like it . . . but it did it! Our sail cost us $550. Looks great, sails well and gave us a full knot.
 

Ward H

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Nov 7, 2011
3,788
Catalina 30 Mk II Cedar Creek, Bayville NJ
Go to this thread. http://forums.sailboatowners.com/in...-for-the-c-22-pics.171795/page-3#post-1221713

Scroll down to the "How To Buy New Sails" article in a post by DrJudyB. It stands out pretty good, Should be easy to find.
That has the questions you should be asked plus a lot of other info.
That thread has a lot of posts in it and some are pretty technical but the ones by Judy are pretty informative. If nothing else, read that article. If you have plenty of time, read the whole thread. You'll find that you are not the only one confused by the choices but her article sums it up pretty well.
I've already copied that list of questions and put in the answers so I don't forget anything when asked.

In a email conversation with Judy she explained that having OEM specs was only good for a pricing comparison. Be concerned about anyone who doesn't ask for measurements. Too many manufacturers may change mast and boom parts during production. That is where I went wrong.
 
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