Forgive me if this is in the wrong place. My question has to do with selection of a replacement main. I have a 1996 H280 with a fully-battened main. I got a quote recently from a loft that sounds pretty good but only the top two battens were full. The sail loft contends that the top two battens allow for the fat roach needed for this boat and that the other battens could be partial and perform just as well. Can any of you provide insight as to the performance/trim differences? Thanks, Clark
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Either is fine
It depends on your preferance. A set of partial battens will only control the roach and leave the rest of the sail shaping out to you. Full battens will also shape the roach and provide shape to the entire sail. The down side of full battens is they tend to be hard on the luft edge where they bang against the mast. They do make the sail quieter and are great in light wind conditions where you want some draft but the wind is not quite strong enough to give it to you. the down side to partial battens is they tend to chafe the sail and will fall out unless the batten pocket is designed correctly. If you have a roach you need battens or the roach will just flap around.
It depends on your preferance. A set of partial battens will only control the roach and leave the rest of the sail shaping out to you. Full battens will also shape the roach and provide shape to the entire sail. The down side of full battens is they tend to be hard on the luft edge where they bang against the mast. They do make the sail quieter and are great in light wind conditions where you want some draft but the wind is not quite strong enough to give it to you. the down side to partial battens is they tend to chafe the sail and will fall out unless the batten pocket is designed correctly. If you have a roach you need battens or the roach will just flap around.
battens
Ive priced sails for several boats latley, some companies won't do full battens period. Some of the companies say they are finding the same amount of performance with the 2 full and 2 partial. Me, I prefer the full batten main with a dutchman system. Makes dropping the main 2 easy. Tim Welsh Hunter 34 S/V Cabo Wabo
Ive priced sails for several boats latley, some companies won't do full battens period. Some of the companies say they are finding the same amount of performance with the 2 full and 2 partial. Me, I prefer the full batten main with a dutchman system. Makes dropping the main 2 easy. Tim Welsh Hunter 34 S/V Cabo Wabo
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