Actually, one more question for folks. I have not seen a clew/foot arrangement like the one on the new-to-me sail. It has what appears to be a foot rope running the length of the foot, but it has a separate slug connected to the clew itself (which I have only seen on open-footed sails). Am I right in interpreting is likely still a closed-footed sail? Photo attached.
Troubleshooting mainsail trim
- Thread starter piratesnail
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Yes, based on where that bolt rope is I think so. My guess is the slug is there to help keep the corner load on the clew ring and not the back end of the bolt rope.
Yes, it does. The old sail had a foot rope. The presence of the slug just confused me, but the explanation that it is there to manage loads on the foot rope makes sense to me. Thanks!
My old North Sails attached foot main, that came with the boat when I acquired it, had both a bolt rope and a robust slider lashed to the clew. It was a pretty high quality sail (as most North Sails products are) with three reefs, leather reinforced corner patches, draft stripes, and believe it or not, a "shelf foot".... which is an additional lightweight panel of cloth sewn in along the sail's foot. The cloth panel expands (unfolds) when the outhaul is released, allowing the sail's "belly" to expand dramatically... just as it does on a loose foot mainsail. When the outhaul is trimmed to depower the sail, the panel folds into the foot... literally disappearing as the sail flattens.
The purpose of mentioning the shelf foot is this: Most of the "load" on the mainsail.... attached foot or loose foot... is at the Corners.! That's why reinforcing the corners is a common design feature. When you look at radial design sails.... the seams radiate from the corners. You'll see lighter cloth panels in the middle areas between the corners.....and heavier stronger cloth from the corners toward the center of the sail... So... adding a lightweight panel of cloth along the base of an attached foot sail, a shelf, would support the idea that the corners are doing most of the work. It would also make sense that adding a slug to the clew's connection to the boom isn't to help the foot' bolt rope, but it is there because the clew is where the load is and that's where the help is needed.
Just got back from a week of sail-camping on Penobscot Bay. The new-to-me sail is night-and-day better than the old sail. More speed, less heel, and more visibly responsive when I was experimenting with various sail shapes. The whole family expressed feeling so much more confident, so (a) I'm glad we decided to get the sail, (b) feel really lucky we got a used sail that fits our boat so well, and (c) feel a little foolish for having ignored the obvious solution that was staring at me for a while. Oh well - live and learn.
FWIW, I made sure to clean and lubricate the track with McLube before the trip, and we had no problem using the outhaul - things seemed to slide just fine.
Excellent report! So glad you and family enjoyed your trip. Many sailers under estimate the value of decent sails. I tire of hearing the refrain of “I don’t race, so I can sail with rags.” Yeah, you can but it just won’t be fun. I’m not saying you need modern laminate sails. Just use something that can be pretty flat and draft forward of 65%.