I am going to get a new set of sails for my 26s and now have a hank on jib. What does it take to convert to a wire luff? Any thots?
Wire luff jib versus Hank on
- Thread starter Jansen
- Start date
- Status
You said a headsail with a wire luff can also have hanks, that's great news. You mean I can get the new wire luff jib and put hanks on it for immediate use on my fore stay as currently set up. Later I can add the furler (like a Harken small boat setup).
I had a wire luff on a 15' Mutineer that has a Harken furler drum and swivel with a block at the top of the mast and a hyfield tensioner down the mast. Can I just use the turnbuckle for tensioning?
I had a wire luff on a 15' Mutineer that has a Harken furler drum and swivel with a block at the top of the mast and a hyfield tensioner down the mast. Can I just use the turnbuckle for tensioning?
ps The sail will be brand new and I have a choice of ordering a hank on or a wire luff, same cost.
I'm confused too.
my UK jib (and genoa), have a wire in the luff, and its a hank on.
(I thought thats the way they came)
my UK jib (and genoa), have a wire in the luff, and its a hank on.
(I thought thats the way they came)
Still learning the lingo
Made me look. I did not know what a hank or luff was. Had to crack open the "Sailing For Dummies" book. Still new to all the sailing lingo. Now I know that I have a hank on my jib.
I still pull the main up with a rope, Oops, Halyard. LOL!
Made me look. I did not know what a hank or luff was. Had to crack open the "Sailing For Dummies" book. Still new to all the sailing lingo. Now I know that I have a hank on my jib.
I still pull the main up with a rope, Oops, Halyard. LOL!
wire luffs
The use of a flexible wire in the luff of a headsail is a common practice, often paired with hanks or some other method of attaching to the forestay. I have removed the wire from some sails, and modified others to still work with the wire. The reason is that the wire will never shrink, but sail material does over time. Just like the problems encountered with bolt ropes, and the difference in shrink rate between the rope material and the sail material, headsails with luff wires with some years on them will often suffer shape problems. On a sail that has shrunk in relation to a wire luff, you can see a lot of slack in the luff wire when the headsail is tensioned by the halyard, and I mean a lot....
This is not about sail strength, as many sails are made without wire in the luff. Sails that I have removed the wire from look good and are strong enough afterward. If fact, I haven't got a good reason to put a wire luff in a sail. Many sails from performance to cruising do not have a wire luff.
I am sure that if you are buying a new sail, and you insist on a wire in the luff, the loft will oblige you. It might be that the wire will fit into a foil if you plan on installing roller furling, but then again it might be too small. You can also kink the wire in storage, and your sail will not store as compactly with a wire luff.
I have done a mod to wire luff sails where I install a strap at the bottom of the sail, that allows adjustment of the luff tension, after the halyard pulls the wire luff tight. So now what was the question?
The use of a flexible wire in the luff of a headsail is a common practice, often paired with hanks or some other method of attaching to the forestay. I have removed the wire from some sails, and modified others to still work with the wire. The reason is that the wire will never shrink, but sail material does over time. Just like the problems encountered with bolt ropes, and the difference in shrink rate between the rope material and the sail material, headsails with luff wires with some years on them will often suffer shape problems. On a sail that has shrunk in relation to a wire luff, you can see a lot of slack in the luff wire when the headsail is tensioned by the halyard, and I mean a lot....
This is not about sail strength, as many sails are made without wire in the luff. Sails that I have removed the wire from look good and are strong enough afterward. If fact, I haven't got a good reason to put a wire luff in a sail. Many sails from performance to cruising do not have a wire luff.
I am sure that if you are buying a new sail, and you insist on a wire in the luff, the loft will oblige you. It might be that the wire will fit into a foil if you plan on installing roller furling, but then again it might be too small. You can also kink the wire in storage, and your sail will not store as compactly with a wire luff.
I have done a mod to wire luff sails where I install a strap at the bottom of the sail, that allows adjustment of the luff tension, after the halyard pulls the wire luff tight. So now what was the question?
The wire in the luff of the sail (usually a #6 luff tape on smaller 26' boats) is for feeding the sail into a foil of a roller furler. If there is a furler on your forestay I cannot imagine how you would attach hanks without removing it and the sail may not furl very well around the foil with hanks along the luff. I would think that you either get one or the other depending on which system you use but not both on the same sail.
The hanks are easy to put on and take off. So I am leaning on getting the wire luff so I can use it with a Harken small boat furler later but put hanks on it now to use on my existing forestay. If I get a rope luff I can't use it with a furler.
- Status