The discussion is excerpted from our conversation. One of the subjects he covered was trying out different types of seafaring rigs for a newly built wooden sailboat which could easily apply to a self-built wooden Trimaran. The going with article will lead us through the subject Making and testing sailing chicago rigs.
Should a new sailboat builder simply purchase rigging and sails? You know, it depends. Some plans, such as Chris Ostlinder's A18T trimaran, tend to be "high-tech."You can read about the A18T on the Duckworks website. These plans call for fittings and have stressed on things that are similar to what you see on Hobie Cats and things.
Dry Your Headsail before you Stow It: Mold and mildew love to bed down in a moist fold of Dacron or Nylon. Cut these ugly outlaws down before they stain your costly sails. Dry your sails before you bag them when you get back to the dock. Hoist the headsail or mainsail on a light air day for a few minutes. This dries your sail fast and easy without the fuss of looking for a shore side method.
Fold Your Sails to Sustain Life: Stuff a sail in a bag underway makes perfect sense. But once you get in, pull it out and do it right. Use the flaking method. Start at the foot, reach up and pull down a fold. Continue this all the way to the head. On high-tech Mylar sails, roll the sail up like a sausage from foot to head. Folding or rolling helps keep the delicate coating on the sail surface intact.
But the first three years of this boat's life it had Polytarp sails. There is no big difference to me, performance wise, between the professionally made "real" sails it has now and the polytarp sails we originally used. The poly tarp worked just fine. Many people turn up their noses at poly tarp as a sail making material.
Running or reaching is the sailing term for traveling downwind and depending on the angle of the mainsail about the wind, determines if you are running or reaching. If running, the position of the mainsail is approximately 90 degrees to the center line of the hull. However, if you are reaching, then the mainsail is at an angle less than 90 degrees about the wind.
You can even tape pieces of tarp together at first. Then go back and sew them later if you want ... Or just leave them taped together. Another great thing about poly tarp is that you can try different things to create different types of sails. You can add shape to different sails by way of "darts." There is a great essay on the Duckworks website about cutting "darts" in sails to give them shape.
It recommends a series of small darts around the perimeter. That works very well on small sails. There are different techniques to use for all kinds of sails. To create a professional sail, a sail maker will use "broad seaming" to give it an airfoil type of shape. They'll use a series of panels, which are sewn together in such a way as to create the shape they want.
Should a new sailboat builder simply purchase rigging and sails? You know, it depends. Some plans, such as Chris Ostlinder's A18T trimaran, tend to be "high-tech."You can read about the A18T on the Duckworks website. These plans call for fittings and have stressed on things that are similar to what you see on Hobie Cats and things.
Dry Your Headsail before you Stow It: Mold and mildew love to bed down in a moist fold of Dacron or Nylon. Cut these ugly outlaws down before they stain your costly sails. Dry your sails before you bag them when you get back to the dock. Hoist the headsail or mainsail on a light air day for a few minutes. This dries your sail fast and easy without the fuss of looking for a shore side method.
Fold Your Sails to Sustain Life: Stuff a sail in a bag underway makes perfect sense. But once you get in, pull it out and do it right. Use the flaking method. Start at the foot, reach up and pull down a fold. Continue this all the way to the head. On high-tech Mylar sails, roll the sail up like a sausage from foot to head. Folding or rolling helps keep the delicate coating on the sail surface intact.
But the first three years of this boat's life it had Polytarp sails. There is no big difference to me, performance wise, between the professionally made "real" sails it has now and the polytarp sails we originally used. The poly tarp worked just fine. Many people turn up their noses at poly tarp as a sail making material.
Running or reaching is the sailing term for traveling downwind and depending on the angle of the mainsail about the wind, determines if you are running or reaching. If running, the position of the mainsail is approximately 90 degrees to the center line of the hull. However, if you are reaching, then the mainsail is at an angle less than 90 degrees about the wind.
You can even tape pieces of tarp together at first. Then go back and sew them later if you want ... Or just leave them taped together. Another great thing about poly tarp is that you can try different things to create different types of sails. You can add shape to different sails by way of "darts." There is a great essay on the Duckworks website about cutting "darts" in sails to give them shape.
It recommends a series of small darts around the perimeter. That works very well on small sails. There are different techniques to use for all kinds of sails. To create a professional sail, a sail maker will use "broad seaming" to give it an airfoil type of shape. They'll use a series of panels, which are sewn together in such a way as to create the shape they want.
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