Making a Gennaker out of a Spinnaker.

[s/v Beth]

Been looking at my old Spinnaker. To make it work as a Gennaker, it looks like I just need to cut one corner slightly(well, cut the leach and foot ) in and reinforce- is that right? Could I make a Asymetrical with just a couple hours sewing and some careful reshaping?
That would sure save some bucks.

[sartorst]

Talk to a sail maker first when I asked them to do that to mine he said that I would not be happy with it

[eyschulman]

second that. I occasionally make sails and what you want to do is possible but would call for radical changes in seam and draft allocation easier to start from scratch. It is actually easy to make a rip stop sail even with a home sewing machine since the light crumply material is easy to work with. You can get a kit from Sailright all the panels are pre cut and marked with easy instructions to follow.

[UNCIVILIZED]

In layman's terms, more or less, the difference in cut/design, between an assy, & a standard kite, is like the difference between a dress designed to show cleavage up the mid-line, & one which has full "cups". So making such a change isn't the world's easiest task.

You realize that if a standard kite is long enough along the leech (either one), that you can fly it sans pole, with a tackline to the bow or a short sprit, & also a line or collar from that "clew", going around the headstay. ATN makes a product for the latter role/purpose, called the "Tacker".

You can check it out here, including a video of same, in use. ATN Sailing Equipment | The Tacker | No Boom Spinnaker Handler Can't say that I've watched it, but perhaps it'll help you.

One Summer, 20yrs back, on vacation I brought home a kite from my Searunner (31') to play with on my Dad's Cal 29'. The shape & wind angles, obviously weren't ideal. But given that we were doing 5kts in 4-6kts of breeze, he was EXCITED. And I was real happy that I'd brought it along, as even with his 150% up, we were just drifting.
The wind was light the whole time I visited (and all summer) so bringing it was a good call. Especially as it was rediculously hot & humid, so the AWS helped a Lot with staying cool.

FYI, I just used some dacron through the anchor roller, & back to a dock cleat as a tackline. And a Wichard snap shackle around the wire headstay as a "Tacker".

If you look/pay attention, you can find used assy's. Or even approach someone who's boat's for sale, that has more than one, & offer them some $. Especially racers with a rig that's the same size as yours +/-.
That, & sometimes sailmakers have sails they made, which folks didn't pick up, etc.

[Bully]

We have done a few with success, it is a lot more than re trimming the edges, you have to open up seams and reshape. About 30% cost of a new sail so cloth needs to be pretty new.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[sanibel sailor]

I had one on a smaller boat years ago. Someone had just whacked the foot at an angle. Seemed to work OK, but I was not picky about sail shape in those days.

[GrahamHO]

I tried it once getting a sailmaker to cut the foot on an angle to make a higher clew. It didn't really work as you want to reach with a gennaker and this alteration was too full. It would work occasionally on a very very limited wind angle. It wasn't worth altering the seams to flatten it as the extra labour outweighed any savings over a new gennaker, which I then had made. I ended up putting the modified spinnaker in a sail bag for the dog to sleep on. Eventually when the dog died I buried her down the garden with the spinnaker. RIP Jessie.

[s/v Beth]

Thanks guys, I guess this is what I wanted. Saved me trying to get my old spinnaker to behave. I will just buy a used Gen with a 50 ft luff.