Mainsail pack above or below boom?

[rbyham]

So I am ordering a sail pack for my Catalina 36. Working with Leesailcovers. One of my concerns is that sometimes sail packs end up looking baggy like a pair of old socks. To avoid that I am thinking it better to make circumference measurements around the flaked sail and NOT incorporate the boom. I have slugs on my main sail foot which would still accommodate the straps that hold the bottom of the pack on and then the top is held by lazy jacks. I am afraid that if I send in measurements which go beneath the boom that the pack may appear more like a bag than a pack. Also the packs that run beneath the boom seem more prone to sag.

Would love to hear from anyone who has had experience. This is my first sail pack on a new to me boat and I miss my previous furling main :-)

[Smokeys Kitchen]

Don't know what to say - ours is above the boom held in place by lazy jacks as was our previous boat. The lazy jacks can be raised or lowered to facilitate setting or striking the sail. The sail pretty much stays on top when the lazy jacks are snugged up.

Don't recall having seen one with the stack pack below the boom

[barnakiel]

Ours was above the boom. Worked well.


b.

[Windpilot]

On my Hunter i changed to a loose footed main and the stack packs "boltrope" fits onto the boom.
I have not ever noticed a stack pack going under the boom.
As far as saggy bags the key is the actual lazy jack installation be done right. Pulled up tight it's tight, having it a bit looser can (in my case and most I believe) widen the opening spreading the Jack's for raising the main for less batton hangup.
I spent more time worrying about my reefing lines, just told my sailmaker to make the bag big enough to hold a new sail one day
This setup works for me and I still have enough room for that new sail. Haha

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by Smokeys Kitchen

Don't know what to say - ours is above the boom held in place by lazy jacks as was our previous boat. The lazy jacks can be raised or lowered to facilitate setting or striking the sail. The sail pretty much stays on top when the lazy jacks are snugged up.

Don't recall having seen one with the stack pack below the boom

Originally Posted by Windpilot

...
I have not ever noticed a stack pack going under the boom.

Guys, I think OP is just asking how to measure the volume that the sail takes up so that the guys over seas make the right size.

To the OP, do a drawing of how the main looks folded on the boom and send it to the overseas sailmaker, telling them your concern and asking them how to measure it. If you don't get a good answer or they don't seem to understand your question then you can't really count on being pleased with what they come up with, can you?

This is part of the issue of buying from overseas suppliers, you're taking all the responsibility for the measurements and specifications to save some money. It's what I do too, and I have won some lost some. Just don't be surprised with the outcome.

[JPA Cate]

On top of the boom.

Fwiw, I'd add a couple of inches to the circumference at the greatest part, to allow for the fact that the sail doesn't always come down exactly the same, plus new sail cloth is stiffer than old sail cloth, and takes up more room. Not enough to make it baggy, but you do need a little "ease". Or, I suppose you could measure it when first dropped and not yet flaked. If you obsess on the tidiness aspect, it will be a bear to use, and really, you want it easy.

If I build another boom bag for this boat, I am going to use a lengthwise insert of black Breezeway (like Phifertex) on each side at the bottom, both for air circulation, and for drainage when it rains. We used grommets for drainage on this one, and they work okay. I don't like getting soaked when we put up the main. We do not use a bimini.

Good luck with your project.

Ann

[tombeau]

Our stack pack slides into a channel that is riveted onto each side of the boom, so there are no straps underneath. The lazy jacks need to be relaxed just a little to raise and lower the main, and more to allow some sail shape on reaches. We snug them tighter once the sail is down and the pack looks very trim. I agree with asking the sailmaker how to get measurements, and then maybe adding an inch or two.

[Clivevon]

"Our stack pack slides into a channel that is riveted onto each side of the boom, so there are no straps underneath."
Mine too. Nice & neat. There is a bolt rope on the port & starboard sides of the stack pack which slides into the channel on the boom. Some other pointers:
You might want to consider whether the stack pack zip runs forward to aft, or vice versa, or each end into the middle. Because we have a bimini under the boom we needed to tie a short length of cord onto the zipper so we could reach it - eventually that got caught up in the reefing pennant & got inside the boom where it jammed the reefing line.... It was a job to get it out.
When raising the mainsail your sail battens can very easily get caught under the lazyjacks. Make sure your lazyjack lines are long enough to let you release them & bring them all forward to the mast to hook under the cleat where you normally secure the ends. This will make raising the mainsail much easier on those occasions when you cannot get exactly head to wind & raise the sail real quick.
Leave some slack in the lazyjacks in use so they dont cripple the shape of your sail.
Incorporating some drainage netting into the bottom of your stackpack is a real good idea.
Think about the bonnet which fits over the front of the stackpack & round the mast to protect the front of the mainsail from UV. Make that nice & quick to secure using velcro or multiple straps & clips - you dont want to be messing around with ties.
We frap our halyards etc in place to stop them banging on the mast. On my boat we put a sail tie around the top of the bonnet to take the strain on the sail tie, not the bonnet material.

[Clivevon]

By the way, "looking baggy like an old pair of socks" means they are correctly adjusted - see all above. Unless you want to tighten up the tension on your lazyjacks every time you lower the main then ease it every time you raise it..?

[Clivevon]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...

[dennismenace111]

Wouldn't the mainsheet and Vang get in the way if under the boom?