Questions re. Precision Sails and Contender ZL Code Zero laminate

[CaptainPete222]

The Code 0 on my Lagoon 39 delaminated to the point where fixing it may not even be possible and, even if possible, would be putting good money into bad. Precision Sails has a good price and great turnaround time. Hoping for feedback from others in this group who purchased sails from this company in the last few years about sail quality, timing of delivery, and customer service. They make their Code 0s out of “Contender ZL Code Zero laminate.” I would also be interested I hearing from others who have a sail made out of this laminate how well it’s held up.

[Pete7]

How old is the sail?

Pete

[CaptainPete222]

Originally Posted by Pete7

How old is the sail?

Pete

The sail that delaminated that I’m getting rid of? 6 years. Why?

[PippaB]

There was a thread on Precision only a few weeks ago. If I were to weigh the responses, a few very negative people and a larger number positive. Read through the whole thread and make your own analysis.

[CaptainPete222]

Originally Posted by PippaB

There was a thread on Precision only a few weeks ago. If I were to weigh the responses, a few very negative people and a larger number positive. Read through the whole thread and make your own analysis.

Thanks. That’s pretty helpful on my first question, but there isn’t any mention of people’s experiences with the type of laminate they use.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by CaptainPete222

The sail that delaminated that I’m getting rid of? 6 years. Why?

What did the manufacturer say when you contacted them?

Pete

[SurlySailor]

I’ve had two kites made by Precision and a few kites made by local sailmakers in the states. My perspective is you end up getting what you pay for (my precision Asym was delayed for all of last summer and it was kind of an endless game of me following up before it showed up) I understand there were supply chain issues but I ordered a kite at the same time from a US loft and I had full transparency and it showed up 4 weeks later.

Material wise the Precision sails are made much much heavier than US counterparts and all of the hardware is cheaper / heavier. My sailmaker looked at one of the sails and said these re enforcement patches are made for a boat 3x your size. All that extra material probably makes it durable but results in a sail about 2-3 times as heavy as a competing higher priced sail.

Now all of that said, the precision product is fine for what you pay comparing quotes their sails are about half price. If your just cruising, or casually using it then it’s an amazing deal. If you want a really high quality sail or are racing with it, then I would say get someone local to make you a really nice sail. The code zero is one of those sails where local knowledge of your conditions and boat setup will make the difference of a few extra degrees pointing on those light wind days when you are trying to get the performance out of it. It’s not a sail I would want cut incorrectly for the boat.

[Rubicon King]

Precision has great product, but they too, screwed me around for over 4 months…delay after delay and I had to follow up to pressure them. Finally received the sail, but missed two big sails because of their delays

[sail sfbay]

Replaced my cross-cut dacron sails with tri-radial Contender CDX Pro Grey 9 (40%) / CDX Pro Grey 11 (60%) polyester laminate sails last year with off-shore construction (extra reinforcement, extra stiching, Sunvrella UV cover sewn with tenara thread.

[The Perfessor]

I've purchased two sails from Precision (in the last two years) and have been very happy. In full transparency, I am not a racer. I just needed some nice sails for cruising. I had good experience with their customer service, contact, etc. I ordered my sail in September (end of my season) and they told me it would be delivered in February. I received it early December, two month before their delivery date. I am getting ready to order another one for a second boat, again for cruising. My sails were really old, so when I put on the new ones, it made a huge difference in handling and speed for the better. That could be that my old sails were just so bad, but for the price and what I got, I've been very happy. Also, I wasn't on any deadline because I ordered at the end of my season, so I was fine waiting to receive them. We'll see how my next one goes and I'll let you know.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by CaptainPete222

The Code 0 on my Lagoon 39 delaminated to the point where fixing it may not even be possible and, even if possible, would be putting good money into bad. Precision Sails has a good price and great turnaround time. Hoping for feedback from others in this group who purchased sails from this company in the last few years about sail quality, timing of delivery, and customer service. They make their Code 0s out of “Contender ZL Code Zero laminate.” I would also be interested I hearing from others who have a sail made out of this laminate how well it’s held up.

Regarding the laminate itself:

The Contender ZL laminates are of modern, taffata covered (one side, I believe), mylar film with black aramid load bearing fibers construction. The modern laminates from all cloth manufacturers are improved but you will still, ultimately, experience delamination issues. Six years of heavy use before failure should not be considered unusual. Contender Sailcloth is a leading sailcloth manufacturer.

[NorthCoastJoe]

I got a main a headsail for my Pearson 30 from Precision Sails. Great response time any time I called and no problems talking to the designers.
The headsail was perfect, the main had 4 slides that needed to get changed and were handled quickly by a local loft that Precision contacted.

I ordered the Off-Shore package that gave me heavier sails and more renforcement. You can choose your weight of material.
I am not a racer but we do push the boat and go out in all weather. So far I am very happy the boat moves well and the sails are better than I expected.

In a year I will report how the sails have held up.

From the other thread all the people bad mouthing Precision Sails seemed to have never ordered or owned sails made by them.

[GSpencerCat30]

I just ordered sails from Precision Sails for my Catalina 30. I asked about some of the comments I've seen about late delivery times last year. They acknowledged that last spring's demand for sails and the disruption to the supply chain made it their must difficult season. They said this spring the supply chain is better, however shipping rates are more.

I looked at the Code Zero but decided to go with a Asym to start. My research into the Contender Sailcloth ZL cloth was positive. Very light, strong and built for the apparent winds acting on a code zero. https://www.contendersailcloth.com/p...o-laminate-us/