How Do You Tell What Weight Sail Cloth You Have?

[Stillraining]

Well as the title suggests how do you tell?..

OK no wise cracks about cutting a squar yard out of the middel of my sails to find out either..

[daddle]

Why? The sailmaker will suggest the weight. I think the actual values are marketing BS anyway...no relation to an actual weight.

[Stillraining]

Huh??

No sense buying a sail I already own.

[forsailbyowner]

There are actual weights. You could get some scraps of various weights and do a rough comparison. If the sail is old it will have lost weight and probably not look or feel like the weight it started as.

[daddle]

Well...I recall my sailmaker mumbling something about a Challenge 9.18 ounce actually being something else and such but behaves like the old 9 blah blah blah.

Like I said before: Why? If you tell a sailmaker you want a light #3 genoa for boat X they will recommend the right cloth. They can guess by feel, too.

[s/v Beth]

Still, I have a book I will bring up next week. There are many variables in sailcloth, one of the least important is weight. It was written by one of your locals- "The sailmakers apprentice" He takes about 3-4 pages on the subject.
Outstanding book.

[Stillraining]

Thanks Guys

Newt I will be out of town next week end..

[s/v Beth]

Still, I think you do this on purpose
I will be off and on for the next month. Ya telling me you will gone for a month??

[Stillraining]

Contacts my people and they will get ahold of your people..

[forsailbyowner]

Best comprehensive book on sail evolution, theory, material evolution,construction repair and maintenance I've read, The Art and Science of Sails.