I would like to understand more about a sail that came with my Hunter 170

[ShoreFun]

So I bought a Hunter 170 back in September for a very good price.

My first boat and I am just learning sailing stuff.

The boat came with an asymmetrical spinnaker. Now I know to run a spinnaker on this boat they have a kit to put a pole forward and some blocks on the sides and such. The boat did not come with these parts.

Best I can tell it is a new never used sail. It is a North Sail brand. The clew to head is 18' long, the tack to head is 10.5' long and the clew to tack is 10.5' long.

In the North Sail bag it came in there is a tag with a hand written CD-1.

Yes, I just learned to know it is asymmetric because the sides are different length.

I did some basic searches and did not find anything to tell me much. I found it seems to be a bit smaller then what would be found on a Catalina 22, based on some used sail info.

Keep in mind I am not looking to sell it and certainly not try and use it. I will need to figure out how to basically sail with my 2 younger boys first.

I am just curious if anyone can make further comments about what it fits, is it likely a correct sail for my 170?

Thanks

[sanibel sailor]

Head goes to the top of mast, tack at deck at bow, clew has sheet tied to it. I think you have the nomenclature mixed up.

However, those dimensions do not sound like a spinnaker. Spinnakers are usually 2 long and one short side. Like 18/16/10 if asymmetric. Light material, not much heavier than a garbage bag. Typically colorful. Baggy and cannot be laid out flat without lots of wrinkles/folds.

Pictures would help.

[Royal_Wulff]

Maybe it is "CDI" rather than CD1. Cruising Design International

[chris mac]

There is another forum called sailboatowners dot Com
It is more dedicated to the smaller racer type sail boats and there are a lot of hunter owners there.
I would recommend asking the same question there.

[Cpt Mark]

Easiest way to identify it is to take it a sailmakers loft and ask them. They will usually evaluate it for free as well if you wish. They will also tell you what to do with it.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by ShoreFun

Best I can tell it is a new never used sail. It is a North Sail brand. The clew to head is 18' long, the tack to head is 10.5' long and the clew to tack is 10.5' long.

Are you sure? I am struggling to see this as a triangle you could sail with. Might the head to the tack be 18' ?

Pete

[Yellowtulip]

The leech would be the longest side (clew to head) surely? But the foot and luff almost the same length? Very strange. Could it be a mizzen staysail off another boat?

[jen1722terry]

It could be a small cruising chute, or flasher. If so, no pole is required.

We have one and it is handy for light air locations like the Chesapeake Bay.

Maybe contact Hunter and see if the size make sense for your 17-foot boat.

If you can use it, it can be a godsend in light air. Pretty easy to fly and avoids the spinnaker pole which can be a bit dangerous if you don't know how to use it.

[newhaul]

Measurements match up to a chute
https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/hunter-170

[ShoreFun]

I should add that the sail has the corners well labeled in large letters Clew, Tack, and Head.

Also there is a reenforced grommet in the center. It has the 3 pointed 'star' as commonly found on spinnakers.

Both the sail and the bag are made by North Sails.

I am the third owner of the boat. The original owner of the boat had bought a nice cover for the boat that could be put on with the mast up. It also came with the mainsail cover. The second owner said it came with the sail, but he never used it.

It is not important. I was appealing to a wide audience as I did not know if there was someone out there that would look at the info and just know.

I plan on getting out and learn to sail with two normal sails. Maybe as I get more experienced I might figure a way to try this sail.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by ShoreFun

I should add that the sail has the corners well labeled in large letters Clew, Tack, and Head.

Also there is a reenforced grommet in the center. It has the 3 pointed 'star' as commonly found on spinnakers..

Like this?

[ShoreFun]

Originally Posted by Pete7

Like this?

yes.

That is the basic design.

[Pete7]

Good, but I am still struggling to make sense of the measurements, you might need to lay it out and measure it again. Your forestay is about 20ft or so which would fit with a head to tack of 18ft.

Since its a fun sail, grab a friend and go out on a very calm day and fly it. Off the wind I find ours does provide quite a bit of drive in light winds.

[Suijin]

You don’t need a sprit off the bow to use the sail. The point of a sprit is to give the sail more open slot room in front of the main and to make it easier to gybe around the fore stay, but it’s not required.

When you get comfortable with the boat, take it out on a light wind day and play with the kite to figure it out. Will be fun off the wind.

The grommet in the middle is for a light line to aid in take downs. It’s use is optional and I’d recommend going without just to keep complexity down.