Newby question

[Bronco_lvr]

Just purchased a 25' American sail boat this summer and learning to sail. Took it out twice, ripped the main sail both times after an hour or so sailing. I believe my mistake was i forgot to unhook the boom from the rear stay. I will try and get my sail repaired but also want to buy a spare. American boats seem kind of rare, can I use a sail that is close in size? My current sail measures 9'2 on the foot, does it have to be that or smaller? I understand it can't be way off but would a 10' foot sail work?

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Bronco_lvr

Just purchased a 25' American sail boat this summer and learning to sail. Took it out twice, ripped the main sail both times after an hour or so sailing. I believe my mistake was i forgot to unhook the boom from the rear stay. I will try and get my sail repaired but also want to buy a spare. American boats seem kind of rare, can I use a sail that is close in size? My current sail measures 9'2 on the foot, does it have to be that or smaller? I understand it can't be way off but would a 10' foot sail work?

G'Day Bronco,

Leaving the boom tethered to the backstay can surely add to sail loading, but I suspect that the sailcloth has been exposed to too much UV over its lifetime. This damages the dacron threads that make up the cloth, and it can become extremely weak. If the cloth was at full strength I expect that the boat would have been knocked down before the sail tore. Repairing such a sail is not likely to be successful.

At any rate, a replacement sail needs to have dimensions that are the same as or slightly smaller than the original. You will need the length of the luff as well as the foot, and look for fairly close matches. If a good match proves hard to find, you could go a foot or more shorter on the hoist and perhaps half of that on the foot without too big a performance loss.

There are numerous companies that sell used sails. Bacon & Associates in Annapolis is one top firm, and there are several others. Google would find them if you ask! In the past, I found Bacon to be quite realistic in their descriptions of the sails I bought, and I suspect the others to be similar.

Good luck in finding a suitable sail, and in your continuing sailing experiences.

Jim

PS Welcome to CF!

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Bronco_lvr

Just purchased a 25' American sail boat this summer and learning to sail. Took it out twice, ripped the main sail both times after an hour or so sailing. I believe my mistake was i forgot to unhook the boom from the rear stay. I will try and get my sail repaired but also want to buy a spare. American boats seem kind of rare, can I use a sail that is close in size? My current sail measures 9'2 on the foot, does it have to be that or smaller? I understand it can't be way off but would a 10' foot sail work?

Bronco now here is some advice from a real Newby. ( my name really is Newby)
Your sail loading would stress things however as stated before the sail was exposed to lots of UV .
Now a sail a bit smaller will work however one bigger won't work without being cut down by a sail loft.

[Bronco_lvr]

Thankyou for the responses, that is what i thought about the size concern, and I was afraid the sail was bad, although both times it ripped the wind fairly light...

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Bronco.

[Badsanta]

Once you know the size you will be able to locate a used one