[C320-list] Thoughts on Sails

[Allan S Field]

Jeff - I can only opine on the Strong Track.  Others may have a different experience with this but mine was not great.  If standing at the mast and pulling the main halyard, my 5-year-old-at-the-time grandson could easily pull the sail all the way up; it was that smooth.  >From the cockpit is a different story, at least on #808.  The halyard run from the bottom of the mast back to the traveler and then back to the rope clutch and then to the winch is not a straight line which introduced a lot of friction.  Bottom line is that I still needed to use the winch to get the sail all the way up.  So for me, the expense was not worth it; if I needed to winch part of the way up, I might as well winch all the way is my thinking now.

We did have a fully battened (4 battens) mainsail and a 150 genoa with a rope luff that was just wonderful when reefed.  We also had an A-Sym in a sock which was a lot of fun to sail, and a bit of work to set-up, but is only really safe to use in under about 12 knots of apparent wind.  And it's not a downwind sail.  It's most effective from about 60 to about 150 degrees of apparent wind.  If you do go this route, I'd really suggest getting the ATN Tacker also.

Hope this helps!

Allan S. Field
Sea Shadow - C387, #103 (formerly C320, #808)
Columbia, MD

-----Original Message-----
From: C320-list [mailto:c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com] On Behalf Of Jeff Smith
Sent: Monday, November 26, 2018 5:36 PM
To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
Subject: [C320-list] Thoughts on Sails

To all,

I am contemplating purchasing a new main sail and a new Genoa. I would like to benefit from the collective wisdom of the group, if you would be kind enough to share.

Currently, Sailmates has a 155% Genoa that will be 18 years old next year. The Main will also be 18 years old next year. It seems like this is about the extent of the useable life of a sail, but I could be mistaken. Mainly we daysail or cruise for the weekend, though I hope to expand my reach to the Bahamas and up the coast to New England. [Side note – I have all of Spring 2019 available for a passage to the Bahamas if anyone is interested in a trip. Seriously, let me know because I would love to travel down, but I do not have blue water experience.]

My questions include: 1. Has anyone installed a Strong/Tides Track system? If so, did you find it worth the expense? If you installed it but did not find it worth the expense, what are the negative issues? 2. Quantum Sails has recommended that I could get much of the benefit of the Strong/Tides Track by going to a 2+2 (upper full battens only) system with AllSlip slides for the Main. Does anyone have any experience with either AllSlip slides or a 2 batten main sail system? They also suggested that I could use Bainbridge Railman receptacles with a stainless steel universal joint, which is part of the Strong/Tides track system. Any thoughts here? 3. They recommended that I do not go bigger than a 140% Genoa for boat balance. Any thoughts on this? I will say that when we first bought the boat we would regularly roll out the full 155%, but now I tend to keep the Genoa above the lifelines.

I know there are a lot of questions above, so I appreciate any and all opinions. By the way, the price quote for a CrossCut CW 2000 Main with 2 reefs and 4 battens is $3,056 after a 15% discount. The 140% Genoa with Foam Luff, Spreader Patches, and UV Cover is $2,400 after the discount. So that is $5,500 for the two sails, which seems pricey, but less than the quote from an Ullman sail loft (and only about $800 more than the previous boat owner paid in 2001). I also priced an asymmetrical spinnaker ($2,500 with dousing sleeve), but I am not sure how much we would use this.

Thanks,

Jeff
S/V Sailmates, 94 #121