Hi George,
Agree completely on all points in your recent essay on purchasing new sails sooner rather than later and am glad you wrote about it. I am no racer, but I have a fine sailing boat and I like to sail and sail well. And sailing well is a pleasure that too many cruising sailors put on the back burner and do not put much effort towards. Mostly I hear “I am not racing” or “it is too much bother” when it comes to keeping their boat moving efficiently. This is a shame.
And, I would argue, that the expense difference is not all that great in the long run if you care even a little bit about sail shape. Dacron sails just lose their shape sooner even if the integrity of the sail material/stitching etc. remains strong and leads to many a cruising sailor holding onto sails beyond their useful sailing life.
I went with HydraNet Radial and after six seasons of many miles and a high latitude crossing of the Atlantic, their shape remains pretty close to original design shape. I believe I will never go back to Dacron.
I will say that, in my experience, too many lofts (and their sails-people) are dominated by racing sailors (mostly young) who have little or no knowledge of cruising and push laminate sails. I am out of that loop, but casual observation still leads me to think laminate sails are more problematic on most cruising boats.
HydraNet is a woven cloth (and the radial cloth offers much flexibility to get the strength in the correct places). It has many other attributes.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy
Hi George –
We have a Hunter 380 with an in-mast furler that had the original sail. Have owned the boat for a couple of years now and the sail never furled easily because it was old and fat. In fact, it would jam at the least opportune time which could be dangerous.
I ordered a new main from the guys at Mack Sails and immediately noticed a HUGE difference in how easily it furled in. Performance improvement for sure, but for me this is a giant relief knowing the sail will function properly when we furl in and out.
Best regards,
Tom Martin
St. Augustine, FL
