New Sails
Having replaced both the mizzen and genoa before the start
of the 2004 season I decided at the end of the season that the main really could
do with being replaced.
The mainsail being the original sail supplied new with the
boat was after many years of hard use by various outward bound schools showing
signs of age and wear. The sail cloth was worn, stitching was starting to come
undone and the leach panels had lost their shape to the extent that the top
panel flapped in the wind no matter how tightly the sail was tensioned.
In addition to the standard main which is a Lugsail I
ordered a smaller Bermudan cut sail that we could use in windier conditions in
lieu of the Lugsail. The idea for a Bermudan rigged sail came after talking to
Jim Hopwood who had a similar sail made by R&J Sails for his Gig “Hippo”.
I ordered both sails from R&J Sails who had previously
made the mizzen and jib sails and both covers for Tra Bhui as well as the sails
for our previous boat – Lugger “Braveheart”.
R&J Sails are one of the few companies that specialise in Drascombe
sails. Their sails are of excellent quality and are offered with a number of
different cut options.
Sails which I ordered were:-
Mainsail –
Classic cut Lugsail, with 2 No additional rows of reefing points and 2 clew
pockets
Storm Main –
Bermudan cut with 2 clew pockets
Having ordered the sail in September 2014, I agreed to delay
delivery until February 2015 as R&J were moving to new premises over the
winter and we were in no rush for the sails.
In February before they started making the sails R&J
asked me to confirm some additional measurements which had not been requested
when we ordered. This request coincided with me being abroad so it fell to Kathleen
to get the sails out of the loft in the boatshed, measure the lug sail and send
the dimensions to R&J.
Unfortunately the sail sizes (which were measured correctly)
did not correspond to the original pattern for the sail and so the length of
the yard was also required. This further delayed the sails as measuring the yard
had to wait until I was back in the UK in March as it was locked up with the
mast and some other spars.
The sails are due for delivery within the next two days so they should be waiting for me when I get home on Tuesday.
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| And they came! |
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| Fist fitting of the mainsail to the yard |
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| Lengths of bamboo delivered to make whisper poles from |
