Scott Abbott
Member III
knowledge and opinions needed on whether to have the new sail made with loose foot or rope footed as my existing sail is. Thanks for the advice ahead of time!
knowledge and opinions needed on whether to have the new sail made with loose foot or rope footed as my existing sail is. Thanks for the advice ahead of time!
I'm trying to figure out why all cruising mains used to have foot slugs on a track. They were a pain, hard to load, and when worn interfered with the outhaul, which was often useless anyhow.
Maybe it was roller furling, once state-of-the-art. Maybe it was some theoretical aero end-plate thing, unlikely to be persuasive in the messy air over a cruising cabin house on a heeled boat in a seaway. Maybe it was just tradition, and when sail cloth got bulletproof and computers ran the stitching that changed. Maybe with mid-boom sheeting, itself new, buyers felt there'd be more strain on the boom. Maybe it's just cheaper. Anyhow, it's now a no-brainer.
But I had the same question two years ago when ordering a new mainsail. The sailmaker, Oliver at UK here, just laughed. "You want loose footed," he said.
Outhaul now in play. Easy to take the main off. Easy to tie and release the reef points. Sail looks better, too, more like a Laser than a square-rigger.
Cool picture, Christian! I think I know that guy. He has a hard time keeping crew, though, with the way he uses that hammer on 'em!:0