We've sent our 13 year old Kemp genoa to the local sailmakers to replace the UV sacraficial strip that is badly degraded. Anyway, the quoted price has triggered a conversation about whether it'd be less of a false economy to just replace it. Our Kemp Genoa is 150%, which now the boat is in northern waters just seems too big. So 2 simple questions - what percentage sail size to you all advise; and which is the sailmaker to go to for a quality Twister sail (so far I've asked Kemp, Sanders and our local sailmaker Owen Sails of Oban to quote). Thanks
l have just replaced my Kemp genoa after many repairs it did last 20 years, my boat is based in Scotland so l decided to use a local sailmaker Willy lietsch from east loch tabert, all l can say is first class workmanship at a price thats unbelievable, £ 875 for 150% sail with sail nr and uv strip, stackpack and lazy jacks fitted £420 will take some beating
I asked a similar question in 2012, being new to Twisters and needing to replace Cabrach's aging sails. The forum consensus was Sanders and he certainly produced the goods. The genoa we decided on is not 150% and is about 21 square metres, more importantly it is quite high clewed. Mine is also high tacked to clear the roller furling gear, pulpit and anchor. This doesn't appear to have affected performance except perhaps in very light airs. The Sanders' service has been excellent despite my changing the headsail furling gear just after the sail had been made necessitating a new luff rope and a slight recut. Lymington is a long way from Oban, but I can definitely recommend having a look. Martin
Hi Tristan,
Last season we bought a furler, wonders will never cease! Anyway with cruising in mind we decided to go for a sail in between our racing Genny of about 145% and our Working Jib which has a high clew and virtually no overlap. This is excellent for visibility and easy short tacking but down on power in lighter airs. We settled on a 130% Vectran sail from Sanders with a foam luff for better reefed shape. All things in life are a compromise. As a purist the airflow over the foam luff annoys me but for ease of use this sail does the business! And, joy of joys, we've found that out racing Genny will also fit the furler so all is not lost.
Good luck
John
Yes we did look around the market fairly comprehensively. Settled on the most expensive ....Harken but got a really good price on it, ask me! Considerable debate over the size and we settled on the '0' model This is small and neat and not clunky. It furls the sail fine. Had it not been our intention to rig an inner forestay and use hank-ons in stronger winds we would have gone for the next size up to facilitate more sailing with the same sail heavily furled in stronger winds. Another installation consideration was clearance of the anchor shank under the drum. We measured the swept radius of the shank as it is pulled up over the roller and mounted the drum sufficiently high to clear it. Harken don't offer a suitable extension piece below drum so we designed our own from 25mm 316 bar and had it machined up to our detail. It works well and looks like it belongs there. Full details on request!
John
I would have expected no less!
By the way, soon after Rotostay stopped trading I asked the man who used to run the firm which furler he would recommend, should I ever need to replace my aged Rotostay. He recommended Harken.
I'm hoping my Rotostay will outlast me but I would be grateful for a copy of the information you offer, in case I have to buy a Harken.
Hi there, as a new owner of a twister I'm seeking some recommendations in relation to headsail sizes. I sail on Moreton Bay in winds usually between 12 and 18knots. I have a furler with a genny (not sure what size) and then a baby stay to clip on the jib but yesterday i temporarily removed the baby stay and tried to tack on the genny only to have a split pin in the spinnaker pole pull the back side out of the genny.
Anyway all that aside the sails are very tired and I need some new sails for Wednesday afternoon racing. I've seen that some on the forum run 145 - 150 and was thinking that would probably be a good option (and also get rid of the split pins on the boat), any input is much appreciated.
Thanks Scott (Casuarina)
Hi Scott,
We're cruisers who also race quite a lot. As you'll see further back in this thread our 'best' racing genny is around 145%. This has given us good overall performance and we can still carry it in F4 when pushed. Problem is that a bigger sail, whilst maybe nice in really light airs, will soon be too big and also becomes mush more of a pain once you start indulging in short tacking. The crew will not love you! We only recently bought a furler. Taking the purist view the 'hank-on' or straight foil wins for me. The convenience of the furler is something else but there's a trade off with performance and pointing ability particularly when rolled.
Good Sailing
John
Great stuff thanks for the info John. I'll give a new 145 a go on the furler and then leave the baby stay hitched to the mast and ready to go connect up if conditions rule out the genny. As the current one is ripped I've been sailing with the jib hanked on to the baby stay and the genoa furled and the performance has been average but could also have to do with my sailing ability 🙂 Anyway cheers again for the input, looking at a few different sail options including local manufacture and overseas - Fareast Sails or Rolly Tasker - have you had any experience with them? According to reviews here they are worth considering http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f124/far-east-sails-16356.html
No I have no experience of them at all. I've used 3 local sailmakers over the last 40 years. To me the chance of a 'face to face' and sorting out minor details that we want is a big plus as well as deciding on the best material. Also, if there are any problems then there's someone you can kick and get it sorted!
Have a great Christmas
John
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