Removing sail numbers...?

mmaddock

New Member
I have a Laser with a sail bearing the wrong number for the hull. The sail is in decent condition and I don't want to change it - and can't afford a new one!

I know I can buy the sail numbers from Lasersailing.com, but is it possible to remove the existing numbers from the sail, and if so, how?!

Cheers,

Matt.
 
Yes you can peel the numbers off, it's pretty simple, you just have to get something under the number and then you can just peel it up.

Tim
 
mmaddock said:
Cheers, I'll give it a go. Will it leave any residue on the sail?
Matt

Depending on what material/glue was used on the original numbers it may leave a little residue or a lot. You can try the methods shown in the link or if you have access to a big enough freezer put the sail in it for 2-3 hours then as soon as you take it out peel off the numbers...Tends to leave a whole lot less residue......
 
You may not even need to change the number. It much depends upon the level that you are racing at. I had this issue some years ago and at the club level they usually don't care if the hull and sail #s match as long as you can be certain that the same number will not apear on the startline twice.:eek:
 
rock steady said:
Simply change the hull # - it's easier ...
Please, would you be so kind and explain in details, how you would do this - and especially how this changing you will explain to the measurer for the Laser, so that he gives you a new Measurement Certificate.
Thanks
LooserLu
 
At the Masters Worlds in 2002 quite a few of us had to remove and replace our sail numbers and national letters (mine were off by about 1/8", many of us felt the measurer was a bit over-zealous). It was a frenzy of removing and replacing (and a fair amount of profanity :mad: ) the day before the first race.

We found that a mysterious substance called "Goo-Gone" worked very well to remove the residue from the numbers on the sail, and didn't seem to cause any visible damage to the sail.

I would agree that unless you are planning on racing nationals level events, just use the existing sail number. If someone else is using the number, change or remove one numeral.

Mike S
121384
 
halibut said:
At the Masters Worlds in 2002 quite a few of us had to remove and replace our sail numbers and national letters (mine were off by about 1/8", many of us felt the measurer was a bit over-zealous). It was a frenzy of removing and replacing (and a fair amount of profanity :mad: ) the day before the first race.

We found that a mysterious substance called "Goo-Gone" worked very well to remove the residue from the numbers on the sail, and didn't seem to cause any visible damage to the sail.

I would agree that unless you are planning on racing nationals level events, just use the existing sail number. If someone else is using the number, change or remove one numeral.

Mike S
121384
Wow that sucks that the measurer wouldnt let you go wih an error that tiny. And I agree that unless your sailing at a regatta that is ISAF graded or a national event it probably doesn't matter if they hull and the sail numbers are different.

And is it just me or did a new look to the website just go into effect yesterday.
 
sailor327 said:
And is it just me or did a new look to the website just go into effect yesterday.

It's a skin or style that reverts back to the default - scroll to the bottom of the page, on the left you'll see a drop down list where you can change it back to "Main- (Grey)" which is what it was.
 
If you have the "digital" numbers it is easy to change a couple of numbers, so that at least the last couple of numbers are the same on all your sails...
GWF
 
49208 said:
It's a skin or style that reverts back to the default - scroll to the bottom of the page, on the left you'll see a drop down list where you can change it back to "Main- (Grey)" which is what it was.

Thanks Thats much better I thought I was was in the SA forum for a moment:eek:
 
LooserLu said:
Please, would you be so kind and explain in details, how you would do this - and especially how this changing you will explain to the measurer for the Laser, so that he gives you a new Measurement Certificate.
Thanks
LooserLu

This would only work up to a certain level of competition without an issue. Once you get to National or ISAF Graded events I can't imagine you would have this problem in the first place.
 
Hi,
changing the number of the hull means taking away the personal identification of that hull.
I never would be so stupid, f.e. to buy any hull, no matter if it seems new or old, that not has the original builder-stamped-serial-identification-number.
Such a hull perhaps can be a stolen hull and without the original hullnumber it is not possible to investigate such an aspect.
Also, the original hullnumbers offers the chance, to get a serious information about the age of the hull. Very old hulls (first series of production in 1971) can be perhaps very worthy - but only, if there is the original hull-number at the hull.

In result of my words above I never would give serious anyone the advice to change the original hull-serialnumber. You can do what you want, its your own boat. But it would minder the worth of the boat in most cases more, if the serialnumber is changed in comparsion of making the correct serial-number to the sail.

Ciao
LooserLu

P.S.: If someone takes away the original-builder-sticker of a newer Laser-hull and glues it on a Laser(-replica-)hull he/she will definitely will be senteced by a court, if the police could catch this person here in Europe. This happened already in Italy, our district-sec told us, some years ago in 2004.
Perhaps in the outback at Australia or Russian-Taiga or in the African-/South-American-jungle this no one interests... ;)
 
LooserLu said:
P.S.: If someone takes away the original-builder-sticker of a newer Laser-hull and glues it on a Laser(-replica-)hull he/she will definitely will be senteced by a court, if the police could catch this person here in Europe. This happened already in Italy, our district-sec told us, some years ago in 2004.
Perhaps in the outback at Australia or Russian-Taiga or in the African-/South-American-jungle this no one interests... ;)

Are you saying that someone in Italy build a replica laser? Did this person attempt to race with it? Crazy story! I am not sure if I believe it...
I am not entirely sure what you want to say with your last comment, but it seems that you say that in non-western countries people can get away with it? In any case, please be nice to our Australian, Russian, African and South American friends. Corruption and cheating is a worldwide problem and the western "civilized" world is extremely good at it.

Ciao

GWF
 
Georg W.F. said:
Are you saying that someone in Italy build a replica laser? Did this person attempt to race with it? Crazy story! I am not sure if I believe it...

There are people on this forum who have talked about using their hull as a mold to make a carbon fiber Laser. If you are used to working in fiberglass, it wouldn't be that hard to make a replica, I think. Of course there would be no quality control and who knows what you'd get. But it would LOOK like a Laser. You'd do something like that to have a fraudulent sale, I think, not to race it yourself.

You could also make up a newer hull number and put it on an old boat to make it look newer. This is definitely against the law. When I had my Europe dinghy registered, the Swedish hull had no identification number. I had to take the boat's measurement papers and bill of sale to a state of Ohio boating officer. She examined it all carefully before creating a hull number and riveting it to my boat.

Sorry for hijacking the thread, but someone else started it! Whoops, my bad. Not very good moderator behavior.

Back to the sail number removal--I've heard that you can just sprinkle talcum powder on the glue instead of removing it. I haven't tried it myself to know how well it works.
 
Merrily said:
Back to the sail number removal--I've heard that you can just sprinkle talcum powder on the glue instead of removing it. I haven't tried it myself to know how well it works.

Talc or chalk powder (the kind used in snap lines) is a quick and dirty solution that works for example, when you show up at a regatta and have to quickly change your number. The idea is just to cover up any residue so it doesn't attract dirt or cause the sail to stick to itself - not really an issue with a dacron Laser sail, but a big problem with a nylon spinnaker that gets balled up on a take down and then set again on the next downwind leg...
 
Georg W.F. said:
Are you saying that someone in Italy build a replica laser?
No. I say, that our district secretary in our district-Laser-News (of 2004) told us about the fact, that someone stole that original (silver-coloured) Laserstickers from Lasers in Italy. He also told us, that it perhaps it can be possible that this stickers are used to make a Laser-replica to a sort of "legal-"Laser. Laser-replicas professional have been build in Poland during the 90ties and in the beginning of the 2000s in a Baltic-State (Lettland or Estland or Lativa). Our friends of Suomi (Finland) mentioned this, in their district-Laser-forum some time ago - I have a translation from Finnish-Language into German (in my archive somewhere). This replicas still are not on the market of course, because PSE surely stopped it asap.

Georg W.F. said:
Did this person attempt to race with it?

I have no information (or idea who has) about this, sorry.

Georg W.F. said:
I am not entirely sure what you want to say with your last comment, but it seems that you say that in non-western countries people can get away with it? In any case, please be nice to our Australian, Russian, African and South American friends.
Personnally, I have nothing against anyone (perhaps yes: if they are the CEO's of Northamerica and Great Britain of the "out-of-the-boxboatbuilders" in reason of their "pricing-strategy" for Lasers and Laserparts).
I only want to express, that perhaps there are areas on this globe (not nation-specific), where it is maybe possible, that laws in the general meaning of "copyrights" do not really interest anyone. Germany is to small for such an area. But surely, if Germany would be larger, such an area we would find here also.



Back to the point of removing sailnumbers: I take that stuff, that I mentioned already at the TLF-Thread, "49208" already thankfuly made a link to :)
This "Dr. Bleckmann"- fluid is available in Europe cheap in every "Schlecker"-drug-store. The fluid makes some shaddows to the sail, but this shaddows go away soon aft some cazisings in heavy air.

Ciao
LooserLu
 
LooserLu said:
LooserLu

P.S.: If someone takes away the original-builder-sticker of a newer Laser-hull and glues it on a Laser(-replica-)hull he/she will definitely will be senteced by a court, if the police could catch this person here in Europe. This happened already in Italy, our district-sec told us, some years ago in 2004.
Perhaps in the outback at Australia or Russian-Taiga or in the African-/South-American-jungle this no one interests... ;)

OMG you mis-understand me !!! I'm not talking aout removing the builder suppled number (why would you want to do that???) I simply mean changing the "Stickers" on the hull to match the sail number. Or even taping over the existing numbers and writing over with the matching number.

....and outback Australia has no water, so people don't sail Lasers out there.
 
rock steady said:
I simply mean changing the "Stickers" on the hull to match the sail number. Or even taping over the existing numbers and writing over with the matching number.

You must do something different from what we do here in America. The only stickers on my hull are state of Ohio registrations numbers that are unrelated to my hull number. If I took them off, I'd be in deep doo doo. :p There's a ranger on my reservoir who is relentless. . .
 
rock steady said:
....and outback Australia has no water, so people don't sail Lasers out there.
I know (from TV ;) ) and ergo: no one changes the original-serial-number of the Laser at lovely Australia :)
G' day
LooserLu
 
Merrily said:
You must do something different from what we do here in America. The only stickers on my hull are state of Ohio registrations numbers that are unrelated to my hull number. If I took them off, I'd be in deep doo doo. :p There's a ranger on my reservoir who is relentless. . .

Only power boats need a registration number on their hulls in Australia. Does that mean you need an aquatic license too?
 
rock steady said:
Only power boats need a registration number on their hulls in Australia. Does that mean you need an aquatic license too?

What is an aquatic license? I guess since I don't know what it is the answer is no.
 
LooserLu said:
I know (from TV ;) ) and ergo: no one changes the original-serial-number of the Laser at lovely Australia :)
G' day
LooserLu

Hello LooserLu. I had to shoot a vicious kangaroo today on my way to work. They are like rabbits here and get in the way of the cars. Got to go, Outbakc Jack and Crocodile Dundee are waiting to go drinking beer with me!
 
Merrily said:
What is an aquatic license?

A boat registration here is for taxes and identification. All boats in Ohio must have them, power, sail, and paddle. Some other states don't require them for small boats. Maybe it's the same as an aquatic license?
 
Skipper Johnson said:
Hello LooserLu. I had to shoot a vicious kangaroo today on my way to work.
Hi Skipper,
hopefully you inadvertently not killed one of the grand-grand-childs of the famous "Skippy the Bush-kangaroo" ;)

Skipper Johnson said:
... Crocodile Dundee are waiting to go drinking beer with me!
If I remember right, in the frist movie, Mick Dundee and Sue went to his farm in the outback and there, at his farm, is a small lake...perfect sailing area for the RC-Laser! :D
G'day
LooserLu
 
Thanks for all the replies guys. There really isn't any serious need for me to change the sail number as I only sail club level. I just personally prefer the sail to have the same number as the hull. Tho if I leave it as it is, it makes me look like I have a much newer boat :)

Cheers,

Matt
 
Merrily said:
A boat registration here is for taxes and identification. All boats in Ohio must have them, power, sail, and paddle. Some other states don't require them for small boats. Maybe it's the same as an aquatic license?

In Australia, an Aquatic License (or Boat License) is an actual exam you must sit before the water authority allows you to steer a boat. It covers rules of the water mostly. Only power boats, that travel over (4kts?) are required to get them. Sailing boats don't require it, even though plenty travel over 4kts in speed.
 
rock steady said:
In Australia, an Aquatic License (or Boat License) is an actual exam you must sit before the water authority allows you to steer a boat.

No, the ordinary boater, even motor, doesn't need to do that here. Only if you have a commercial operation, I believe. It's a good idea to take a course anyway, which I have, through the Coast Guard Auxillary Power Squadron. It was a good way to spend a winter many years ago when I was living on South Bass Island.
 

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