Hi all. Our little club is running short of 4.7 bottom sections, but I have a bunch of broken Radial and Standard ones. Does anyone know how well a cut down section works with a 4.7 sail for beginners? Is a cut-down Radial bendier, or would the sleeve just make it as stiff as the Standard section when cut down?
I can experiment with bending a section to give the mast the right rake, but beginners are not going to sheet in fully any way.
From what I've seen on this forum, there is some sort of difference (not just the bend) of the two sections. I think it's a wall thickness thing. However, I'm always one to save a buck and if it's for a beginner, and you have a spare full lower to destroy..... Why not!
The 4.7 lower section is the same as the Standard, only shorter and pre-bent. You could try to make them by cutting down Standard lowers; the trick is how to get that bend right (I have no idea ).
The Radial lower is very different so you can forget about re-purposing those.