Intensity Sails "Loop On" sails?

Merit

New Member
Hey all,
I'm looking to replace the sail on our new-to-us 1986 sunfish. Searching this forum it seems like Intensity Sails is the way to go, and the price is right. I noticed they have a "loop on" sail: Intensity Sails Loop On Red, White & Blue Sunfish Sail
Does anyone have that sail? What are the pros and cons vs using the clips? It does sound easier but I'm also a little concerned about what happens if a loop breaks? It's a lot easier to replace a clip than sew a loop.

Thanks!
 
I purchased one of these sails. I first thought that all loops were velcro, therefore adjustable. However, that is not the case. Most are fixed loops. I think that the loops are too big and there is too much distance between the sail and boom. I know for the lower boom it is necessary to get by the mainsheet blocks. I would stick with the sail clip version, IMO.
 
I'm also a little concerned about what happens if a loop breaks? It's a lot easier to replace a clip than sew a loop. Thanks!
ShooGoo is a tough substitute for stitches. Clamp it and let the glue set overnight outdoors! :eek:
 
I love intensity and they are great to deal with, but the sail with the built in loops is a no go, at least for anyone looking for performance/club racing. A local racer bought one of these and I got to inspect it and see it sail. The loops are just too big.
 
Our sailing club just bought some of these sails, I’ll let you know how it goes with the replacement and use of the new sails with the loops.
 
I installed two of the Intensity 'Loop' sails yesterday.
One sail went on a naked set of spars (sail removed in the past) and the other on spars with an old sail on it. The halyards and sheets were not on either sail sets.
It was a warm and humid day so I did the work in a shady area under a tree. Although that location was relatively dirty compared to other areas I could have used, it was in the shade.
I spread the old sail out on the ground to protect the new sails from the dirt.
I used two methods to instal the sails, I think the best way was to spread the new sail out then fold in half so that the spar loops and the boom loops were side-by side. Then I worked the spars up the loops, alternating between spar and boom, starting with the aft end of the boom and the top end of the spar, threading the spars through the loops starting at the "tack" of the sail. Getting the loops over the boom blocks slowed things up a little compared to the spar. The gooseneck does not have to be removed because the two forward-most loops of the "foot" are velcro-ed. The loops are large enough to fit over the boom blocks.
I think instalation of the sail is easier than explaining it. I didn't look carefully
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but I think that there were no instructions with the sails.
The sail did have tell-tales pre-installed and there was a small bag with replacement tell-tales.

The sails look nice.
 
Our sailing club has been using the sails and have had no complaints.

It is nice having sails with new windows on them. Any suggestions as to how we can maintain the clarity of the plastic windows? Especially for our winter storage.

Between uses of the sails we spread out the sail with the spar and boom, fold the sail in half by bringing the spar and boom together, then roll up the sail in a way that leaves the window on the interior of the rolled-up sail. We daisy-chain the halyard and sheet around the rolled-up sail, the spar, and the boom.
 
Our sailing club has been using the sails and have had no complaints.

It is nice having sails with new windows on them. Any suggestions as to how we can maintain the clarity of the plastic windows? Especially for our winter storage.

Between uses of the sails we spread out the sail with the spar and boom, fold the sail in half by bringing the spar and boom together, then roll up the sail in a way that leaves the window on the interior of the rolled-up sail. We daisy-chain the halyard and sheet around the rolled-up sail, the spar, and the boom.
Have you found any "loop" advantage to sailing in very strong (or very light) winds?
 
LVW asks: <<<
Have you found any "loop" advantage to sailing in very strong (or very light) winds?>>>

I've done a lot of summer-ish sailing in Sunfish for the past few years (Flying Scots the rest of the year). However, sail performance is not my expertise. I can hardly see much difference between between our clubs very old sails, our new top-of -the-line sails and our new 'loop' sails. I've used the 'loop' sails in light, medium and strong winds and don't see any difference in performance.

I did take note, once, that the sail loops didn't seem to be pulling on the boom in some conditions. The spar loops were tight but the boom loops were not. I just noticed it once, but then again I spend a lot of time looking at the scenery, birds, airplanes, and jumping fish instead of paying attention to the sails.

I thought that our new 'loop' sails were as noisy as our other brand-new 'class-legal' sails and didn't like that. I suspect that the noise will not last long.

I did like how easy it was to attach the sails with loops compared to the old clips. I always thought that the clips could have been done better. I like how the clips can be installed without tools but often some sort of tool is needed to remove a damaged clip. I suspect that the loops will last longer than the sails.

Back to my earlier question: Anyone have any tips for winter storage of the sail sets, especially in maintaining the clarity of the sail windows?
 

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