New sail and mast
- Thread starter mmadge
- Start date
As of today, the Mylar (radial cut) full-rig sail and the carbon upper are still rumors.
http://ymlp.com/zLl0tK
http://ymlp.com/zLl0tK
torrid
Just sailing
This is an important point as to the one-design aspect of the class. Ideally the new sail will perform the same. Realistically they might make a sail that performs the same "on average", but there is no way a new sail design will perform the same in all conditions for all different sizes of sailors. I'm sure a change of this magnitude would be put to a vote (which I would probably vote for).
If a new design goes through, I would expect most people competing at the district level and above would immediately adopt the new design. At the club level, there would probably be "gentleman's agreements" (and "gentlewoman's agreements") on what sail to use (like currently happens with Intensity sails).
jeffers
Active Member
As far as I am aware the new sail is not mylar but dacron. If you speak to any sailmake they will tell you that having a mylar or film sail on an unstayed mast just will now work as the cloth does not have enough stretch in it so cannot work with the mast.
The sail in that web link is definitely dacron too...mylar window but dacron is the main cloth.
There are also rumours that the class is about to change names (subject to ISAF approval) which would pave the way for a new builder in NA and Europe and for approval of these new parts.
The sail in that web link is definitely dacron too...mylar window but dacron is the main cloth.
There are also rumours that the class is about to change names (subject to ISAF approval) which would pave the way for a new builder in NA and Europe and for approval of these new parts.
49208
Tentmaker
I'm guessing you were meaning to say :
"having a mylar or film sail on an unstayed mast just will not work as the cloth does not have enough stretch in it so cannot work with the mast"
Not sure which sailmakers would say that, you need look no further then the Finn class to see that composite sails work just fine and have been for more then 10 years. It's a fairly simply matter to mast bend / luff curve / off axis cloth stretch to make the sail work with the mast.
jeffers
Active Member
jeffers
Active Member
The question would be did it perform as well as the current standard sail on that same spar or better and, if better, could it be de-tuned to keep the illusion of a level playing field.... That is what a lot of people forget.
Yes the current rig could be improved massively but the cost would be that you obsolete every boat out that that does not have a new rig. Whilst this can be done in smaller classes (Byte with the CII rig for one) doing it in the Laser class would be far more problematic unless the builders were prepared to practically give away the spars and sails required for a period of time. Even then there would be a long period of the 'haves' and 'have nots'.
Also pointed out in the thread is the fact that Mylar sails, when they give up the simply fall apart whereas with a dacron sail they just stretch a little more but are still usable.
Yes the current rig could be improved massively but the cost would be that you obsolete every boat out that that does not have a new rig. Whilst this can be done in smaller classes (Byte with the CII rig for one) doing it in the Laser class would be far more problematic unless the builders were prepared to practically give away the spars and sails required for a period of time. Even then there would be a long period of the 'haves' and 'have nots'.
Also pointed out in the thread is the fact that Mylar sails, when they give up the simply fall apart whereas with a dacron sail they just stretch a little more but are still usable.
49208
Tentmaker
Rather then go back and forth, I don't think anything has changed in terms of all the discussions we have had here in the past regarding making a sail that lasts longer, but has the same performance as the existing sail.
Regarding composite sails (mylar/dacron , mylar/twaron etc) and stating as fact that they simply fall apart is something I'd disagree with as well, but again, not really an issue with the Laser sails since they aren't considering changing to it AFAIK
Regarding composite sails (mylar/dacron , mylar/twaron etc) and stating as fact that they simply fall apart is something I'd disagree with as well, but again, not really an issue with the Laser sails since they aren't considering changing to it AFAIK
jeffers
Active Member
Definitely we all want a sail that is reasonably priced and lasts more than 5 minutes.
As for Mylar, having had one literally fall apart on me with it showing no signs of doing so I will disagree. It was quite spectacular. luckily I was only sailing at my local club when it happened so could recover to shore without assistance.
That was not in a Laser I hasten to add but in another class.
As for Mylar, having had one literally fall apart on me with it showing no signs of doing so I will disagree. It was quite spectacular. luckily I was only sailing at my local club when it happened so could recover to shore without assistance.
That was not in a Laser I hasten to add but in another class.
Rob Hair
Active Member
I've seen lots of sailboard rigs that work very well and seem pretty durable.
LooserLu
LooserLu
Now, already some "more or less" restless days and some restless nights aft that what Ari (Ari from "Dom Rep", to me you are a hero, a Laserite that really did undertand "democracy"!) in his 2nd topic of his last newsletter tells to us, are over for me.
Yes, I respect Tracy and he knows it, he is my friend (and will be it forever) but more and more as a common sailor, that in love uses the in the moment still "Laser™" dinghy called water craft, to do water sports, ..... Just a common IL™CA fee paying member, that now for years pays continously the fee ?FOR NOTHING?...
... I more and more come to the conclusion to follow TLF-member 'drLoser™' idea, to vote for the new class name: "P***s Laser™ Class", although I don't live at "4rd world".
Even a name that already "here" was mentioned (or did she meant "HeinIe™ {sailing dinghy} Class"? Sorry, but my knowledge in eng./am. slang is to poor) would sound adequate to me ... in this times of "scraming quietness" the IL™CA class officers leave us, their faithful fee paying new boat buying members, alone.
At GER more and more the autumn is present, fog all along here is and the temperatures slow down ...
In my case/universe: More and more "exponetial down" to 0° Kelvin (Tracy sure is able to interpret to the reader here this cosmolologic aggragate state).
The at ~0°K frozen IL™CA member ... "Penguin" Lu
jeffers
Active Member
Completely different dynamic to a dinghy though so not a real comparison at all.