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Submitted on September 27, 2006 by Jim Godfrey

Question: I am confused as to what weight sail cloth I should use for a new 135% Roller Furling Genoa for my Hutchins Compac 27 (J=11.4, I=31.8 more or less). This will be my primary jib and will be used in heavy weather as well as light. CD is going to make the sail. I am going to use your luff rope system to control shape while reefed. We sail in 20-30 knots winds on a regular basis in south Texas and occasionally it gets a lot worse (like last race weekend where we got caught out in some unexpected 50 knot stuff). I need a sail strong enough to take the wide range of conditions we experience yet I don’t want it to be so heavy as to be useless in 10-15 knot winds. I will occasionally make offshore passages but these will be 3 or 4 day affairs, not weeks at sea. I have had a recommendation (from CD) of 6 or perhaps 7 oz material. I would like another opinion from those experienced with cruising sails. What would you recommend?

Jim Godfrey
Port Isabel, TX

Answer: Hi Jim,

Thanks for your note regarding sails for your Compac 27. Having done lots of sailing down in South Texas, I can attest that your description of the wind in your area is accurate!

First of all, you are asking a lot from a one headsail inventory to work efficiently in such a wide range of conditions (10-30 knots.) While there is nothing better then taking a 135% down and putting up a 100% as the wind increases, it is just not practical for a cruising sailor. The next best thing is our North RopeLuff Reefing pad sewn in along the luff and contoured to be the thickest about mid luff length. This enables you to roll the sail up and as you roll it takes luff curvature out of the sail and flattens the sail out - exactly what you would do if you changed headsails!

Now for sail cloth weight. I understand your concern with the decision to choose between 6 and 7oz fabric. One thing you might to do is choose the heavier weight and then ask the your sail designer to profile the design of the sail more like a medium/heavy #1 than a 135% #2. The shape would be better in the "lighter" (10-15) you speak about.

If you have any other questions please fell free to give us a call or drop us a note.

Happy Sailing!

Jay Lutz
North Sails, Texas

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