There is a link to a page on tyvek sails on the resources page. You can buy tyvek house wrap and drop cloths at your local home improvement store. Carl used polytarp sails on hid boat. Not sure if he is getting messages in his inbox. Sailpics Click here then look to the right. http://groups.msn.com/woodenboatbuilder/kitsplans.msnw
Yah, I tried a blue poly tarp for a sail on a canoe. I've also used housewrap, The stuff they we lay under siding for wind and water barrior on houses. My favorite is tyvek brand. It seemed the strongest for tearing, least amount of stretch. I taped a string around the perimeter to stiffen the edge, and in the corners for grommets I taped a few more layers for added strength. The material is fairly inexpensive, so if a person is playing around with a sail plan, you can use a little trial and error method to get the sail just right until the real thing is ordered. Or just keep using the Tyvek! Always good for conversation at the landing!
Yup--made sails for a Bolger Windsprint (a balanced Lug rig) out of blue and silver HD polytarp both, and then with #10 cotton taken from a painters' dropcloth bought at Home Depot. Also made a set out of tyvek, but the stuff was stiff and roared so much when it luffed I gave up on it. The easiest to use was the blue polytarp, but it gave out after one season of use plus one winter of dry storage. The most durable was the silver polytarp, which looked cool too, as it was more of a "dove grey" (I am told by one who has color sense) and went with the color scheme better, I guess. Even though it was almost twice as heavy as the blue poly, it still filled out OK and didn't stretch as much as the blue (which, by the end was a pretty frayed mess). The one I liked best was the cloth from the painters' tarp. It wasn't the least expensive, but it had an authentic "feel" to it, made no noise, and if it got wet, dried out in place rather than shedding drops all over me. The boat and last set of sails (the cloth ones) now resides in Reno with my son. For construction, I used the driveway as a layout table; the mast, top and bottom booms and a black magic marker as design tools; some of that "floating" plastic/poly 3/16-1/4" for strength around ALL edges, bound in place with black duct tape (looked neat as contrast); and brass 1/2" grommets through two layers on each side (4 total) of duct tape. I laced the sail to the top and bottom booms with 1/4" white nylon parachute cord. Wherever I used duct tape, I mashed it into the weave (of whichever material I used) with a small wooden roller that is sold to smooth wallpaper. (I'm sure I shortened its working life immensely, and there are other better roller substitutes, but I had it on hand). This method obviated the use of stitching most places, but I was careful to put extra duct tape anywhere I suspected stress points, in a radiating pattern to spread the stress over a larger area. Later, when I suspected the sail might need stiffening, rather than use inserted stays (battens), I just put matching strips of duct tape on both sides of the sail, with a length of the edging rope stretched under it. Rolling the tape on both sides really hard makes a pretty stiff place, and the addition of the rope really stiffened it up under way, but allowed enough "flex" to roll up the sail at day's end without the needs to disassemble battens and keep track of them later. I have also used these methods on a sloop sail, but I added a small triangle of two plywood pieces laminated on either side at the upper corner of the sail, to serve as both a way to spread the stresses from this point over more of the sail's upper edge, and as a place to tie off the halyard. If you take exceptional care of polytarp sails, they'll last a number of seasons; if this is your plan,I'd suggest you get a sailmaker's palm and some big needles, because eventually the duct tape will want to come unstuck. You can head off that eventuality by stitching the seams and edging with waxed linen cord (or waxed kite string, fokr that matter). This is really time-consuming, but very educational, gives you an appreciation of the old-timers, and is a perfect excuse to NOT mow the yard. Best Regards, JR Sloan
I have never tried polytarp sails, but plan to do so in the near future. I did make dacron sails from a Sailrite kit for my 21 ft Wharram catarmaran. They turned out ok. but a little difficult with standard sewing machine.
There is a link to a page on tyvek sails on the resources page. You can buy tyvek house wrap and drop cloths at your local home improvement store. Carl used polytarp sails on hid boat. Not sure if he is getting messages in his inbox. Sailpics Click here then look to the right. http://groups.msn.com/woodenboatbuilder/kitsplans.msnw
ReplyDeleteYah, I tried a blue poly tarp for a sail on a canoe. I've also used housewrap, The stuff they we lay under siding for wind and water barrior on houses. My favorite is tyvek brand. It seemed the strongest for tearing, least amount of stretch. I taped a string around the perimeter to stiffen the edge, and in the corners for grommets I taped a few more layers for added strength. The material is fairly inexpensive, so if a person is playing around with a sail plan, you can use a little trial and error method to get the sail just right until the real thing is ordered. Or just keep using the Tyvek! Always good for conversation at the landing!
ReplyDeleteCarl
Yup--made sails for a Bolger Windsprint (a balanced Lug rig) out of blue and silver HD polytarp both, and then with #10 cotton taken from a painters' dropcloth bought at Home Depot. Also made a set out of tyvek, but the stuff was stiff and roared so much when it luffed I gave up on it. The easiest to use was the blue polytarp, but it gave out after one season of use plus one winter of dry storage. The most durable was the silver polytarp, which looked cool too, as it was more of a "dove grey" (I am told by one who has color sense) and went with the color scheme better, I guess. Even though it was almost twice as heavy as the blue poly, it still filled out OK and didn't stretch as much as the blue (which, by the end was a pretty frayed mess). The one I liked best was the cloth from the painters' tarp. It wasn't the least expensive, but it had an authentic "feel" to it, made no noise, and if it got wet, dried out in place rather than shedding drops all over me. The boat and last set of sails (the cloth ones) now resides in Reno with my son. For construction, I used the driveway as a layout table; the mast, top and bottom booms and a black magic marker as design tools; some of that "floating" plastic/poly 3/16-1/4" for strength around ALL edges, bound in place with black duct tape (looked neat as contrast); and brass 1/2" grommets through two layers on each side (4 total) of duct tape. I laced the sail to the top and bottom booms with 1/4" white nylon parachute cord. Wherever I used duct tape, I mashed it into the weave (of whichever material I used) with a small wooden roller that is sold to smooth wallpaper. (I'm sure I shortened its working life immensely, and there are other better roller substitutes, but I had it on hand). This method obviated the use of stitching most places, but I was careful to put extra duct tape anywhere I suspected stress points, in a radiating pattern to spread the stress over a larger area. Later, when I suspected the sail might need stiffening, rather than use inserted stays (battens), I just put matching strips of duct tape on both sides of the sail, with a length of the edging rope stretched under it. Rolling the tape on both sides really hard makes a pretty stiff place, and the addition of the rope really stiffened it up under way, but allowed enough "flex" to roll up the sail at day's end without the needs to disassemble battens and keep track of them later. I have also used these methods on a sloop sail, but I added a small triangle of two plywood pieces laminated on either side at the upper corner of the sail, to serve as both a way to spread the stresses from this point over more of the sail's upper edge, and as a place to tie off the halyard. If you take exceptional care of polytarp sails, they'll last a number of seasons; if this is your plan,I'd suggest you get a sailmaker's palm and some big needles, because eventually the duct tape will want to come unstuck. You can head off that eventuality by stitching the seams and edging with waxed linen cord (or waxed kite string, fokr that matter). This is really time-consuming, but very educational, gives you an appreciation of the old-timers, and is a perfect excuse to NOT mow the yard. Best Regards, JR Sloan
ReplyDeleteI have never tried polytarp sails, but plan to do so in the near future. I did make dacron sails from a Sailrite kit for my 21 ft Wharram catarmaran. They turned out ok. but a little difficult with standard sewing machine.
ReplyDelete