Posted by Michel Capel (mike_c_f35ck@…>)
Lance,
Congrats and happy honeymoon sailing.
Cheerio,
Michel
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “lance_ryley”
<lance_ryley@y…> wrote:
Just to clarify, Haarstick did build the sails to the TPI/Freedom
retrofit blueprint. To the inch. I have those blueprints, and it is
clear that the extra 18" added to the old sail (and boom) length
along the foot was penned in by the previous owner. I admit that
there was a breakdown in communication - even though I let the loft
know that they were welcome to come and measure, I didn’t insist on
it.So now the rhetorical question - is my new main ‘too small,’ or was
my old main ‘too big?’ As I’ve been looking at the dimensions on
the
blueprint and how the new sail sets, I’m beginning to believe that
the old sail was too big, at least for north east waters. True, the
boat was an excellent, responsive, quick light-air sailboat, and
perhaps I’ve lost some performance there, though it’s hard to
compare a new, shapely sail with a 12 year old sail that had a
belly. But I think the comfort factor - not having to reef quite as
early, or as often - will more than make up for it. The old sail,
on
the other hand, was probably exactly right for chesapeake sailing,
especially since the previous previous owners liked to sail a lot
under main alone.At this point, I’m confident that the sail provided to me is ‘spec’
regarding the Freedom 40 Cat Ketch. I’m also quite positive that it
is of superior quality to the hack job that was on there. Will I be
satisfied with its performance? That remains to be seen - in two
weeks when I take my honeymoon cruise to Cuttyhunk, Martha’s
Vineyard, and beyond. If you see a dark blue F40, please don’t
hesitate to introduce yourselves.Lance
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “Charlie L.”
<clivaday@y…> wrote:I agree with Andre. The Sailmaker-not the Buyer-has the
obligation
to get the correct measurements: either by personally doing the
measurements of in-area boats; or by sending its own measurement
form to out-of-area Buyers to complete.– In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “Dave_Benjamin”
<dave_benjamin@y…> wrote:Andre,
If you read the post carefully it sounds like the previous
owner
modified the sailplan. The sailmaker delivered a sail to fit
the
stock rig. When you buy new sails either you or the sailmaker
need
to
measure the rig and existing sails. Then you have some recourse
if
things don’t fit.— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, andre laviolette
<andrelaviolette@y…> wrote:Lance,
The sail does not fit ! It’s to small ! Insist they build
you
a
new sail ! You are a easy going customer. Errors by sailmakers
and
poor delivery seems to be standard practice.Andre.
lance_ryley <lance_ryley@y…> wrote:
Yesterday, Jeff from Haarstick delivered my new mainsail. I
will
say
straight off that it looks beautiful - so much better than
the
sail
it is replacing. The process was not smooth, but after
sleeping
on
it, I’m pretty sure that overall we collectively made a good
decision.It all starts back in the winter when the loft determined
that
my
main was literally coming apart. It was a poorly built
laminate
sail, and two owners before me had sailed a good deal of the
time
under main alone (they were an elderly couple, and
considering
the
heft of the main, it was probably quite a bit of work to get
it
up.)
I bit the bullet, ordered a new main, and asked if they
needed
to
take any measurements. I was assured they could get
everything
off
the old sail and they had plans for the CK conversions anyway.Then came the delays. I was supposed to have the new sail May
1,
but
that date slipped because they were having problems finishing
some
of their need-by racing sails, so I agreed to June 1. The
spring
being what it was, it isn’t like I was sailing, anyway. June
1
came
and went, and now I do want to sail, but can’t.
Arrangements
were
made, and Jeff went out of his way to deliver the sail to me
yesterday during lunch. I went to the boat filled with
excitement -
I’ve never owned a brand new sail before.So… imagine my surprise when the foot of the sail was about
18"
too
short. After feeling my heart go through the floor - I mean,
I’m
less than three weeks away from a sailing honeymoon - we
analyzed
the situation, raised the sail without battens to make sure
the
foot
was the only dimension that was ‘off,’ and did some analysis.
Fortunately, the previous owner of the boat was an engineer,
and
he
kept very detailed notebooks of ALL the boat’s systems,
including
the sailplan blueprint. It showed the Freedom recommended
conversion, PLUS an 18" extension to their recommendations,
both
on
boom length and sail foot length.My guess is that since the boat at the time was sailing in
the
chesapeake, intracoastal, and south carolina, that they
wanted
to
maximize the size of the sails for the lighter wind
conditions
than
we see in the northeast. I think that the new sail, despite
being
shorter on the foot, has more roach than the old sail, and
being
loose-footed I’ll be able to power it up and down with
greater
ease.
Our only ‘jury rig’ was on the outhaul, since it wouldn’t
travel
far
enough down the boom with the extension.I haven’t yet left the dock with the new sail - I’m replacing
both
reefing lines and adding a cunningham - but based on how it
looks
at
the dock, I’m very glad I made the purchase. I raised the
sail
three
times from the cockpit - something I could never do with the
old
sail - just based on the new slide and battcar systems.
Overall,
I’ve been very impressed with Haarstick’s service, their
willingness
to work with me on things, and even their attention to
detail.
They
still have my mizzen, and Jeff measured it to see how it
compares
with the main just to ensure the boat will be in proper
balance.
I’ll definitely be looking to them when it’s time to replace
the
mizzen as well.Lance
Bright Star
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