[C38] Sails - CAL vs Dacron

Mon Mar 5 22:04:35 EST 2012

Angelika,

My CAL sails after three years still look great, I did get taffeta on
both sides and that does make them heavier, my #1 is really heavy but we
fly it in 12 knots plus and use the lt #1 below that.  They are great
sails, talk with your sail maker...they should be  priced close to a
Dacron sail at least they were when I bought mine.   We have a #3 that
has seen some good use we sailed her most of the way down the coast last
year and most of that was in 25-35 knots and the sail is still in good
shape it is now going on its third season.  My only complaint about the
CAL is that they are heavy and in light to no winds you may struggle to
get them to hold shape.  That may not be true if you opt to go without
the taffeta but your sail maker could better answer that question.
However in heavier winds you're not worrying too much about if the sail
can handle it or not.    I have had to replace the luff tape on two of
mine so far but that is more the crews fault than the sails.   If you
would like to talk with my sail maker contact me off list and Ill give
you his contact information.   All of CAL sails are cut for cruising and
use on the furler so they don't go all the way to the deck, they came
with foam luffs, and UV covers.   Sometimes they have stayed on the
furler a little longer at the end of the season than they should have
and there is no sign of mold or mildew.  I do take them in the house and
let them dry out downstairs before storing for the winter.  Last word on
the main, mine is now three years old and it takes a little time and the
more help the better to flake it on the boom it does not fall into place
like a Dacron sail, seems to have a mind of its own.  

Steve

#312 Peregrine

Seattle

From: listserve-bounces at catalina38.org
[mailto:listserve-bounces at catalina38.org] On Behalf Of Angelika - A Room
With A View
Sent: Sunday, March 04, 2012 1:36 PM
To: listserve at catalina38.org
Subject: [C38] Sails - CAL vs Dacron

Hi All

We purchased our beautiful C38 (362) Boheme nearly 7 years ago in Sydney
and sailed her to her new home to the southern-most harbour on the
Australian mainland, Apollo Bay. Boheme has taken us up and down the
eastern seaboard as far as the Great Barrier Reef, a couple of times.

We are currently considering purchasing new sails as she is no longer
pointing as high as she initially did and is certainly being out-pointed
by most of the keel boats within our local Sailing Club (a very varied
fleet ranging from dinghies to a 2007 Jeanneau 39 - this is not GRAND
racing but we still like to be relatively competitive).  

While we bought Boheme predominantly as a cruising boat we do race her
here in Apollo Bay-only over the summer season Oct-Apr.

After initially speaking with my husband Gary, our sailmaker said that
CAL sails were the best for us  (we have noticed that Steve/Peregrine
was mentioned on another website as having purchased them).  After
speaking with me (where I mentioned that I was hoping that CAL sails
were also going to improve our cruising sailing speeds etc and therefore
justify an additional 50% spend) he has backflipped and suggested that:

9oz Strong Fill Dacron should be used to replace the ORIGINAL Mainsail 
and we could possibly consider 80z Bluewater Cruise for the 10yr old,
135% Headsail.  

Now we are both totally confused as neither of us can see the point of
buying cheaper sails if they run the risk of losing their shape and
performance quicker therefore needing replacing much sooner - on the
otherhand CAL sails do blow our initial budget by about $2000  (ie $5k
-6k vs $8k approx.)

If others have had experience with CAL sails your thoughts would be much
appreciated especially regarding their ability to maintain correct shape
in the longterm as opposed to good quality Dacron

Thanking you

Angelika Millar
Apollo Bay Vic Australia

PS Many thanks to Commodore Chuck Finn for finally making it possible to
get our emails through to the Listserve.  We have 'silently' enjoyed the
exchanges for almost 12 months now.

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