I got to try my new storm jib today

King Neptune, of course.

Johan

Edited by Johan Hackman - 06 June 2009 at 20:32

Please note that since I started this thread I have tested this sail under conditions near the conditions it was designed for. I have to warn you all that it is a dangerous sail. If you manage to hoist it in strong winds (which in itself will be difficult) you may not be able to get it down. To wrap a sail around a furled head sail in strong winds is a bad idea. I do NOT recommend it and I hope I have not persuaded anyone to get a similar sail.

Johan

I am not sure I can tell you exactly what went wrong but I'll give it a try.

The sail is stored in a bag that you put around the forestay. When in position you tie both clews together by means of the jib sheet (two clews as the sail is made of two halves), attach the head to a spin halyard and tie the tack line to the furling drum. When this is finished you open the bag and hoist the sail. That is the idea.

I must have made a mistake when I packed the bag. The sail somehow did not wrap around the furled jib but flew from the tack, the head and the jib sheet - like a gennaker, if that makes the picture clearer. It was then I realised that I could not correct my mistake by bringing the sail down. The design with the wrapped sail means that the sail squeezes around the furled jib which in a strong wind means that it is impossible to drop. Instead it was flogging like mad and for a while I feared it would destroy the entire rig. It was only after an hour, standing on the pulpit with the bow bouncing in the waves that I managed to pull it down with a boat's hook!

Now, if you are new to sailing for example a spinnaker it is wise to learn to use it in light winds and only then start to use it in heavier airs. With a strong-wind sail it is the opposite way round. If you learn to use it in light winds (like I did and told about in previous posts in this thread) you are NOT learning to use it in strong winds. You fool yourself by thinking so. You have to rely on the sail maker that they have tried and tested the sail for you.

This little experiment made me realise that you will not be able to bring the sail down even if it is set up correctly. If you think about it, people on this forum complain about their mains being hard to hoist and drop in a dedicated groove on the mast - how hard will it not be to hoist and drop a sail that is wrapped another sail when there is a strong wind? I spinnaker sail that goes wrong can always be corrected by dropping the sail in the water. All you do is let go of the halyard. Letting go of the halyard of a sail wrapped around another sail is not going to bring it down.

A sail that is flogging and you cannot rid yourself of is dangerous.

Johan

Edited by Johan Hackman - 02 August 2012 at 07:24

Johan, sounds like quite the struggle and one that qualifies as "experience". :)  I wonder if it would have been easier with a line attached to the head that could be used to help pull it down when needed. The other end of the line could be tied off at the tack perhaps....  just a thought...