Tag Archives: fibers

sail cloth, sail fibers, sail making

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I am presenting a lecture seminar on the subject topic this Thursday, tomorrow, 16 Feb 2017 at Newport Yacht Club, Long Wharf in Newport. All are welcome.

This is the presentation overview and the things I will be discussing.

Fiber, fabric, film and fabrication

  • What does a sail have to do?
  • What is required to do this?
  • Background on fibers and their properties
  • Weaving 101
  • Mylar properties
  • Laminates
  • Laminated method
  • “String sails”
  • What’s next?
  • What does the weekend sailor make of this?

And thanks to Hood Sailmakers and Dimension Polyant for the cloth samples.

Hood Sailmakers is paving the way by sponsoring the drinks to the tune of the first $150 of drinks served.

This is the email flier that Roy Guay, my host for the evening and the Chairman of the Bermuda 1-2 distributed to the club’s membership.

On 16 February at 1830 the Newport Yacht Club is trying to start a Winter Lecture Series. Our own Joe Cooper will be giving a talk on Sailcloth and Sails: “Separating marketing from facts to get to Value: A discussion of Sailcloth and things to look for and why for various types of sailing. What does “Premium Dacron” really mean? Why every sail maker has “The world’s best sails” What’s the difference? Woven, Laminates, fibers, molded, not molded, a glossary and guide to sail-maker speak.”

If you are in the neighborhood drop on by. All are welcome.

Roy Guay
Offshore Chairman

Cooper in action at a seminar in California last year.

Cooper in action at a seminar in California last year.

Hope to see you there.

Cheers

Coop

 

Safety at Sea seminar

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On Saturday 07 Feb 2015 at the Safety at Sea seminar, produced by LandfallNavigation, I will be presenting a section on sails & sail fibers. This nearshore Safety at Sea seminar is being held at the Mystic Seaport in Ct. from 0800-1630

The following is a table of the basic properties, sailmakers are interested in, of the fibers currently used in making sails. In an earlier day, this information would be distributed at the event, but today, well it is here.

The information is from the North Sails website attributed to research by their cloth people

Polyester (Dacron)
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
80 – 120 5 – 8 6 mo. 0% $2 Racing & Cruising Sailing
Pros: Tough, durable, inexpensive, many weights and finishes.
Cons: Relatively stretchy compared to aramids.
PEN (Pentex)
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
250 10 5 mo. 5% $7 Club Racers & Cruisers
Pros: Fits between Polyester and Aramid in performance and cost.
Cons: Cannot be woven tightly, best used in laminates.
Kevlar 29 Twaron SM
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
600 23 3 mo. 25% $15 Regatta Racing Sails
Pros: Light weight, low stretch.
Cons: Low flex and UV resistance.
Kevlar 49 Twaron HM
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
940 24 3 mo. 28% $18+ Grand Prix Racing Sails
Pros: Light weight, very low stretch.
Cons: Low flex and UV resistance. Expensive.
Carbon
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
1200 – 2500 20 – 40 No effect 30 – 100% $15 – $100 Grand Prix Racing Sails
Pros: Very light, extremely low stretch, good UV resistance.
Cons: Brittle, low flex resistance.
PBO (Zylon)
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
1600 36 1.5 mo. 30% $60 Grand Prix Racing Sails
Pros: Extremely low stretch and light weight.
Cons: Low flex and very low UV resistance. Expensive.
Spectra / Dyneema
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
1100 34 7 mo. No effect $25 – $35 Premium Cruisers
Pros: Very strong and durable.
Cons: Creep limits racing applications.
LCP (Vectran)
Modulus (gr/denier) Tenacity (gr/denier) UV Resist. (mo. to 50% strength loss) Flex Loss (% in std. test) Cost ($/lb.) Uses
580 28 1.5 mo. No effect without UV $25 Premium Cruisers
Pros: Good flex when protected for UV.
Cons: Requires complete UV protections.
Modulus: Stretch resistance per weight. Higher is better for upwind sails.
Tenacity: Breaking strength per weight. Higher is better for sails.
UV Resistance: Strength loss in a standardized exposure test.
Flex Loss: Percent breaking strength lost in an industry standard 50 fold test.