Material for sail making

Has anybody got any ideas for a material apart from sail cloth that can be used for making sails. This material must be
A Lit weight. Less than 80gsm
B Obviously waterproof
C Durable
D Not easily torn
E Lacking memory
F Readily available
G Relatively cheap
Thanks
Peter

I use mylar drawing film for most model sails, the only problem is that if it ges a crease in it you might as well throw it away. Very easy to use and pretty cheap too…

Luff 'em & leave 'em.

Matt
We used to use that as well but it is becoming really hard to find over here. The normal suppliers are telling us it is no longer available in the weight we prefer to use.
Peter

I must admit i did have to hunt for it last time i bought some, I got a 25mx1m roll that should last me a fair while. What thickness is 80gsm im microns? This is where I got mine from- http://www.designmedia.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_Pen_Plotter_Film_67.html Bit expensive shipping from the uk for you thoug, if it is the right weight…

Luff 'em & leave 'em.

80gsm is the weight of a piece of A4 copy paper. We can get fairly easily still mylar film that weighs around 84gsm, but find this is a bit heavy. I have some here that is about 72gsm, but did use some once that was down in the 50 region and would really like to find that again. It was really good for headsails up to about 8 knots.
Peter

Peter -

Take a look at “Tecnora” (not sure of spelling) but it is a type of polyester fabric as I recall. I didn’t see much of it up here in the states, but saw several suggested applications by some of your sailors down there.

I have used 1.5 oz. “tempered” ripstop cloth, which is a bit stiffer than the lightweight stuff at the local fabric stores. I think theirs is about .75 oz. Being nylon, both do have a tendency to stretch. By far, the most often used is Tri-Spi (a clear film with embeded threads) but requires minimum order (at least up here). May want to check with local 1 Meter IOM guys as to their selection and source of supply. Freight from up here would make it less acceptable due to higher cost.

I typically use 1.4 mil polyester film from Great Basin Model Yachting (http://www.gbmy.com/csailmake.html). They also have it in 2.0 mil. This week I’ll be making my first sails from Trisply 25 that came from a distributer in Rhode Island, US (I believe). I don’t know how hard it is to work with (I’m not expecting it to be), but I’ve seen a lot of winning sails from this stuff (mostly Bob Sterne’s sails).

Contact the guys at: www.cubenfiber.com They are friendly and may have just what you want…

Doug Lord
–High Technology Sailing/Racing

[:-cowboy]Peter, You may wish to try TYVEK.This is a paper like material which is made from a man-made fibre which makes it hard wearing yet flexable. If you see a new house under construction check out what is being used as insulation, it may be TYVEK. Ask the builders nicely and I am sure they would give you an offcut to play with. Also check out any Kite making suppliers or art and craft stores near you. Good luck.[:-paperbag][:-tophat]

Do it NOW before it`s too late.

Cuben fiber may not be a good material. I have some and they are great out of the box but I have heard from numerous competitors and sailmakers that they dont hold together all that well. The seams stretch etc. They are really only made for ultralight air unless someone has come up with a better way to put them together. 25 or 50 micron drafting mylar may be the best overall option.

, You may wish to try [b]TYVEK[/quote]
I made two or three set of sails from Tyvek and it works O.K. but its a little stiff and a lot noisy. Think about tin foil sails [:D] You can make sails from disposable coveralls. They are a lightweight TYVEK. Trispi is the best I have tried so far.

Thanks
Don
Vancouver Island

Has anyone used Icarex?
1/2 oz. Polycarbonate Coated Ripstop Polyester.
I wanted to make a very colorful sail for recreational sailing days. And Icarex is available in a lot of colors.
It is availavble from Hang-em-High Online store.
They also carry TriSpi25,TriSpi40,TriSpi50 and it is sold by the yard.

Try a kite shop. In melbourne they have all sorts of (light)weights of rip stop, mylar and a heap of other materials i’m not game to try and spell. They are very cheap and look the part you can get all the materials to glue em up to such as seam stick etc i’ve been in and out of my kite suppliers alot he stocks all sizes of carbon tube/box and flat too. kiting guys seem very helpful give em a try.

[:D]Sodium, Can you tell me where is this kite shop in Melbourne? I will be there later this year and would like to stock up on carbon shafts. Thank`s mate.[:-paperbag]NED KELLY?

Do it NOW before it`s too late.

ian,
it’s on glenhuntly rd in elsternwick not sure of street number, quite close to beach called “flying high kites” sure he won’t mind me giving out his number so - +613 9533 0826 give him a call before you come over and tell him what your after so he can be sure to have it in stock. good luck.

thank god . i am not alone:-)
i have made sail out of tyvek. i still have them in the basement. they work great and are easy to cut. but they are LOUD and i do meen loud. you can hear them out in the middle of a small lake.
thanks for cheering me up. i thought i was stupid to try it
cougar

<blockquote id=“quote”><font size=“1” face=“Verdana, Arial, Helvetica” id=“quote”>quote:<hr height=“1” noshade id=“quote”>Originally posted by TWilliams

Has anyone used Icarex?
1/2 oz. Polycarbonate Coated Ripstop Polyester.
I wanted to make a very colorful sail for recreational sailing days. And Icarex is available in a lot of colors.
It is availavble from Hang-em-High Online store.
They also carry TriSpi25,TriSpi40,TriSpi50 and it is sold by the yard.

<hr height=“1” noshade id=“quote”></blockquote id=“quote”></font id=“quote”>

Yes. It’s what I use for my vane boat spinnakers. All seams done with the heat-setting adhesive tape from Hang-em-High, BTW. If you go to:

http://www.swcp.com/usvmyg/UKTrip/fw11.JPG

that’s an Icarex spinnaker on that boat. Free sail spinnakers take a beating because they get taken down and stuffed in a pocket on the beats :slight_smile: Never had a rip with the Icarex, tremendous stuff.

Cheers,

Earl

Does anyone know where I can buy Trispi 25 and 40 in Canada?
Cheers,
Dave.

Dave
Where in B.C. are you. I’m on the Island. I looked for a long time for Trispi in Canada and wound up going to Great Basin and biting the bullet on freight. Find a club and order in lots. You can get 10 Yards for the same freight as 1 and that brings the price down to almost reasonable. If you order 1 yd. the freight more than doubles the price. I got together with two guys and ordered 3 yds. each of 25 and 40. The price came to about $150 Can.(including freight) which works out to about $20 for a set of sails for a US1M. Let me know if you find a supplier in Canada.

Thanks
Don
Vancouver Island

Hi Don,
I live in Kelowna B.C. and race a Victoria and a full size San Juan 30.
I ordered some Trispi 40 from Great Basin and by my mistake ordered 3 yards and they sent me 3 feet. So I’m a bit short as I have 4 sets of sails to make.
I have been looking for a Canadian supplier for a while but with no luck but I will let you know if I find one.
Here is a link to our club.
http://www.legacyfamilytree.ca/sail/
Cheers,
Dave.