Sail Handling

[Auzzee]

Does anyone out there have a design for a 'flaking bag' which attaches to the main boom at the bottom edge and at the jack ends along the top edge, and which remains permanently in place when sailing, and which can be tied or zippered shut over the flaked sail.

My mainsail cover is getting a bit daggy and needs to be replaced by something which can make my day's end a little easier. I have recently purchased a new Sailrite machine, and now that all the winches, the wheel and the compass are covered, and the new UV strip is on the furling headsail...I am ready to take on something larger and more complex.

The 'flaking bag' seems to be just the right idea. I already have lazy jacks on place and just need a design or set of design ideas for the bag.

David.

[Trim50]

I'm looking for the same thing.

We will be at the boat this weekend installing all the new shrouds and lazy jacks while we are at it. Our friends have exactly the cover you're talking about and I'll see what I can do to extract design insight from it.

I also plan on getting a quote to simply pay someone to do it for us. Either way, I'll try to get a design for you.

[Gallivanters]

I recently changed to a fully battened main and added a Strong Track system to reduce friction and ease the pain of reefing under load. The track system was an affordable alternative to a batten "car" system and installed easily by myself.

Next - I made my lazy pack by looking at all of the commercially & custom made units around the marinas and added what I felt were the best features to a simple design of my own.

For the lazy jack portion, I used 3/8" braded line and six small stainless rings - instead of expensive blocks. I've attached them aloft about 1/3 of the way out on the spreaders in order to effectively open the mouth of envelope a bit wider and thus reduce fouling the battens when hoisting the sail... which always seems to be a problem when attached to the sides of the mast.

I made the bag portion from Sunbrella and attcahed it to the boom track by using a bolt rope and simply fly the main loose footed. It seems to work fine and the outhaul is now much easier to adjust. The foot of the sail always stays inside the bag when sailing.

The lines attach at four opposing points on each side of the bag. The trailing end of the bag is attached to and held up by lines connected to the topping lift. The fwd end of the bag is attached to and held up by lines attached to added pad-eyes on the mast.

In order to releave stress on the zipper when the bag is zipped shut - I've added small bronze snap-hooks to the lower four jack lines on one side which I use to capture the opposite lines after the bag is zipped shut. This helps close the bag a bit tighter, removes all tension from the closed zipper and helps keep the zipper out of the sun.

I innitially considered attaching a pair of plastic bolt rope tracks along the side of the boom and slide the foot of the mainsail back into the boom track but will probably leave it as is for the season.

I used two, round 3/4 (18mm?) fiberglass batten rods along the upper length of the bag and attached 1" nylon webbing in such a way as to allow the jack lines carry the weight of the bag by the battens - not the fabric.

I had to cut three pieces of Sunbrella - two for the sides and a top section for the zipper. I added the bolt rope when joining the bottoms of the two side pieces. The critical measurements are the length of the boom and perimeter of the sail when loosly flaked on top of the boom. You don't want it too tight. The zipper needs to extend a foot or more past the end of the boom to allow for the bag to open fully.

For my three reef lines - I measured and cut exit slots along along the aft lower sides of the bag, paralell to the boom. I dressed the edges of the slots with nylon webbing to resist chaffing.

My next step will be to make an additional piece which goes around the front of the mast in order to completely enclose the front portion of the sail when furled for any length of time. The idea is to keep the sun off the sailcloth.

The most expensive parts are the fiberglass rods and zipper.

If I make another one - I'll try using PVC pipes instead of fiberglass battens and I'll widen the top cover flaps and do away with the zipper

I learned to sew while serving aboard the USS Kitty Hawk (three decades ago) and now carry a Sailrite walking foot zig-zag machine wherever my boat takes me.

The local sail loft quoted a price of $2750 to construct and install their custom version of a "stack-pack".

I made my "lazy pack" at a cost of under $500.

I'm still working with an analog brain here and don't have enough ram to draw the design and attach it - but if interested - send me a pm including a mailing address and I'll make a sketch and post it. Easy.

My next big challenge is making a cockpit spray dodger. The local loft wants $4500 to make one - and they won't even ponder my design ideas!

To Life!

Kirk

[Trim50]

Kirk,

Do you have a digital camera? It would be really helpful if you could post some photos.

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Ken

[Gallivanters]

I do have a digital camera but I don't believe the details will show in a photo.

Never-the-less I'll try.

Kirk

[Trim50]

Some links I've found...

Mack Pack Lazy Jack Sail Cover

http://macksails.com/mackpack.htm

UK Lazy Cradle

http://www.ukhalsey.com/sails/cradledetails.asp

Sailrite Sailpack Instructions (Great Site for Every Sail Makers Needs)

http://www2.sailrite.com/PDF/StackPack.pdf

http://www.sailrite.com/Instructions-and-Tips

Lazy Jack Systems

http://www.cncphotoalbum.com/doityourself/...k/lazyjack1.htm

http://members.aol.com/bobdeurer/mod-r5.htm

Very detailed Harken design

http://www.harken.com/pdf/4058.pdf

http://www.jiffyjax.com/

[Auzzee]

This is top notch information. Thanks gents. Kirk, PM on the way.

Cheers

David.

David,

Kirk mentioned making a bigger top-flap instead of the zipper....we ended up going the same way and it works great. The zippers always seem to bind, rip, tear, etc after awhile. Pain in the *** at best!

We had to re-sew a bigger cover flap then what we thought we needed at first. For our set-up the extra material wasn't a hassle at all and we coould always get the sail covered properly....and easily.

I think we bought some on-sale sunbrella for around $100usd. Already had the fiberglass rods...and they were still good, going on 15 years. I think the most expensive part was for a spool of the UV thread!

best - J