Loose footed main, pros? cons?

[Bobglas]

Finally unwrapping Andaluz. Will spend the month of April readying the barque. Wondering about loose footed mains since seeing more and more in the sailing magazines. Performance? Any problems reefing?

[Jimmyt]

Fair discussion in this article. http://www.fxsails.com/article_loosefoot.php

I don't have any trouble reefing mine. I just roll it up. Supposed to be as easy to Reef conventionally though.



But, I do need to add outhaul control and get my halyard squared away to get my sail shape looking better than my pajama shirt...

[Interim]

No problem reefing mine, either. The outhaul is critical, of course.

It is hard to tell for me whether this improved performance, because it was a new sail after all. The sailmaker said it was better, and that was good enough for me. I haven't seen any downside to it.

--john

[jimmy alonso]

I got these sails a while back easier to raise and lower than the originals and I like how I can loosen the outhaul in light winds heading downwind and have it loose as above.
Before I would keep the old sail on the boom all the time. This one I remove fold and store it in the sail bag.
Pinned the mast above, it keeps it from banging side to side.

[Bobglas]

Hadn't thought about storage. What do you mean about pinning?

[Tomfoolery]

But, I do need to add outhaul control and get my halyard squared away to get my sail shape looking better than my pajama shirt...

I didn't read the linked article, but one big advantage is that you actually DO have outhaul control. Tightening the 'outhaul' on a bolt-rope main doesn't do anything at all. You're pulling against the bolt rope, which doesn't stretch in any appreciable way, so it does nothing. But a loose foot means you're actually changing the sail shape at the foot by adjusting the outhaul.

[jimmy alonso]

Hadn't thought about storage. What do you mean about pinning?

The mast would bang side to side while motoring in choppy seas or at a rolly anchorage. Drill a hole the base insert a 1/4 inch pin remove when sailing.
Also keeps the mast from flopping on the side when trailering.

[Jimmyt]

But, I do need to add outhaul control and get my halyard squared away to get my sail shape looking better than my pajama shirt...

I didn't read the linked article, but one big advantage is that you actually DO have outhaul control. Tightening the 'outhaul' on a bolt-rope main doesn't do anything at all. You're pulling against the bolt rope, which doesn't stretch in any appreciable way, so it does nothing. But a loose foot means you're actually changing the sail shape at the foot by adjusting the outhaul.

I'll trust you on that. You've forgotten more about sailing than I'll ever know (southern complement in case you're not familiar).

I was under the apparent misconception that 'loose footed' meant pinned at tack and clew and free in between - which mine is when fully deployed. I was not aware that the edge construction, bolt rope vs sail cloth, was a factor.

I can strike the spinning outhaul off the project list...

[Jimmyt]

Hadn't thought about storage. What do you mean about pinning?

The mast would bang side to side while motoring in choppy seas or at a rolly anchorage. Drill a hole the base insert a 1/4 inch pin remove when sailing.
Also keeps the mast from flopping on the side when trailering.

I'll have to look for that next time out. I've never noticed the mast rotating that freely... interesting.

[Tomfoolery]

I was under the apparent misconception that 'loose footed' meant pinned at tack and clew and free in between - which mine is when fully deployed. I was not aware that the edge construction, bolt rope vs sail cloth, was a factor.

You were and are correct - I was referring to the bolt rope in terms of it being slotted into the boom, which was the OEM style, like the OEM main sail. With such a short, heavy bolt rope, yanking hard on the 'outhaul' barely does anything as far as bringing the clew further back other than (maybe) taking a few wrinkles out of an old sail. The bottom of the sail is stuck to the boom no matter what, and is flat no matter what.

With a loose foot, you can change the shape of the foot, though you can't flatten it like it's a bolt-rope-in-groove type.

[Tomfoolery]

Oh, and it's cute that you think I know something about sailing, bless your heart.

(How'd I do on the southern thing?)

[Jimmyt]

Oh, and it's cute that you think I know something about sailing, bless your heart.

(How'd I do on the southern thing?)

I can't see your face, but if you're wearing a mischievous smirk, you nailed it!

[Jimmyt]

I was under the apparent misconception that 'loose footed' meant pinned at tack and clew and free in between - which mine is when fully deployed. I was not aware that the edge construction, bolt rope vs sail cloth, was a factor.

You were and are correct - I was referring to the bolt rope in terms of it being slotted into the boom, which was the OEM style, like the OEM main sail. With such a short, heavy bolt rope, yanking hard on the 'outhaul' barely does anything as far as bringing the clew further back other than (maybe) taking a few wrinkles out of an old sail. The bottom of the sail is stuck to the boom no matter what, and is flat no matter what.

With a loose foot, you can change the shape of the foot, though you can't flatten it like it's a bolt-rope-in-groove type.

Not sure why there is a bolt rope on my sail - unless it was merely modified for the roller furler. But, there is no slot in the drum to put it it - even if I wanted to.

Does this mean I have to start thinking adjustable outhaul again?..

[Tomfoolery]

Not sure why there is a bolt rope on my sail - unless it was merely modified for the roller furler. But, there is no slot in the drum to put it it - even if I wanted to.

Does this mean I have to start thinking adjustable outhaul again?..

There must be some kind of outhaul on that sail. How do you keep it extended the length of the boom otherwise? And by the way, I'm not suggesting you must have a live adjustment on the tack in order to sail. I think an outhaul control you can use underway is a bit advanced. Certainly more work than I'm willing to do while "relaxing". But I'm not the kind to tweak the last .01 kt out of what amounts to a station wagon (or Waterbago).

I can't see your face, but if you're wearing a mischievous smirk, you nailed it!

There really isn't a mischievous smirk smilie, but that's what I was going for. Being a yankee, there's not a lot of opportunity to use southern expressions without sounding like I shouldn't be using southern expressions. But they sure can be fun. < mischievous smirk? Or just my thumb up, er, let's go with mischievous smirk.

[Jimmyt]

It's really more of a clew fastening point than an outhaul...



Your Waterbago comment is pretty much on the mark for the way I sail.