Making New Sails - Mylar replacement

Since the mylar sails on my boat are shot, I want to make my own new sails. I have been sewing my own sails for years on my other boats, so I see no reason why a new sail set couldn't be made. So there are a couple of questions I have if anyone has any inside information.

Does anyone know if there are patterns available for sails?
What is good replacement for the mylar and what weight of sail cloth to use?

I don't plan on racing this boat, I just want to have fun sailing it.

Thanks in advance.

That won't be easy!
Maybe you can thorn all the stitches and use the old sail as a model.
But I think a sailmaker has all the equipment to reinforce the difficult pieces. That will be hard to do with a normal sewing machine.
Bit if you try it.....keep us informed.
Maybe its a good idea to start with a jib.

It will be easy. I have a Sailrite walking foot LZ-1 sewing machine that does a great job. If I have to, I can use my old sail for a model. The original design is a great looking sail. My question is what weight of sail cloth is the best for replacing the mylar?

What are people using to replace the mylar?

The OEM sail material is a Mylar/Dacron taffeta that was originally developed for windsurfer sails in the early '80s. There is no direct replacement material available.

Most aftermarket sails for the 17 do not use the original pattern, since modern film sail materials (Pentex) do not have the same stretch characteristics as the Mylar/Dacron taffeta.

Whirlwind sails is the only manufacturer of aftermarket 17 sails that I'm aware of. The owner, Chip Buck, used to be the sail loft manager at Hobie Cat in the early '90s. By all accounts, he is very helpful (no personal experience with him myself) - he may be able to give you some guidance as to what materials to use - [email protected].

You still can use the Mylar. Today's Mylar is much more durable than one used in mid 80's. Otherwise, the most common non-racing sail fabric is Dacron. The H17 would need 6.0 oz. weight. My sails is Pertex and made by Chip Back of http://www.whirlwindsails.com/.

See this fiber guide
http://www.doylesails.com/design/fiber.html

_________________
H17

I found a deal on ebay for 5.5 oz white dacron. It is a great price and since I haven't made a hobie sail before, it may be best to make one with this low price dacron and take what I learned to make a more colorful one next. But I am wondering now is there is also some 4 oz material. Should I make the jib out of the 4 oz or should the jib be the 5.5 oz.

Thanks.

4 oz dacron will work well on the 17 in both mainsail and jib... The mainsail will last a few seasons (is this a battened main?), the jib only one or two before being stretched to less than optimal shape. Good news though, you can recut and use for another season or so. Personally, I would not use the old sail as a pattern since you know better than the original sailmaker what wind strengths you sail in so you can adjust the camber and camber placement to suit your conditions. Crosscut design will probably be easiest to make but I also like radial head designs. Here is a video of how I made a small dacron mainsail using radial head design https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQwhRKERclU In any case, this is my plan for when my Getaway sails get too useless.

_________________
R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

http://youtu.be/fdJ-ws9lWg4
This might be usefull.....

I've been working on the same problem. You can purchase similar material to the original mylar taffeta from a distributor of Dimension Polyant. Their Surf Laminate: 180 Profile LL has a 2.0 mil finish 4.2oz weight and 57'' roll width. It's designed for windsurfer sails and won't last as long as the dacron sail cloth under the same conditions. 4oz or 5oz polyester fabric is in the realm of what you probably should be using. There are more colors in the 4oz. weight fabric. Wirlwind makes a radialish sail and a square top. A few other sailmakers make them, and there is a kit from sail-rite that will sell you the parts for like $300 or $350, but their dimensions seem to be significantly off from stock size. That may be a way to go in your case though.

4 oz and 5.5 oz are relative terms. Depending on the weave and the finish of the cloth, 4oz from one supplier and 5oz from another may feel the same, or they may not even be called 4oz. One may be 3.8 while another may be listed by something else entirely.

You're probably safe with anything in the 4-6oz range for your main, you just need to know which direction you cut your panels in and how you're orienting the loads on the sail.

Is Hobie still using the Mylar Taffeta Laminate for their smoke H17 Sail?

_________________
Tom
Fleet 259, Central Coast CA
H18 ('81)
H18 ('85)
H20 ('97)
H18 ('78)

If you are going to make your own sails, you are already saving $$ . And you probably won't get "it right" the first time for your local conditions (I certainly didn't). You are going to be modifying your first sails until you are "happy"; then you will make "the new ones" that will be closer to "right". SO, my advice is buy the least expensive sailcloth you can find of dacron material-whatever color suits you best (I like buying from Sailmakers Supply personally http://www.sailmakerssupply.com/ (I have no relationship with the company, I just like their prices and the quality of the goods I've purchased from them...that being said, I got stuff that was "good enough" off eBay). Also, personally, I'd stay away from SailRite because they are overpriced for what they provide. My other "faves" are Challenge sailcloth and Bainbridge, but you hafta buy a lot of stuff from them and pretend you are a business since they don't sell retail. You can also buy mylar film, make a sail from it and then reinforce it with kevlar kitestrings like 3DL. There's no end to the possibilities...but I'd start with the least expensive dacron you can get.

_________________
R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

I second this! You will always use more material than you think, and you will probably got through at least 2 or 3 versions before you start feeling comfortable with something. If you haven't covered it yet... double sided STICKY TAPE is your friend! I work for a loft that may have overstepped their place on this forum in the past, so I'm trying to be sensitive to that. I've been sailing, racing and part of this forum for much longer than that. (I got hired as a cat consultant ) I'm learning about sail building and manufacturing as I try to take advantage of my access to tools and equipment to make some cook toys for myself as well.

Once you figure out your pattern, check in with some lofts and see if they have any shorts they want to offload. We had intermittent luck with some challenge 6.03 colored sailcloth and have since moved to another supplier for the colored dacron, but we have some shorts that we offer discounts on for colored sails. You may have a local loft with a few yards of purple burning a hole in their books.

_________________
Tom
Fleet 259, Central Coast CA
H18 ('81)
H18 ('85)
H20 ('97)
H18 ('78)

I misspoke in my previous post, one of my faves is Contender sailcloth, not Challenge like I said before. Contender is where I got the sailcloth for the sails you see in this photo They don't make that particular cloth any longer, but they do make some pretty nifty reinforced dacron/polyester. I still think a small boat like a hobie doesn't need high tech cloth and dacron will suit you just fine.

_________________
R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II