Spinnakers FAQ

-1- What do you call a "cruising spinnaker",

-2- Do you also design and sell racing spinnakers,

-3- What is the delivery time for cruising spinnakers,

-4- What if I want different colors, or different finishes ,

-5- Do you have any trim advice for my spinnaker,

-6- What is the purpose of the leech/ luff line on my cruising spinnaker,

-7- I have questions not listed in this FAQ, how can I get help,

-1- What do you call a "cruising spinnaker",

A cruising spinnaker differs from a racing spinnaker in its cloth, its design, and often its area, with a focus on ease of use, durability, and reasonable compromise on price vs performance.

Cloth wise, we use a cloth that may be a bit heavier than what we would use for a racing application, but will provide a lot more durability. The cloth will be a solid nylon and will skip the fancy and costly treatments afforded on race cloth to eke out the last ounce of performance

Design-wise, the spinnaker will have a shape focused on ease of trim, and durability. Cruising spinnakers are generally cut a tad smaller, for the same reasons.

All in all, a cruising spinnaker will provide a tad bit less performance in the same wind, but will be a lot easier to use and trim, and will cost considerably less.

-2- Do you also design and sell racing spinnakers,

Yes we do. We design spinnakers for one-design applications, in top racing cloth. See for example this Corsaire spinnaker (a European keel boat class)

-3- What is the delivery time for cruising spinnakers?

• On standard color spinnakers, for orders taken and paid for by Friday of a given week, we ship (UPS) the following week on Tuesday, for delivery generally Thursday or Friday the same week.
  
  
• If anything is non-standard (colors, features, etc) for orders taken and paid for by Friday of a given week we ship (UPS) Tuesday of the 3rd following week, for delivery 2-3 days later.

 

-4- What if I want different colors, or different finishes?

In either case we have a slightly longer manufacturing delay (see above), but generally no extra charge.

For special colors, pick your colors here and specify the color scheme in the "notes" field when placing the order. If you would like a specific feature, you can also use the "note" field, and we will contact you if clarifications are needed. You are also always welcome to contact us if you have any doubts about your needs.

-5- do you have any trim advice for my spinnaker,

For general advice, we really like these pages

• Sailing world article on Asymmetric trimming
• Harvey Mudd article on setting, trimming and gibing a symmetrical spinnaker
• Another detailed article on setting up and flying a symmetrical spinnaker

We are always happy to call you back if you any specific questions - click here to request a call back .

-6- What is the purpose of the leech/ luff line on my cruising spinnaker?

These leech/luff lines are a high-end cruising spinnaker feature, present on all our spinnakers. They should be pulled so that they are just loose at all times when the spinnaker is new, and are not meant to be adjusted while sailing - hence they do not come with a V-cleat. Their function is:

When the spinnaker is new, and the cloth in the luff panel stretches under high load (using the sail in marginal conditions), the line will come under tension and will pick up some of the load, preventing the luff tape and/or luff panel to fail under load After several seasons, when a little permanent (and normal) stretch has set in, you can use the leech / luff line to re-tension the leech or luff, and give back your spinnaker its original shape. Doing so, you will enjoy several additional season of use out of your spinnaker.

-7- I have questions not listed in this FAQ, how can I get help?

Please send us an email via this link. We will be happy to call you back on your time frame.