DRAGONFLY Trimarans User Forum

I am new to the Dragonfly scene can antond help me with the choice of both supplier and fabric for a new mailsail for me 920.
I sail single handed mostly and do not race , so I need a sail that will take being roughly handled when dropping the sail as there is no one to flake it out nicely.
It has been suggested to me that a Pentex/mylar sail would be best compomise
Also I live/sail in Spain, were do I go to for a good quality and good priced sail

I have a Pentex main, and I have no problems flaking it neatly with the help of lazy jacks single-handed. I would think that any main is easy to handle with lazy jacks.

The choice of material is all about compromise. Since you sail in very sunny area, keep in mind that Pentex will not last nearly as long as plain Dacron exposed to a lot of UV. After 5 summers of sailing in relatively sunny Long Island Sound on the US East Coast, there is a noticeable difference between my Pentex main and Dacron genoa. Although my genoa had some restitching, the material itself is in very good shape. The Pentex material already shows wear.

Hi again , most helpfull. I have been told by two sailmakers that Dacron is not strong enough for the leech loadings on the Dragonfly ???? you seem to be wishing you had a Dacron main, have you any experience of Darcon mains ?
My issue is not the handleing of the main as you say with lazey lines it is not an issue but for the sail many laminates do not like beeing tosed into a lazey bag and want carefull stacking, this sort handed is not possible therfore the life of the sail is suspect with some laminates. I have been told Pentex is Ok for this but I am not sure ?

I had Pentex on my 920 -- used for 4 years and went on to another owner. It held its shape well, and still had plenty of life when I sold the boat. I agree with your sailmakers that Dacron will not hold shape as well on a mulltihull. I had a Dacron main on my 1000 and was not as satisfied with the performance.

No problems stacking on either boat -- with the lazy-jacks and full battens it just falls into place with very little help. As a single-hander, if you have an autopilot and set it to motor upwind slowly, you can clutch the halyard long enough to go forward and fix it if don't like the way the sail is stacking. It's really not a problem.

Get the best sails you can afford. Money doesn't buy happiness, but it helps when it comes to boats.

to buckle:

I absolutely do not wish for a Dacron main! As Larry pointed out, Pentex has better shape and is lighter than Dacron. Even Pentex main with standard battens and reinforced batten pockets is very heavy. Since you are making a new main, go for the lightest battens in carbon fiber.

I hear that a woven spectra main is light and will last forever. I understand it is expensive.

Also, depending on your wind conditions, you may not want to shorten the sail to get more head room for the bimini. In lighter winds you will need all the sail area you can get. I would go for a square top main.

Here is more detail on the damage on my Pentex main: the laminate is noticeably worn around the creases. Areas that get rubbed are weakened, specifically where reefing blocks touch the material. I had these reinforced with spectra. Some laminate shows signs of typical UV damage: loss of clarity, coarseness and internal damage. These spots are now susceptible to minor tears.