Newport 30 MKII head sail size?

[fstued1]

I just got a 1976 Newport 30 and I am thinking new headsail I have a really good shape 130 Dacron and will keep it,but will a 150 or 140 over power the boat
I do live in low wind San Diego and 12 to 15 is a great day moe like 8 to 12
Thanks

[sailingdog]

Why not get an asym or screacher instead of a 150% genny and fly it on a wire-luff furler instead.

[puddinlegs]

Originally Posted by fstued1

I just got a 1976 Newport 30 and I am thinking new headsail I have a really good shape 130 Dacron and will keep it,but will a 150 or 140 over power the boat
I do live in low wind San Diego and 12 to 15 is a great day moe like 8 to 12
Thanks

Will a 150 or 140 overpower the boat? Sometimes, absolutely. There's no such thing as a 'one jib does all' If you're thinking about going upwind faster in lighter air, a large genoa is great. (There's a very good reason race boats have several different sizes of head sails... optimum performance in given wind ranges, but it's very expensive to purchase and maintain. But for cruising, most don't want or need a full headsail inventory.) The trick is to find the right size that works most of the time. A 120% or 130% I'd guess will fit that bill very nicely for your locale, but you'll be somewhat underpowered in lighter air. And if you're thinking about downwind performance, i.e., a poled out jib, a spinnaker is a better choice.

[COOL]

Originally Posted by puddinlegs

There's no such thing as a 'one jib does all'

Good post above, I think more people need to understand this.
Most boats these days are equipped with the one main, and
one roller furling headsail that came with the boat.
If the conditions fall outside the wind range the headsail will
perform in, many people end up motoring as often as not.
A 150% should be a good addition to a Newport 30s
inventory for San Diego sailing.
A spinnaker would be nice to have if you end up doing
coastal trips up to Catalina or down to Ensenada.
But sailing in and around San Diego ends up being
predominately beating or reaching.