What can I EASILY make out of an old sail

[vtsailguy]

I thought Lee cloths were what held you in the bunk. Either way, both are good ideas

Has anyone had success fitting a hammock in a ~30' boat for more sleeping berths?

[Seaduction]

Originally Posted by misfits

Lee cloths?
Is that the correct name of the gizmo's you put around the stern rails for added protection from the elements?

I've heard them called "spray shields."

[drb9]

You asked what YOU could make, but you also might consider letting someone make you a bag. I believe they trade you a bag for your sail. If you go to seabags dot com, you can click on the link for recycle your sail. They make nice, though pricy, bags.

[CalebD]

Lee boards keep you in a bunk or berth.
Lee cloths help reduce water splashing the cockpit.
Hard alee is a barely perceptible turn or tack~~~!~~~

[vtsailguy]

Ahh, great tip drd, I will look into that

[Sabreman]

Honestly, the bags are easy to make. I designed the tote after looking at my wife's Land's End bag for 10 minutes and then making a newspaper pattern to get the construction sequence right. The duffel was easier in that it's just a tube with two circles on each end. The gold sail material are cutoffs from my sailmaker that he had in the trash.

A tote takes about 90 minutes to make (most of the time is spent just cutting material) and the duffel takes about 4 hours because of the details. But they're not HARD. All that's needed is a willingness to fail... I had nothing to lose, the genoa was already dead. Totes make great gifts and I make 4 or 5 at a time after Thanksgiving in time for the Holidays. Special people get sailcloth bags, acquaintances get bags from old sailcovers or material form JoAnn Fabrics.

While not made from my genoa, this handbag for my wife is made from racing laminate and material left over when I made new interior cushions:

[vtsailguy]

Hmmm, maybe I'll give it a try. I am not really much of a sewing person. Do you need special needles for the sewing machine?

[Seaduction]

Originally Posted by CalebD

Lee boards keep you in a bunk or berth.
Lee cloths help reduce water splashing the cockpit.
Hard alee is a barely perceptible turn or tack~~~!~~~

?????:conf used:?????

[Sabreman]

Do you need special needles for the sewing machine?

Buy the largest dia needles available for your machine. That will reduce skipped stitches. Increase the down pressure of your foot if using a home machine. Use upholstery thread if you can't get V92 thread locally. Or use sailrite.com. Note that sailcloth is generally heavy and while the tote bags don't have a lot of layers, adding the binding tape does add bulk and you would benefit from a walking foot machine.

Having made many totes on a Sailrite LSZ-1 machine, I believe that they are within the capability of most home machines too.

[chef2sail]

My wife made this great little day bag for me 8 years ago on our Sailrite machine. Was made out of the carbon fiber jib of Dennis Conners Stars and Stripes (USA 11).



If you ever get to San Diego for a day the trip on this boat is awesome. Both my wife and I had the helm for over 15 minutes each.

http://sailusa11.com/