Full batten Main

[owlmtn]

We just purchased a Tartan 30 (moving up from our C&C 25). She has a full batten mainsail and never having sailed with full battens, I was looking for any information at all on these sails, advantages, disadvantages etc. We sail on Lake Champlain which has a range of winds, from light air to very gusty breezy conditions, made even more gusty by the mountains. any information would be appreciated. Jim Lintereur

[mgiguere]

We just put a Doyle full batten main on my Apache 37. It''s the biggest difference I have ever done on this boat from a performance point of view. Of course, the old main was bad, so just having a new sail would make a difference. but this sail has eliminated any weather or lee helm and added several degrees to pointing ability. Doyle has a great pampphlet on trimming a full batten main under varying conditions. Call them in Marblehead--I''m sure they would send it to you or it may be available on their web site. good luck

[paulmcquillan]

Did you do all full battens, or 2+2 (the top 2 as full battens)

[paulk]

Full battens are nice because they reduce sail wear & tear from luffing. They also tend to hold the sail at a better optimum shape, even when there isn''t a lot of wind. Downsides are that they can make hoisting and dowsing a sail more difficult because of tension on the luffrope and tear pockets if they catch on things. Not pushing them in too tightly can help avoid those problems -- you should try to adjust them (tight or loose, like your outhaul) a bit according to the conditions you expect that day. We''ve had full-length battens for a number of years. One main has a complete set of four, and the racing sail has the two uppers.
We like them a lot.

[owlmtn]

Paul, thanks for the info. Jim L