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Sailrite SailPack

6K views 17 replies 8 participants last post by  MMR 
#1 ·
Has anyone installed the SailPack from SailRite?

If so any thoughts/opinions good or bad?

I need to replace my sail cover and I'm looking at this as an option.

Thanks,
Jim
 
#4 ·
I'll be making one soon. Here are some links to some who have made it; good info on the published article by Linda Moore:

ReadOz - Southwinds Magazine (click on "read" link)
http://www.southwindsmagazine.com/pdfs/southwindsdecember2009.pdf
Picasa Web Albums - Linda - Stack Pack "folder" and other projects

Newport 30 owner who recently made and installed one:
Picasa Web Albums - Carl - Sailrite Stac...

If you want the seams to be less visible on the pack; use the V-92 thread in the same color as the canvas. The sailrite "kit" only comes with white thread; so you might consider buying the kit and a spool or the correct color; or asking to swap spools and pay the difference in price.
 
#5 ·
I did not have sailrite, but a custom pak from St. Maarten. A couple of things I dislike were the fact the pak held moisture, and I believe it takes away some footage of the sail. I did not like letting it hang, and flop around to get back the footage of the sail. Convenience,,,,,,, what a huge plus.

I have just installed a new sailcover, and already I am thinking I should've went with the pak instead.......i2f
 
#6 ·
I have purchased a "Mack Pack" lazy jack/sailbag combination which is now being installed. There are a couple of boats in my marina with the system and I decided to go that route after speaking to happy owners.

It looks like the Mack Pack system can be completely moved out of the way if you wish, so other than a minor amount of hassle, you should be able to get full performance from your main. The effort required to lower the jacks and stow them should be minimal compared to wrestling a full batten main to flake and tie.

For short sails, you can leave the bag up and perhaps sacrifice a bit of performance, in order to have the convenience to drop the sail, tuck, zip and be on to the Pain Killers that much faster.

I'll be posting about my experince after I've had some time to evaluate the systems for a while.

PS edited to add the the Mack Pack is open at the bottom along the boom so water should drain and air can circulate so there should be no issue there.
 
#8 ·
Maybe mine was just bad construction? It was sewn down the middle on the bottom with a bolt rope running through the boom. There slits on the bottom to release water, but it wasn't effecient.

I kept the old pak. maybe when I get to California I can reinvent the sail cover I have now with the old pattern? The convenience of the pak is huge!......i2f
 
#12 ·
I'm going to redo ours, too, at some point. Version 2.0 will include:

-Flap cover over zipper to reduce water coming in.
-Attachment points at mast and boom end to keep sailpack taut
-FOUR lazyjack attachment points instead of three to support the pack better
-Lazyjack attachments will be loops or something on the sailpack itself, not on the batten/pvc pipe. The current pvc pipe arrangement is not stiff enough to prevent sagging along the length of the sailpack.
-If I feel like it, maybe some blocks to have single line zipping/unzipping of the bag.
-Also considering mesh "windows" in the side of the sailpack to improve drainage and air flow.

And, the next one will be PURPLE :laugher
 
#17 · (Edited)
-Lazyjack attachments will be loops or something on the sailpack itself, not on the batten/pvc pipe. The current pvc pipe arrangement is not stiff enough to prevent sagging along the length of the sailpack.
I don't think that is an attachment problem. Attaching the lines directly to the pipe is the most stiff configuration; otherwise you also have stretch of the canvas and webbing in addition to flexing of the pipe. I think an additional support point or using battens instead of PVC would be a better way to correct this. In addition; the mounting point for the lazy jacks on your mast looks a bit low. The 2'nd and 3'rd row of lines are at a steep angle and are probably not pulling vertically enough to support the pack and prevent sagging. You might consider moving the lazy jack blocks up to near the upper spreaders; or on the upper spreaders to help widen the slot and prevent slapping of the jack-lines on the mast.

VERY NICE Job on it! I noticed in some of the photos that you used a zig-zag stitch on many of the seams instead of a straight line. Did this help prevent the sewn cloth from 'shrinking' due to seam pucker? The article by Linda Moore mentions up to 3" of shrink over 18' of length. Did you have this issue or is it more of a machine tension adjustment problem?
 
#13 ·
FWIW - We just installed the Doyle StackPack. In addition to the cover, it has additional material attached to the top edge of the cover and sewn above that to the sail so that when the sail is raised, the cover is pulled up flat along the foot of the sail. I raised the sail for the first time yesterday just to make sure all the lines were running free (the reefing line wasn't), but did not sail. I noticed when heading into the wind, the extra material billowed, which seemed to me would affect the flow of air across the foot of the sail. I didn't have the halyard fully tensioned, though, so maybe it won't be an issue. But I've got to say that putting the sail away went so quickly that I'm still feeling like I must've forgotten something. I was done too quick!
 
#18 ·
I used zig-zag stitching because that stitching holds up better (than a straight stitch) on fabric that is stretching/contracting. I also was thinking that in my prior experience, a straight stitch on stressed fabric can be a weak point (like a line of perforations...TEAR HERE)

I did not see the shrinkage issue you mention, but then again, this was my first large project for the boat, so there was a big learning curve. The biggest was and still is the different techniques and strategies needed verses sewing quilts or clothing...:)

We're going to try a 4th lazy jack attachment point and see how that works. The mounting point for the lazy jacks on the mast are factory original; we'll see how other adjustments work before moving those. The original L J had only two attachment points on the boom, so the angles may not be good for what we're trying to do with the sailpack.

Here you can see the original configuration of Lazy Jacks:
 
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