Seeking sail recommendation

Submitted by plall on Thu, 10/14/2010 - 14:16
How much difference is there between new Gus, North and Mad Sails? They all seem high quality, although North Sails carry a premium. Has anyone tried two kinds on the same boat? Thank you.
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Comments

We've bought all 3 since our Scot was new in 2005.

Submitted by Hot Wheels on Thu, 10/14/2010 - 22:46.
We've bought all 3 since our Scot was new in 2005. They are all good. And we rotate between them, using North in choppy venues and the Mads on lakes. We like the North chutes best as they are not as flat in the head and forgiving to fly. North [Alan & Katie Terhune] have won all the NACs & Midwinters regattas the last 3 years. If I was buying now we would get the Mads. There is a 15% discount until Nov. 30th. North probably has a fall discount as well.

An old thread that still holds up: http://www.

Submitted by Hot Wheels on Thu, 10/14/2010 - 23:12.
An old thread that still holds up: http://www.fssa.com/fsforum2/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=443

Thanks Hot Wheels.

Submitted by plall on Fri, 10/15/2010 - 13:39.
Thanks Hot Wheels. North Sails are also 15% off at the moment but still cost more. From your old posts, North Sails sound more forgiving for amateurs like me. Toss up whether that is worth the premium. I sail on the Chesapeake Bay so there is a range of conditions, sometimes choppy, sometimes flat.

Just a thought to keep in mind are you buying sails for club rac

Submitted by MrDave on Fri, 10/15/2010 - 16:05.
Just a thought to keep in mind are you buying sails for club racing or big event racing?

Club racing mostly.

Submitted by plall on Fri, 10/15/2010 - 21:31.
Club racing mostly.

Most of the top sailors in our fleet sail with North.

Submitted by Andy Carrier on Sat, 10/16/2010 - 18:32.
Most of the top sailors in our fleet sail with North. I went with North because of their influence, North's customer service, and their commitment to the Flying Scot class. I will have to admit that I see a lot of MAD sails gaining in popularity. Harry Carpenter now sails with MAD - so MAD's customer service and commitment to the Flying Scot class probably meets or exceeds North's! [;)]

There have been some posts about Intensity sails which are much

Submitted by phebejim on Sun, 10/17/2010 - 10:42.
There have been some posts about Intensity sails which are much less expensive: $500 for main and jib.

The sail selection has more factors than just the manufactuirer.

Submitted by karafiath on Mon, 10/18/2010 - 11:50.
The sail selection has more factors than just the manufactuirer. North offers two main sail designs and at least two if not three jib designs.Schurr also offers bells and whistles on their sails such as a soft foot and a radial head. The bottom line is that there is no one sail that works best in all conditions. The general guidance is that in light air you need full sails. In hevy air, especially if you sail with only two lightweight people on board, it helps to have flat sails. So do you sail mostly in light air wher there is no serious hiking needed or do you sail consistently in heavy air regions where hiking on the rail is the general rule for the windward beat. In my experience the Schurr and Gus and the AP North are all flat mains that need the outhaul eased off in light air in order to make them go, but there is some loss in area. But when the wind picks up, with these sails the boat is easier to hold down with less heel. So unless you have three heavies on the rail, these are the sails of choice for heavier wind. I have no experience with MAD or Fowler or Intensity sails

Good point.

Submitted by plall on Mon, 10/18/2010 - 13:20.
Good point. Ideally, I would get 2 sets: one for light wind and one for heavy wind. I would say the wind is more often light than heavy. But I only sail with 2 so it gets overpowered pretty quickly. I was thinking of a full sail with reef points if the wind is too strong. Granted, Reefing is much worse than using an AP sail but at least it gives more options to a range of conditions.

To Pball.

Submitted by karafiath on Tue, 10/19/2010 - 11:31.
To Pball. If you are doing mostly club racing and there is plenty of light air then I would get light air sails that are full cut. My experience with club racing is that when the wind starts to pick up many of the club members go in and abandon the race. Club racing is there to have fun, not to get beat up in big wind and you may find yourself out in big wind with no one to race. I have put reef points in some of my sails. I once sailed in a pretty strong breeze with a reefed main, appx 30 inches reef. The boat was not competative with the other boats. The reefed main looses too much in the lulls and it is too much hassle to and lost disatance to shake out a reef. You can install just a flattening reef and I am surprised that more sailors do not resort to flattening reefs. On some other classes a flattening reef is pretty standard. The flattening reef is at the clew only and can bve easily engaged /disengaged. There is no halyard adjustment with the flattening reef. Talk with your sailmaker

To Pball.

Submitted by karafiath on Tue, 10/19/2010 - 11:33.
To Pball. If you are doing mostly club racing and there is plenty of light air then I would get light air sails that are full cut. My experience with club racing is that when the wind starts to pick up many of the club members go in and abandon the race. Club racing is there to have fun, not to get beat up in big wind and you may find yourself out in big wind with no one to race. I have put reef points in some of my sails. I once sailed in a pretty strong breeze with a reefed main, appx 30 inches reef. The boat was not competative with the other boats. The reefed main looses too much in the lulls and it is too much hassle to and lost disatance to shake out a reef. You can install just a flattening reef and I am surprised that more sailors do not resort to flattening reefs. On some other classes a flattening reef is pretty standard. The flattening reef is at the clew only and can bve easily engaged /disengaged. There is no halyard adjustment with the flattening reef. Talk with your sailmaker

quote:North [Alan & Katie Terhune] have won all the NACs & Midwi

Submitted by Claus on Tue, 10/19/2010 - 16:09.
quote:
North [Alan & Katie Terhune] have won all the NACs & Midwinters regattas the last 3 years.
If it was just the sails then I would have won some regattas, too. I think North Sails is also in the lead of not winning the most regattas. A horrid statistic but that's what you get for having the biggest market share. [;)]

Claus FS5074 Ames, IA

I will be buying my third set of Mads in 5 years this spring.

Submitted by Jay Lott on Tue, 12/21/2010 - 21:47.
I will be buying my third set of Mads in 5 years this spring. You can't beat Ryan Malmgren for customer service and committment to the Flying Scot class. He makes very high quality sails and he builds them himself. And he attends every major Flying Scot regatta himself. The North business model is different -- it's my understanding that their sailmakers are not building their own Flying Scot sails. The North premium price is the result of that model. That being said, any of the three are capable of winning a race in any conditions. For most sailors -- all of us below the elite level -- as long as sails are relatively new, they are about 5% of whether you win. The other 95% is the sailor, and it pays to focus on that 95%.

quote:[i]Originally posted by plall[/i] [br]How much difference

Submitted by Scott Mauney on Sun, 12/26/2010 - 18:03.
quote:
[i]Originally posted by plall[/i] [br]How much difference is there between new Gus, North and Mad Sails? They all seem high quality, although North Sails carry a premium. Has anyone tried two kinds on the same boat? Thank you.
New sails are faster than old sails. New free sails are even better. But weight matters the most.

If you really want your boat to go fast then go to: http://www.

Submitted by Scott Mauney on Thu, 12/30/2010 - 21:26.
If you really want your boat to go fast then go to: http://www.waterlinesystems.com/ 3 FS NAC's in a row can't be wrong.

Hi Scott, While I am sure that Waterlines appreciates the plu

Submitted by ATerhuneJr on Sat, 01/01/2011 - 14:08.
Hi Scott, While I am sure that Waterlines appreciates the plug and your efforts in spreading the word for them, it would be impossible for Randy and his team to say that they have won the last three NAC. Waterlines does fantastic work, but they have never done any work to my scot (#5761) or any other scot that I know of! I have done a lot of work with Waterlines in the past, with our J80 and J22. They are a great resource, super people and do fantastic work. The Sailing Industry is lucky to have great companies like Waterline Systems to support our sport. I know this is a sail related thread, so if anyone has any questions on that, dont hesitate to ask! Have a Great Holiday! Allan Terhune, Jr. FS 5761

Consider Gus Sails http://www.

Submitted by mmittman on Tue, 01/25/2011 - 11:17.
Consider Gus Sails http://www.gussails.net/flying_scot.html Michael Mittman FS# 5804, Fleet 23 Corinthian Sailing Club White Rock Lake Dallas, TX

Michael Mittman

FS 5804, Fleet 23

Corinthian Sailing Club

White Rock Lake, Dallas, TX, USA

My thoughts on sail maker choice has two components: 1.

Submitted by mmittman on Tue, 01/25/2011 - 11:26.
My thoughts on sail maker choice has two components: 1. New sails are faster than old sails. 1. Always buy sails from a sail maker that is involved and sailing with the Flying Scot class which for the most part are Gus Sails, North Sails, and MAD Sails. Yes, I did number both as number one, because I believe both are equally important. Consider purchasing your sails through our builder Flying Scot Inc. Anything we can do to help our builder helps keep our class strong and vibrant. Flying Scot Inc, store, sails: https://1780805.sites.myregisteredsite.com/store/prodtype.asp?PT_ID=87&s... We are lucky to have a consistently high quality builder and high quality sail maker choices for our Flying Scot class. Other classes are not so lucky. Michael Mittman FS# 5804, Fleet 23 Corinthian Sailing Club White Rock Lake Dallas, TX

Michael Mittman

FS 5804, Fleet 23

Corinthian Sailing Club

White Rock Lake, Dallas, TX, USA

I'm going to have to agree with Allan on his comments about Wate

Submitted by fs5609 on Tue, 02/01/2011 - 13:05.
I'm going to have to agree with Allan on his comments about Waterlines. There are classes that are absorbed by such services. Fortunately for us the Flying Scot is not one of them. All new sails are better than old sails. Look closely at your combined crew weight and your sailing conditions. Sail selection can make a difference. And, you get what you pay for. So, go with manufacturers that are actively developing a racing product for the Flying Scot. And, ordering thru your builder, Flying Scot Inc., is a good idea.