North Sails One Design trabaja en el desarrollo de su nuevo genoa 3DL en kevlar para J-24.
Durante tres días en San Diego efectuaron las pruebas y todas las conclusiones están volcadas en el siguiente informe: (hacer click acá para descargar y leer)
Las preguntas y respuestas al tema:
When will the Kevlar sails be legal?
March 1st, 2009. In time for the Worlds in Annapolis.
Will the Kevlar Genoa be faster?
That is yet to be proven. In our sail testing to date the Pentex Genoa tested to be faster in light to medium breeze. The Aramid Genoa has tested faster only in the top end of the genoa thus far.
Will North Sails One Design still be selling Pentex sails?
Absolutely! We believe the switch to Kevlar will happen gradually, since the Pentex genoa has benefitted from many years of development and most sailors are comfortable with it. A number of years ago we were involved when the Melges 24 class switched from Pentex to Kevlar and initially the Pentex sails proved faster.
Will the Kevlar genoa last longer?
Honestly we do not know. The Aramid (Kevlar) fiber is stronger than the Pentex fiber, this is a proven fact. We hope that the Aramid sail may last a little longer but we are also certain the back end of the sail will still take a beating against the rig just as the Pentex fiber has over the last 10 years, and this appears to have the biggest impact on durability. We are hopeful that the Kevlar sails will last longer, but time (use over the upcoming season) will tell.
What will the sails cost?
The Kevlar genoa will cost US$ 2,025.00 not including the class required royalty.
Are you working on a 3DL version?
Yes, we have built and tested a number of 3DL J/24 genoas. Initially however we plan to offer a paneled genoa similar to in layout to our present Pentex genoa (with substantial shape adjustments for the different material properties of Kevlar). We are continuing to work on and test the 3DL product and once it is proven better will introduce it. Our goal is to offer our J/24 customers a sail that is fast and easy to set up like our present Pentex sails are.
How have you developed the shape of your new Kevlar genoa?
The stretch characteristics of Kevlar are quite a bit different from Pentex and therefore the shape of our genoa “mold” needs to be adjusted to duplicate the fast shapes our customers have come to enjoy. North One Design designers Ched Proctor and Paul Bogataj have used North’s most advanced programs Flow and Membrain to analyze the mold changes needed to duplicate our fast flying shapes using Kevlar.
I just got a Pentex sail...am I at a disadvantage?
At this time the answer is no. It will take some time to tweak the Aramid genoas into the exact sail we want, right now the Pentex sail tests as good or better in the light to medium wind ranges so I would say by this time next year when it is time for a new Genoa the Aramid sail will be ready.
Will the Kevlar sail require a different set up for the boat and trimming of the sail?
Our goal with our Kevlar genoa development has been that our customers will be able to set up and trim the new Kevlar sails similarly to the Pentex sails. That said, we should expect small tuning developments as we all learn more about the properties of Kevlar on a J/24.
Do you recommend Kevlar right now?
I would say unless you are headed to the Worlds this spring you should sit tight. This will be the first big event where the new sails will be legal and certainly there will be more development to follow. If you are going to sail the Nationals this September in San Francisco or the East Coasts in Annapolis in October then that may be the time to purchase. Until then I would say sit tight.
