Windward1 - We finally had a beautiful day and got out with friends yesterday. I had patched 3 small holes and tears in our tired old 150 genoa last season so was wondering in the back of my mind how she would hold up. On our fifth tack the foot riped out on one panel where there was UV damage. I'm not sure but this may be the original genoa as there was no UV cover on leech or foot. I had talked with a couple of sailmakers last season and the consensus was a 7 oz 135 would perform just fine on our C36s over a 150. 7/16" furling line seems a little big. I believe ours is 3/8" and it fills our Profurl drum. I too would appreciate any comments on manufacturers or lofts that would give us a good deal on replacements.

I decided to go with National Sails for my replacement 135 Genoa several years ago and have been very happy. A few thoughts:

1. My furling line was 5/16" but I replaced it with 3/8" to get a better hand grip. I removed the core from the first several dozen feet (15 might be enough) so that it fits on the furling drum better. The extra strength the core adds is not needed for the entire length of the line.

2. I have never used a 150, but unless you are racing, I doubt the gains you would get in light air would make up for the hassle of handling the 150 as the winds build.

3. No furling sail maintains a great shape when partially reefed, but a 135 with a foam luff will hold its shape down to about 100% reasonably well. Going to windward is always the most challenging, of course.

Good luck with your decision.

Gosh! I think we need to approach a sail loft somewhere and see if we can get a quanitity discount. I too need a new head sail. I presently have a 110 and it is, for all intents and purposes shot. I have surmised that a 135 is just about perfect for our vessels, the more 36 owners that I talk to.

Just like Duane, I removed the core on th first 12 feet tht furls on the drum. That way the remainder of the line furls nicely.

Both my sails are in their 14th season and getting tired. I've been considering whether a 130 would be a better choice than a 150. I like sailing in heavy air, but handling that 150 even in 15 knots can be a chore. I'll be 60 next year (denial denial denial), sail single handed most of the time while my wife is at work; so whatever sail I buy will need to take that into account. I'd probably keep the 150 and put it on during the July/August light air months.

Does anyone have direct experience with the 2 sizes on the same boat? I sailed for about 4 hours last week on a broad reach in 3-5 knots apparent; would I expect to be able to do that with a 130????

Maybe the association (or members) could approach a sailmaker with the question? Someone with experience with our boats?

[QUOTE=plaineolde;10384]I sailed for about 4 hours last week on a broad reach in 3-5 knots apparent; would I expect to be able to do that with a 130????[/QUOTE]

My approach for the past 4 years is to carry my asym spinnaker in its ATN sock for light air work with apparent wind 70 -180 degrees. It is easy enough to rig if we are going to be sailing more than an hour or so with that apparent wind direction.

The 135 can reef to about 100 for close-hauled, and anything from 135 to handkerchief-size for other points of sail.

The times I wished for more sail area on the Genoa are few compared to the times I had to reef near a storm and was glad to have the more manageable 135.

That's just one opinion from our particular cruising grounds.

That's a good point; I do have an asymmetrical, but haven't had it up for awhile. That's a good option to compliment a 135.

If you race your C36 you will have to take a few seconds off your handicap for a 150 vs a 135. If you race in wind under 15 kts the 150 while prevail over the 135 even with the extra handicap. However, in the higer winds when the RF 150 must be reefed and the 135 does not have to be reefed the C36 with the 135 will be more efficiant and you can wave by, by to your buddy in the reefed down 150.

We too have a 150 and it is getting pretty tired, thinking a 135 is a better bet for us given the normal strength of winds we get. I got a quote from one sailmaker up here and he wanted $3400 for a plain jane cruising weight genny which is about a third more than a quote I had from Annapolis. We'll be doing some shopping come boat show time in January I expect.

FX Sails ([url]www.thesailstore.com[/url]) and National Sails (nationalsail.com) both have precut Catalina sails for much better prices than the big lofts have (North, etc.) I'll be checking them out in the spring.

FX gives 10% discount to C36ia members.

I also had a wornout original (1994) 135 which I replaced with a 110 I got from North Direct. I don't race and am getting where discretion trumps valor when it comes to sailing (usually single handed). The 110 does just fine and it is so much easier to deal with. It hardly touches the mast when tacking and I really don't have to sweat reefing even in 22 knots of wind.

My solution to light air is to open a cool one and hit the button. Love that M35.

The sail cost about $1600 and the process was easy.

Tom Smith
Molly Malone
Mark 1.5 1994
Std Rig with wing keel

[QUOTE=windward1;10413]Interesting comments. Has anyone had experience with a 150 with foam added to the luff for better shape when reefed. My dealer suggested I consider this alternative.[/QUOTE]

My headsail is a 140 with foam luff. My sailmaker felt that was as large as he could go and get good leads with the factory genoa tracks.

The foam luff helps keep a decent shape down to just over 100% and I can roll in a bit more if I have to. I'm no doubt giving up some performance and pointing ability at that point, but its of little consequence for my cruising type of sailing. If its blowing that hard and the only suitable destination is that close hauled, the iron genny works wonders. If racing, it would be more of a problem reefing below about 110%.

I'm pretty happy with the headsail choice, but I would like to have a 100-110 for early season when the winds are often higher than the middle of the summer.

I'm not even close to an expert on sails, but having read quite a few books on the subject, it is amazing and pretty daunting (at least to me) how narrow a wind range highly-optimized sails really have. Just a little below and the wind pressure does not make the sail take the exact shape it was designed to have. Just a bit above and it stretches into a suboptimal shape, as well.

I am just happy to keep the boat moving decently and not stress the rig too much.