Why is this happening?
It is very rare for the spinnaker to be damaged once hoisted. Errors are made during shipping and landing. Pins on the lines, broken rings on the rigging screws, poorly protected spreaders... All this little hardware is a clever way to tear the nylon.
In manoeuvring too, the risks are great. During a gybe, it is the spinnaker pole or even the radar that can puncture the bubble.
How to repair on board?
As long as the tear does not exceed 30 cm, the spinnaker can be repaired. The play can hold. As long as you call the Insignia to the rescue! This famous very powerful adhesive on sailcloth.
The operation consists of:
- cut a piece
- round corners
- paste
And start over on the other side of the spinnaker.
1- A cut piece is applied that is much larger than the tear.
2 - Lay the fabric flat. Here we use the square table.
3- Glue the first side of the Insigna (self-adhesive fabric)
4- Apply the angles well. That's where it might come off.
5 - Flip the spinnaker over (faster to write than to make!) and start again from the other side
What you need to have on board to repair the spinnaker
- A roll of Insigna, preferably the same colour as your sails.
- A pair of scissors that cuts perfectly
The diagnosis of the pro
We asked the master sailmaker Jérôme Dupin, founder and owner of Starvoiles about this spinnaker problem:
" The fabric most often tears within a width. The seams stop the tear. The sails have nylon in all colours for almost invisible repairs. It is also possible to replace one or more widths. "
