Genoa X-Drive
for cruising sailboatspolyestercarbon

genoa
genoa
genoa
genoa
genoa
genoa
genoa
genoa
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Characteristics

Type
genoa
Applications
for cruising sailboats
Material
polyester, carbon

Description

Carbon fiber is the highest performance yarn used in sailmaking. As the chart below shows, carbon yarns are at the top of the chart in three out of four ways to measure the performance. Carbon fiber’s resistance to stretch is three times greater that S-Glass yarns, which are three times more stretch resistant than polyester yarns. Even though the individual fibers in an X-Drive sail are very narrow, their almost complete coverage of the sail, leads to a smooth flying shape. UK Sailmakers’ fiber laying machine puts down up to 11 tapes at a time, which means there are hundreds of loadpath fibers on the sail. Since each carbon yarn has 4,000 carbon filaments there are up to 44,000 filaments of carbon are laid at time, giving the sail great strength along with the ability to retain its designed shape without distortion. This means we can use lighter and less expensive laminates and the savings are passed on. A Dufour 40E with X-Drive carbon sails a partial black taffeta protection. The taffeta is applied over the fibers on the genoa to protect the part of the leech that gets dragged across the shrouds and the mast every time the boat tacks. The mainsail has a partial taffeta layer on the leech to reduce the harmful effects of luffing and flogging. To help protect today’s sails and extend their peak performance lives, UK Sailmakers can build all our X-Drive racing sails where one or both sides of the laminate is fully covered with a lightweight finely-woven polyester taffeta. Not only does taffeta protect the film layer from abrasion, but it also prevents cracking of the film and reduces creasing. While taffeta doesn't add much strength, it does make sails last longer.

Catalogs

*Prices are pre-tax. They exclude delivery charges and customs duties and do not include additional charges for installation or activation options. Prices are indicative only and may vary by country, with changes to the cost of raw materials and exchange rates.