Try your best to not use polytarp. It will sail very poorly and for a short time. Basically it will turn you off to the sailing experience.

 Don't use PVC. The loads from the mast bending at the deck and keel line are very high even with a small sail. Use something like aluminum tube, epoxy it in place for the water seal. The PVC will bend and squeeze out of the way and you will be very unhappy.

 Marc

Hi Nathan,

You may want to check out the PDRacer website and the PDRacer yahoo forum. There are a lot of people there using polytarp sails and it looks like there's been a lot of experimentation. I purchased the sail for my Jimmy Skiff directly from CLC and it is a great sail - don't regret it one bit.

 Having said that I think the polytarp wave is definitely growing and as mentioned above, with the amount of experimentation that's been going on it seems they may be coming up with some reasonable (price and performace) sails. I know the PDRacer group down in Australia has a local rule allowing only polytarp sails on their boats...check out Duckworks.com as well - they have lots of info on them and actually sell finished polytarp sails as well. Not sure that they're that much cheaper to purchase than a dacron sail though -

Have fun

Kelly

Hi Again Nathan

Check the post "Spar'ing" for further info on masts and polytarp links. There was another fellow asking for info on masts almost at the same time as you and I kind of responded to you on his message...I sent through some different sites and info to you there...

 I must be losing it - cabin fever or something.

 Kelly