Need a cruising spinnaker and a spare main sail.

[SVJourney]

Just back from the Bahamas for the season.  We're spending the summer in Jacksonville Florida and starting to get set up for sailing to the south Pacific in November.  So we are looking to increase our downwind performance and reliability by adding some sails.  Looking for:

A cruising spinnaker, preferably a heavier weight nylon or a light weight Dacron. 

A spare main sail.  Ours blew out this last year.  I am getting it completely restitched this season, but a back up would be good.

If you don't happen to have one, do you know a good source? 

Cheers!
Wayne

[INCOMMUNICADO]

Wayne,I think I still have my old main stored in the overhead of my shop.It would need to be restiched but would make a good spair.Cost 0 shipping 0. I guess I will have to drag my old ass up there to check it out.I will let you know.Allen

[SVJourney]

That would be awesome Allan!  Let me know huh?

[SVJourney]

Still looking for a used spinnaker.  I was checking secondwindsails.com when I realized that I don't know the size that I need.  Does anyone have a suggestion/recommendations for luff and foot sizes for a 365 ketch?  I have a light 1/2 oz sail, I am more looking for a 1.5 oz sail for sailing the South Pacific next year.

Wayne
WWW.GallyWenchTales.com

[SVJourney]

Actually, let me revise my request on this.

I am a complete neophyte on spinnakers.  I've never flown one.  SO I guess what I am really looking for is a recommendation on what I should get for the kind of cruising we are looking to do.  My local sailmaker said that the 1/2oz sail we have is good to about 12 knots.  We will be doing about 7k miles of downwind next year, and according to Jimmy Cornell, the route has a variety of wind conditions to be expected.

Total sail suite right now is:

140 genoa
working jib
1/2 oz spinnaker (just in a bag, should I get a sock or a turtle?)
Main Sail with 2 reef points + spare main once Allan hooks us up
Mizzen with one reef
Mizzen staysail, which I've also never flown except at the dock to see how it goes up.

So I was THINKING that I should have a 1.5oz assymetrical, but is it worth pursuing as our budget is really really tight already?  Balanced against that is the 3000 miles from the Galapagos to the Marquesas and we relly don't want to spend an entire month making that passage.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[Jim Cozy]

Wayne-- We've been sailing spinnakers for years and I have some thoughts, NOT TRUTH OR RULES. For cruising, a turtle is probably not useful as it is meant for QUICK sets as in racing. A sock makes sets and douses simple and manageable and for cruising I would not go without. However, for passagemaking I wonder about the sock scrunched at the top for days or weeks on end. I would go with heavier rather than lighter sailcloth for durability, sacrificing very light air performance. I like the assymetrical for being able to set it effectively without a pole, but a pole is a necessity broad reaching or running. Generally, spinnakers are wonderful fun sails, but require much attention, too much for voyaging, in my opinion. If it were me, I would opt for a poled out jib, wing on wing with the main, or twin jibs. Both rigs require much less attention than a spinnaker, especially night sailing. Finally, there are many good books written by experienced voyagers dealing with these exact issues. Hope this is helpful, and good luck!  Jim

[SVJourney]

Thanks Jim! 
I was nodding my head as I was reading what you wrote, it is how we have been cruising so far.  Its just the long Pacific passages that have us thinking.  I am also worried about wear and tear of light nylon over long distances.  Unless I can find a used heavy spin, I will probably go with what we have.

I asked here because I was thinking that some of the question can best be answered by owners of our specific boats.  But getting a book and reading up is a great idea.

Wayne