Question for NE 6.0 and other large chute users. Do you use a 3-part retrieval line (top loop and two holes)? How close to the foot do you go with the bottom hole? Trying to get all of this beast into a midpole-to-beam bag.

Thanks!

We had a 420sf or so spin on our 6.0 that we were trying to snuff. The sock that came with it was not long enough and the patches were not it the correct places. Our sail maker adjusted the patch locations and lengthened the sock. The theory he used on locating the patches was to have each corner of the sale inside the snuffer head together. It worked well, except that you have to stop pulling the snuffing line at some point, hopefully before you pull the spin out the back of the sock. I had even hand stitched with wiping the end of the bag, but it broke through that too. We have a mid-pole snuffer and the sock is so long it almost extends to the back beam. I’ll measure it tonight; pictures can follow in the next couple of weeks as the boat need to be put back together. It is in the basement, having survived a gel coat application.

Stitch a circular fibreglass plate to the end, with a fair hole in the center for the retrieval line. Easy to make some extra holes in it, for less weight and drainage. This will help with your problem of pulling to far.

Take care with the edges of the hole your retrieval line will go trough, a metal fitting might be best there.

With regards to the sail pulling out the rear of the bag, most modern bags have one or two nylon straps that are sewn across the back of the back (forming an "X"). in the center of these straps is a brass grommet - you run the snuffer line through the grommet before going to the sail. The grommet will stop the sail from coming out the back of the bag.

There's a post on here somewhere where I put an image of how to measure the spinnaker for a snuffer line - but I can't find it for the life of me.

Very good Jake, and even easier to build..

A lot of people (mainly sailmakers!) stuff the retrevial patches up.

To do it right follow these instructions for a 3 patch system:-

1. Measure the length of your chute/bag. Lats say that it is 2.15m long.
2. On your kite mark the intersection point measured at 2.15m from the tack and the clew. This is your lower patch point.
3. Then measure 2.15 from the head to roughly the centre of the kite. This is the top patch.
3. Your middle patch simply goes at the halfway point between the top and bottom patches (hopefully there is less than 2.15m between each of the patches now!
If you get to step 3 and the distances are to large then you need to make your bag a bit longer and adjust your patch points accordingly. Not much cause the effect is 3 fold on the kite.

hope this helps.

Thanks for the infomation. I had a spinnaker built for my Hobie 18 and still don't have the patches in the correct place. End of pole snuffer. I will lay it out and check it now.