Sail cover shout-out

[R N]

I had an absolutely fantastic sail the other day, one of those sails when the wind was right and everything worked perfectly.

It reminded me that I'd intended to wait a while to see how it worked, then post about the semi-custom top-zip sail cover that was made for me by Allison "Butch" Miller of Island Home Services, LLC (ANmil...@aol.com, 410-271-2540, Island Home Services, LLC, 110 Bentons Pleasure Dr, Chester, MD 21619).

So, having had the cover for nearly a year now, I feel comfortable saying that it's well-made and holding up well, looking good, and extremely convenient.  With it, I can go from first foot on the dock to out on the water in well under ten minutes, with readying the sail being a very small portion of that time.  Because the cover is permanently in place and integrated with the lazy jacks, dropping the sail is an improved experience because it catches the spare bits of line and sail that used to drop between the jacklines and whap me in the head.  Putting the sail away is a five-minute job of making slight adjustments from how it fell by itself, then closing the zippers. 

When sailing, the cover falls away from the sail, rather than aligning with it the way stack-packs on my previous boat did, because it's not integrated with the sail.   If this has affected sailing performance, it hasn't been enough for me to notice.  And, because it's not tied to the sail, it's less expensive and doesn't commit me to a particular sailmaker.   (I don't understand how a stackpack would work on a boom-less boat, anyway.)

Butch was extremely helpful, pleasant, and easy to work with, even though we're on opposite sides of the country (North-east US vs. Southern California).  The process consisted of several back and forthes.  He emailed me a measurement guide and instructions (see attached sample), I sent him measurements.  He shipped me the near-complete cover, I put it on the boat, marked it for final adjustments, and shipped it back.  He did the final work, and shipped me the finished product.

Bottom line: it's been near a year of usage (and I have the good fortune to be able to sail year-round, so that's a lot of use compared to what others can get in within the same time period.  It's well-designed, well made, and easy to use.  By eliminating one of the more onerous parts of dealing with a Nonsuch, it's been a substantive improvement to my ability to enjoy the boat.   I'm an extremely happy camper.

In addition to the sample measurements and instructions, I've also posted lots of pictures -- because who doesn't love to look at their boat, right?

I couldn't find the thread in which I first heard about him, but my thanks to the owner whose post drew my attention to it.

-- Bob

   Solar Wind

   Nonsuch 26C #143

[Al Stu]

Thanks for the review and advice. Our sail cover is parting ways with us and itself. We have the old bear hug style (hug the sail and catch the shock cord below) and were considering the top zips.

Alan & Tracy, NS30C "Corvus", Toronto