Surely more than once you have noticed the ships with sails that sail through the sea. They are beautiful boats that take advantage of the push of the wind to be able to advance and discover new paths through the oceans.
However, the most important part of these boats are, indeed, the nautical sails since, without them, these boats would not be able to advance or would have to spend a lot of engine gasoline, an unecological alternative that makes this sport lose its essence.
For this reason, we are going to talk about nautical sails below so that you can better understand how it works and the great importance that these have in maritime vessels.
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types of boat sails
There are different types of nautical sails and there are some that are found in all vessels of this class, but others that are only found in the largest or most complex.
Here we are going to analyze the most common types of nautical sails that are found in most boats so that you can learn to differentiate them easily. They are the following:
Mainsail
This is one of the kinds of nautical sails that exist in all boats of these characteristicsyes As its name suggests, this is the sail that occupies the largest surface area on the boat and is easily identifiable because it is the one that occupies the largest part of the boat.
this candle is attached to the mast, that is, of the longest stick that is placed vertically and that holds these candles. In order for the operation to be carried out, all you have to do is hoist and lower the sails to be able to take advantage of the force of the wind and go where we want.
Therefore, for this type of candle to work properly, it will be essential that there is wind intensity and that this is the right one so that it allows us to move but without exceeding force. Regardless, it is possible to sail with the whole sail or, failing that, with only part of it to be able to take advantage of the wind and use it as a means of mobility.
These sails have always been hoisted manually but, in recent times, there are automatic rollers that speed up this process and make it easier for the sailor.
The «genoa» nautical sail
Another of the kinds of boat sails that we find is what is known as “genoa”. It’s found fixed between the forestay of the head and the top of the mast; it rolls up on itself and is usually used to take full advantage of the force of the wind and, therefore, allow the boat to move.
As with the mainsail, this sail can also be used in its entirety or just a part of it; this choice will depend on the intensity of the wind.
To be able to hold this type of sail well, the boat has two jaws that will allow us to hold it well and that we pick it up or open it according to our navigation needs.
Spinaker, another of the most common nautical sails
This boat sail is the most showy of all since It is the largest and most voluminous.. Unlike the other nautical sails, this one is characterized in that, in general, it usually has a different and more striking color.
However, this sail is not part of all boats but only those known as «balloon boats». It is hoisted when the wind is light and you want to make the most of its intensity, creating a kind of «bag» or «energy reserve».
After having talked about the types of sails that we can find in the nautical world, one of the very important factors in sailing is the fabric with which the sails are made.
Nautical sail cloth
Now we are going to analyze a key element: the fabric of the nautical sails. this item has been changing over the years and, currently, safer and more perfect materials are used to be able to withstand the wind well and make the most of its intensity and energy.
let’s do a brief historical tour of the design and manufacture of nautical sails to see the evolution they have experienced.
In the beginning, the sails were made of linen but this changed in 1951 when the champion of the First America’s Cup surprised everyone with some candles made of cotton. It was found that being a lighter fabric gave better performance.
However, they soon realized that cotton was not a good material for making sail cloth because it was not very resistant to saltpeter and water and, in a short time, it ended up rotting. Therefore, another option had to be considered.
It was after the Second World War when plastics appeared and, with them, the synthetic fibers: nylon, kevlar, tergal, etc.
All of them are fabrics that come from plastic and that are much more resistant and more flexible, which is why they began to be used to design nautical sails, as is the case with Spinnakers, which are usually made of nylon.
Other Types of CANDLES that may interest you: