Hello,
I am new here and am after some advice for my father about getting a new sail for a Hobie 16.

The best price he has been able to find here in Adelaide (Australia) is $1500 but he has been in contact with a sail maker in China called SeaerBoat who say they are able to make him a sail for much less. My father not being vary Internet savvy is cautious about sending money over the inter-webs and I am just wanting to verify if anyone could confirm how legitimate this seller is.

In email conversations the seller has posted through these examples of there work on a Nacra sail:






And here is the price list sent: Hobie 16 Sail Set Pricelist.pdf

The seller says he is willing to do the sale through eBay for a 5% fee if we wish.

Just wondering if anyone would be able to express an opinion that may help my father out.


Thank you.

i have no idea on that but intensity sails sells a main for 400
http://www.intensitysails.com/saforho16.html

eBay and PayPal offer many buyer protections, I wouldn't be too afraid going through those Channels. Most sails come from Asia these days.

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Greenville SC

Offering sails and other go fast parts for A-class catamarans
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Never heard of them.

Wonder why they take pictures of the sails outdoors in the grass if they operate a loft?

Also, make sure that your existing battens will fit if the sail does not come with them.

I wouldn't buy a sail from China--We'll soon be seeing them at Walmart! I don't know anything about them, but I fundamentally couldn't do it.

There are plenty of American sail makers that make a great product at a good price. I would call Chip Buck at Whirlwind sails and order a sail today. He was the head sailmaker at Hobie for a while and has gone off on his own. I have had several of his sails and I have always been very pleased. he is reasonable with pricing and genually cares about quality.

I can't speak about Whirlwind... but Chip is now affiliated with Hyde which makes their sales in Asia. Have you ever owned a Laser sail? Oh yea they are made in Sri Lanka as well as almost all of Norths One Design sails. Lots of US sailmakers don't even make sails but have them brought it from Asia, some are honest about it, some aren't. I work in the sailcloth industry and we even bring sails in from China for some lofts. Though you do see more and more sails being made in the US again... Hobie is a great example, they've brought all their sailmaking back into the U.S.

wildsail

Hobie is a great example, they've brought all their sailmaking back into the U.S.

Really good to hear, thank you!

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Sheet In!
Bob
_/)_____/)_/)____/)____/)_____/)/)__________/)__
Prindle 18-2 #244 "Wakizashi"
Prindle 16 #3690 "Pegasus" Sold (sigh)
AZ Multihull Fleet 42 member
(Way) Past Commodore of Prindle Fleet 14
Arizona, USA
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It would be nice if we all bought only AMERICAN MADE GOODS, but the truth of the matter is, look at the label on you clothes, the parts to your computer, where was your watch made, your I phone and similar products, air jordans or any other sports footware, even the NBA which used to make all thier jerseys in the US have moved production overseas, all most all of the furniture from Pier 1 and like stores come from Indonesia, there is not one US automobile entirely made of US parts, We can not get away from it. I doubt seriously if all Hobie OEM parts are made in the USA.

Chip has sourced some of his sails from his Hyde suppliers in asia. However, he is very very specific about the technique and quality. He still makes his own when he has time but there is only so many hours in the day. My fat top main was made by him personally and my jib was sourced from asia. I honestly can't tell the difference in quality or materials.

I would be leery of ordering directly from asia. You may get garbage or something great, its a crapshoot. I was working with a watchmaker getting some castings made in china, it was a nightmare to get them correct. Even with full 3D drawings it took 8-10 tries before they got it right. Not something you want to get into. I would go with the most reasonably priced loft with good references every time. Remember you get what you pay for.

FYI, I buy a huge amount of American Made goods, as well as Asian and European goods. However, since I live in Canada it really doesn't make a lot of difference to me who I buy from. ;)

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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even our military clothing is made overseas.. it is a global market .. for better and worse

many "local" lofts have their lower end sails made overseas as well.For example my friend is purchasing his second load path main sail from a well known loft. It was disclosed to him that only the load path sails are still done in house (St Pete) and most of the other sails are made in asia and shipped to the loft.

I used Doyle (St Pete) for several reasons when i ordered a main and am very happy with them. One reason is they are close enough to bring my boat down there and rig my cat so they can see/measure the curve of my mast and correctly cut the luff.

i am ordering 2 new jibs in the new year from them as well.

A big part of the reason i like them, is they are local, i know they care about their work, and i have used them for over a decade and have seen many of their sails. If there is an issue with my sail, or it needs a repair in the future.. i can drive the sail downthere.

The top two sailmakers in the US ( North Sails and Quantum) have their sails made in China. They do all the cutting and sewing of the seams in China and ship them to the lofts in the US to put the heavy parts on the sails like the Clew, Tack and Head boards. Just FYI. Only a few true sail lofts left in the US.

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Nacra 6.0na.Sail #111
Nacra 18 Square. Sail #1004
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