The same subjects as the main headsail guide, at the depth a designer works at, organised by part of the sail rather than as a sequence, because it is written to be used as a reference rather than read from beginning to end.
Nothing here is required in order to buy a sail. Each page assumes you have read the corresponding page in the main guide.
Shape and size
- Size, Overlap and Shape — foretriangle dimensions against finished edges, LP, girths, clew height and what a hollow leech is for.
- How Headsail Shape Works — entry, draft, twist, sheet lead and forestay sag, and why they cannot be set independently.
Structure
- Battens, Receptacles and Pocket Finishes — vertical and horizontal battens and what each demands.
Connections to the boat
- Furlers, Foils, Luff Tapes and Hanks — the luff systems in full, and how a tape is matched to a groove.
- Corners and Cut Offsets — head, tack and clew, the tack fitting families, and the offsets that keep them clear.
Furling behaviour
- Foam Luff and Furling Shape — what actually happens to a sail’s shape as it rolls, and what a foam luff can and cannot fix.
- Reefing and Reef Marks — conventional reefs on hanked sails, and what reef marks are for.
Everything else on the surface
- Protection and Markings — UV construction, chafe protection, and what goes on the surface.
Shared material reference
- Cloth and Construction — material choice, panel construction and what the cloth determines downstream.
- Upwind & Code Zero Sailcloth
- Cross-Cut and Radial-Cut