Hey,

Lately the wind here has been around the 10 knots mark, so I am in the market for a light wind sail.

I was thinking about a JP Hellcat 7.2 or the helium 7.5.
Are these good sails, suitable for a 70 Kg guy ?
Any other recommendations are welcome :)


Currently I have a
Sails:
6.6 North sails Natural, 5.4 (2011) Duke,
Boards:
130 JP funride, 180 Fanatic Viper.

Thanks again for your help :)
Paul

We have a 6.7 Hellcat, I wouldnt say its that light, but a great light wind sail. I am 95 kgs and get it up and running on a 122 Carve in 15 knots,

The Helium is specifically designed as a light wind sail, so if you want pure grunt that thats the one to go for. Otherwise a H2. I wouldn't look at a Hellcat in that size if you want power.

Hi Paul not sure if Loft is available where you are but certainly the Loft Switchblade or O2 is worth looking at, not that light but well built.
If you want to plane in 10 knots I be looking at a 7.5 +

Thanks for the replies guys,
So its down to a H2 7.2 or a helium 7.5
I like the sail to be light as possible being on 70kg, and max power .. Which one to choose ?

Paul

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paulholliday said...


Lately the wind here has been around the 10 knots mark, so I am in the market for a light wind sail.

I would have thought the helium would be the best, given you already have 6.6 Duke.
But I think you are going to find it hard work in just 10knots, with the boards you have.

As an example I have 6.5 and 100Freestyle board (which should plane about as well as your 130 funride I would have thought) and I weight 72kg, and a steady 13knots and flat water seems to be enough to have some fun, better guys would probably need less.

My next step up from that is now a 11M and formula board, not suggesting that is the route you should go down, but before you fork out for a new mast and sail, and perhaps boom, its nice to know if it's going to cover the wind range you expect.

May not work too well on your North mast though...........?

i'd go for the 8.5 helium really a great lightwind sail great power should be good for your 130ltr and 2cm longer than usual fin

I got a North Sails Gold 430 Mast, so I will need to get a 460 Neil Pryde mast as well ... Currently its looks like the helium 7.5. That should be fine on the 2 boards I have ?
What would the 2cm longer fin give me, in terms of handling / performance ? Currently I just have the stock standard fins that came with the boards

Paul

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paulholliday said...

I got a North Sails Gold 430 Mast, so I will need to get a 460 Neil Pryde mast as well ... Currently its looks like the helium 7.5. That should be fine on the 2 boards I have ?
What would the 2cm longer fin give me, in terms of handling / performance ? Currently I just have the stock standard fins that came with the boards

Paul

The 7.5 recommends a 460 and the 8.5 recommends a 490, you might be able to get the 7.5 to work on your 430 with 41cm of extension, but the whole point of these 'light wind' sails like the helium is that they have a give up some of the top end, for more power at the bottom. You might find that the wrong mast comprises this.

You misunderstand me .. I don't mind getting a new neil pryde 460 mast as well as a new sail, from what I understand you should have the same make of mast as you do sail

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paulholliday said...

You misunderstand me .. I don't mind getting a new neil pryde 460 mast as well as a new sail, from what I understand you should have the same make of mast as you do sail

In that case I would probably go for the 8.5, but I would still talk to other sailors in your area to make sure that a sail like that will do what you want, and your comfortable with that size rig.

In the neil pryde demo of the helium it looks a lot windier than 10knots! Its worthwhile to remember that its not a linear relationship between the force created by a sail and the wind speed. Its actually the wind speed squared.

See if you have a demo of the larger sails (does not have be helium) in the wind ranges you want to sail in. That my 2 cents :-)

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paulholliday said...

You misunderstand me .. I don't mind getting a new neil pryde 460 mast as well as a new sail, from what I understand you should have the same make of mast as you do sail

You don't need to have the same make of mast and sail. I have a North 7.8m sail that rigs quite well on an Neil Pryde 460cm X6 mast. Though if you need to get a 460cm mast for a new Neil Pryde sail you may as well get a Neil Pryde one.

Does North offer a similar sail to the H2?

You would def need the 7.5 helium, check out the website to see why. I have the 7.5 (For sale if anyone wants it :) ) and i'm heavier than you.

Also a np mast would prob have more effect that on some sails, not essential at all but would make a difference I suspect.

Don't expect huge top end but for getting out in light winds the helium is ideal.

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Mobydisc said...

paulholliday said...

You misunderstand me .. I don't mind getting a new neil pryde 460 mast as well as a new sail, from what I understand you should have the same make of mast as you do sail

You don't need to have the same make of mast and sail. I have a North 7.8m sail that rigs quite well on an Neil Pryde 460cm X6 mast. Though if you need to get a 460cm mast for a new Neil Pryde sail you may as well get a Neil Pryde one.

Does North offer a similar sail to the H2?

I know 3 people who bought new freerace cam sails for their mast of other brands, because of they were told that you don't need the same mast brand. Two of them couldn't even rig the sail on the masts, and the third broke a camber.
I'm not saying that a sail will only work on the same brand mast, but give it a lot of thought and research before you buy a sail.

Hi, I am looking to replace a Raf jet 7.2 with a NP H2 7.2 sail. I believe these require a 430 mast _I have an old NP 430 25% carbon mast, would the new H2 set on this mast? Most of my gear is on the old side but I am gradually trying to update.
Anyone tried the H2 ?

Tahnks Gaza

NP has changed their bend curve soo many times that it's hard to keep track, so I would say the old mast will probably not fit.

Hi Paul,

there may be some potential to re-use your North Gold 430 on a bigger sail. North have a mast extender in 40cm and 50cm lengths. It's not an extension. it's like an extra bit of mast that you insert in the bottom of your current mast and then stick your extension in. With a 50cm you'd end up with a 480 mast. This gets you into the size you'd need for a North S-Type 7.8m. This is North's grunty light wind sail - not as dedicated to light wind as the Helium, but probably has a better top end as a result.

I run the S-Type 7.8m and the Natural 6.6m you have on a Gold 460 mast. Fantastic combination from 12 - 25kts+. I haven't tried the extender on a 430 like I suggest above. But the extender was designed with the S-Type sails in mind so it might be worth talking to your local expert about that option.

If you go this option there is the potential to save a bit of money (particularly if you can get the S-Type second hand). I'd look to spend this on a dedicated lightwind fin as the stock fins that come with your boards are generally designed towards mid-range conditions. You might be surprised how much your early planning improves with a dedicated fin for lighter conditions......

Of course the extender makes the mast softer on the whole, and less responsive (reflex time) so if you are a lightweight it would be fine but may not be good for heavyweights or at the top end of it's range

yep definitely agree. Running 70kegs with the 6.6m to rig when it fills in towards 18kts it might not be too critical for him?

Just an option with the logic being a bigger sail and a new fin should get more bang for lightwind buck than a bigger sail and a new mast.....

I'm going to be (hopefully) comparing my KA 7.2 Koyote against one of these Pryde Heliums today. The KA has been a truly awesome sail in the less than 15 knots, has a great top end. I'll tell you how i went and what I thought tonight/tomorrow ...if the wind cooperates.

Note: The biggest bang-for-buck I got for light wind sailing was a good fin. Do not underestimate the power of the right fin! For me this was a 40cm MFC Liquid Pro which matches perfectly my 110litre Carve and the KA 7.2 Koyote.
http://www.mauifin.com/fin_info.php?id=23

With this combination I can sail whenever a kite can sail (and I can float in the lulls). I weigh 80kgs.

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Mark _australia said...

Of course the extender makes the mast softer on the whole, and less responsive (reflex time) so if you are a lightweight it would be fine but may not be good for heavyweights or at the top end of it's range

Do sailworks masts have extenders?

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jp747 said...

i'd go for the 8.5 helium really a great lightwind sail great power should be good for your 130ltr and 2cm longer than usual fin

was trimming today on a 8.1 in 13-15 knots on a 130 litre. If you want light wind sails look at 7.5 up.

I dont think it matters on the sail its the sail size and the board thats important.
To get into this range you will need a 490 new boom and sail
I went thru that a few season back and i choose to go for the 490 and utalize sails with athe adjustable top.
If you have the balls you can still run a 8.0 in 25 knots just wear a gaff helmet.