How to Inspect Sail Battens
Details
Details
At the end of your sailing season or before a new season starts, it’s a good idea to carefully inspect your sails. We’re going to focus on one aspect of your sail that you should pay close attention to during inspection: the battens and batten pockets. A broken or a missing batten can cause a lot of damage to your sail, creating costly or time-consuming repairs. Taking care of your battens each season will reduce your risk of damage.
First, you’ll want to take a close look at your batten pockets. Check the elastic in each pocket by inserting a batten and applying a little tension. You want the elastic to be strong enough to keep the batten right up against the leech edge of the sail. If the elastic is too stretched out or broken, you’ll need to replace it.
Carefully inspect the pocket itself, making sure there are no rips, tears or broken stitching. Repair any failing stitching. If the pocket is badly damaged, you’ll want to replace it with a new pocket. Our "Repairing Permanently Sewn-in Batten Pockets" video (#200349XHT) will show you how.
After making sure that the pockets are sound, you’ll want to remove the battens and take a close look at them. First, make sure that all the battens are accounted for. Using a sail with missing battens can prematurely damage the sail due to excessive flutter. Next check all the battens to make sure that none of them are warped, split, broken or cracked. Flex the batten slightly to look for cracks that might not be able to be seen when relaxed. You’ll need to order replacements for any missing or broken battens.
Check the ends of your battens to make sure the end cap covers any sharp edges that may wear on the sail. If you do not have end caps make sure you file the ends as smoothly as possible and round any corners to prevent wear on the batten pocket.
Remember, doing thorough checks now can save you a lot of work later! You can find replacement battens and end caps as well as Dacron sailcloth right here at Sailrite.
Have you ever repaired batten pockets yourself? Share your tips and techniques in the comments!