Placed at the head of mainsails, these boards provide support for additional roach area and a purchase point for the halyard. Most sails are built with external boards. That is, there are two boards that sandwich the cloth on each side of the sail. They are riveted in place (rivets can be nicely set with a center punch and hammer). Seldom is the rope run around the board. Note that this makes possible the insertion of the rope in a tunnel along the mast or boom.
Small boats can make good use of these nylon external boards—they are light and inexpensive. (Boats over 20 feet should use aluminum boards.) Nylon boards can be sewn in place or secured in place with rivets—these can be installed with a couple of blows of a hammer. Each headboard set includes proper rivets.
Most racing rules measure only the width of the board, not the boltrope in front of it. In the case of the IMS rule, this is limited to 4 percent of the E dimension or 6 inches— whichever is greater. MORC permits the same percentage with a 4-1/2" minimum headboard width. These limits can be exceeded, but there is a rating penalty.
Specifications
Sale Unit: | EA |
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Color: | White |
Hardware Material: | Nylon, Plastic |