Sandy,

You'll be wanting some thread that resists the effects of UV (UltraViolet)
light. Go to either SailRite (http://www.sailrite.com) or Steve Ferrel at
(http://www.kitebuilder.com) and buy a cone of the stuff. I don't think
you'll regret it. For working from a cone on a reguler sewing machine
you'll need a thread stand, certainly less than $10 from JoAnn's and much
cheaper than that if you make one.

You just might get hooked on either site 8-) (Kites are fun too).

You might ask at the SailRite site about the weight of the dacron that you
need for the sail, I have no idea if 4oz is what you need.

Here's a site on making a Tyvek sail, interesting reading even if you
don't do an expriment with Tyvek. http://www.boat-links.com/Tyvek/

Also check out the Mother of All Maritime links at
http://www.boat-links.com/boatlink.html. You should be able to find lots
of info in there 8-)

You may find it easier to work with the slippery material if you get a
"walking foot" for your sewing machine. A walking foot helps to feed the
top layer as the feed dogs feed the bottom. Not sure of the cost of that
item as my machine has it built in.

For this boat I still like the idea of a wooden mast, especially with the
sprit rig. Not as noisey, probably easier to attach things to and
certainly looks better. With a sprit rig all the spars will fit in the
boat.

Keep up the dialog and let us know how you make out.

Pirate_Dave
--
In article , sandy wrote:
Thanks for the suggestions. I've got a couple more questions.

1. We plan to carry the boat on our "new" motorhome and use in small
lakes for messing around and also quite a bit of fishing. Which type
sail rig would be best for these uses? We'd like something where we
can take down sail easily when we are fishing and that can store
easily at our campsite.

2. I've tried sewing on an old piece of sail material with my sewing
machine and it didn't work. But the material is really heavy duty.
Will I be able to sew 4 oz dacron with a normal sewing machine? And
do I need special thread (or can I use a good quality polyester thread
from our local fabric store)?

3. Hubby is leaning toward aluminum tubes for mast. Will be looking
into flagpoles. Any other suggestions on thickness or ?

Sometimes I realize that I don't know enough to know what questions to
ask!

Thanks!

Sandy