Mack Pack ??
 

I'm considering getting a Mack Pack sail cover, and would appreciate
comments from anyone with experience with it.

I have two reservations:

I never liked seeing "similar" covers flapping in the breeze while under
sail, but I look more favorable on the Mack Pack because, at least it
appears, the cover will slide down the lazy jacks closer to the boom. How
well can the covers be rolled up out of the way?

I'm concerned about not having the sail bundled up in a tight package,
particularly with my big roach full batten mainsail. We expend a bit of
effort in flaking the main and cinching the sail ties to get a tight
package, the aft end being the most difficult. How well does the Mack Pack
deal with a big roach main ?

Thanks for any insight.

Mack Pack ??
 

Garland Gray II wrote:
I'm considering getting a Mack Pack sail cover, and would appreciate
comments from anyone with experience with it.

I have two reservations:

I never liked seeing "similar" covers flapping in the breeze while under
sail, but I look more favorable on the Mack Pack because, at least it
appears, the cover will slide down the lazy jacks closer to the boom. How
well can the covers be rolled up out of the way?

I'm concerned about not having the sail bundled up in a tight package,
particularly with my big roach full batten mainsail. We expend a bit of
effort in flaking the main and cinching the sail ties to get a tight
package, the aft end being the most difficult. How well does the Mack Pack
deal with a big roach main ?

Thanks for any insight.



I've got the UK version of this (don't know if it's a Mack
Pack). The mainsail is loose footed. Sewn to the
centerline of the cover are 3 sets of straps with fastex
(nylon quick release) buckles on them. You ease the lazy
jacks and bunch the cover down and tuck it out of the way.
Very little windage and not too untidy.

You don't need to put sail ties on with these covers -
that's the beauty of them. I just drop the mainsail, flake
it a minimal amount and pull the zipper. With a 15' boom
it's no trouble. Just make sure it's cut generously given
the stack height of your sail when NOT cinched up tight.

Evan Gatehouse

Mack Pack ??
 

Why I like my MackPack.
I feel the same way about the lines and cover messing up my air flow across
the sail, but we aint racing here, we're cruising and enjoying ouselves.
I think the MackPack is good for the sail. The sail stays in the lines and
does not hang on other objects or fall to the deck to be snagged or stepped
on. Being tightly furled and sinched down is not good for the sail cloth,
being loosely flaked on the boom keeps the cloth and stiching from being
creased. Also the sail can breath and dry out in the sail cover.
Interesting thing I learned at the Sail show this weekend. Travis Blain of
Mack Sails told me to box up my old MackPack and send $53 to have any
repairs done. I will report back when it returns.
- Allen
P.S. maybe I am just a lazy sailor.

Mack Pack ??
 

Does it interfere with putting in a reef?


"bushman" wrote in message
m...
Why I like my MackPack.
I feel the same way about the lines and cover messing up my air flow
across
the sail, but we aint racing here, we're cruising and enjoying ouselves.
I think the MackPack is good for the sail. The sail stays in the lines and
does not hang on other objects or fall to the deck to be snagged or
stepped
on. Being tightly furled and sinched down is not good for the sail cloth,
being loosely flaked on the boom keeps the cloth and stiching from being
creased. Also the sail can breath and dry out in the sail cover.
Interesting thing I learned at the Sail show this weekend. Travis Blain of
Mack Sails told me to box up my old MackPack and send $53 to have any
repairs done. I will report back when it returns.
- Allen
P.S. maybe I am just a lazy sailor.

Mack Pack ??
 

"johnhh" wrote in message
...
Does it interfere with putting in a reef?

Not really. I have to go to the mast to reef and always later than I should,
if you what I mean. I can reach in by the mast to hook the cringle and then
haul the out haul and let the cover hold the middle, I don't always tie the
reef lines.
One of the speakers at the show suggested attaching the top lines out on the
spreader a bit to make more of an open V to catch the sail. I'll have to
look at that and see.
- Allen

Mack Pack ??
 

Thanks Evan. Comments below :

"Evan Gatehouse" wrote in message
...
I've got the UK version of this (don't know if it's a Mack Pack). The
mainsail is loose footed. Sewn to the centerline of the cover are 3 sets
of straps with fastex (nylon quick release) buckles on them.

Do you mean there are three straps on each side of the cover that are used
to secure each rolled-up side separately? Or do you roll both sides in a
single roll below the sail?

You ease the lazy jacks and bunch the cover down and tuck it out of the
way. Very little windage and not too untidy.

You don't need to put sail ties on with these covers - that's the beauty
of them. I just drop the mainsail, flake it a minimal amount and pull the
zipper. With a 15' boom it's no trouble. Just make sure it's cut
generously given the stack height of your sail when NOT cinched up tight.

Evan Gatehouse

Yeah, I realised the cover would have to be made extra big, especially aft,
which does concern me some.

Mack Pack ??
 

Thanks Allen.

Do you think having the lazy jacks threaded through the grommets in the
cover makes the system work better ? I guess there is enough friction that
the covers stay up when desired, yet can be slid down for sailing. Did I get
that right ? Probably reduces chafe on the cover as well.

My lazy jack "halyards", I suppose they could be called, after exiting
above the spreaders, pass through fairleads inserted in holes in the
spreaders to do just as you were told.

Mack Pack ??
 

Garland Gray II wrote:
Thanks Evan. Comments below :

"Evan Gatehouse" wrote in message
...

I've got the UK version of this (don't know if it's a Mack Pack). The
mainsail is loose footed. Sewn to the centerline of the cover are 3 sets
of straps with fastex (nylon quick release) buckles on them.


Do you mean there are three straps on each side of the cover that are used
to secure each rolled-up side separately?

That's the way mine is done.

Or do you roll both sides in a
single roll below the sail?


You ease the lazy jacks and bunch the cover down and tuck it out of the
way. Very little windage and not too untidy.

You don't need to put sail ties on with these covers - that's the beauty
of them. I just drop the mainsail, flake it a minimal amount and pull the
zipper. With a 15' boom it's no trouble. Just make sure it's cut
generously given the stack height of your sail when NOT cinched up tight.

Evan Gatehouse


Yeah, I realised the cover would have to be made extra big, especially aft,
which does concern me some.

A couple more thoughts:

- mine has the biggest zipper I have ever seen. The alloy
slider has to be about 6 oz in weight. Really rugged and
easy to slide it along

- if the lazy jacks are mounted on the spreaders, out about
1' from the mast, then the cover is held open better

Evan Gatehouse

Mack Pack ??
 

Garland Gray II wrote:
Thanks Evan. Comments below :

"Evan Gatehouse" wrote in message
...

I've got the UK version of this (don't know if it's a Mack Pack). The
mainsail is loose footed. Sewn to the centerline of the cover are 3 sets
of straps with fastex (nylon quick release) buckles on them.


Do you mean there are three straps on each side of the cover that are used
to secure each rolled-up side separately? Or do you roll both sides in a
single roll below the sail?


You ease the lazy jacks and bunch the cover down and tuck it out of the
way. Very little windage and not too untidy.

You don't need to put sail ties on with these covers - that's the beauty
of them. I just drop the mainsail, flake it a minimal amount and pull the
zipper. With a 15' boom it's no trouble. Just make sure it's cut
generously given the stack height of your sail when NOT cinched up tight.

Evan Gatehouse


Yeah, I realised the cover would have to be made extra big, especially aft,
which does concern me some.

Mack Pack ??
 

Thanks Evan

"Evan Gatehouse" wrote in message
...
Garland Gray II wrote:
Thanks Evan. Comments below :

"Evan Gatehouse" wrote in message
...

I've got the UK version of this (don't know if it's a Mack Pack). The
mainsail is loose footed. Sewn to the centerline of the cover are 3 sets
of straps with fastex (nylon quick release) buckles on them.


Do you mean there are three straps on each side of the cover that are
used to secure each rolled-up side separately?

That's the way mine is done.

Or do you roll both sides in a
single roll below the sail?


You ease the lazy jacks and bunch the cover down and tuck it out of the
way. Very little windage and not too untidy.

You don't need to put sail ties on with these covers - that's the beauty
of them. I just drop the mainsail, flake it a minimal amount and pull
the zipper. With a 15' boom it's no trouble. Just make sure it's cut
generously given the stack height of your sail when NOT cinched up tight.

Evan Gatehouse


Yeah, I realised the cover would have to be made extra big, especially
aft, which does concern me some.

A couple more thoughts:

- mine has the biggest zipper I have ever seen. The alloy slider has to
be about 6 oz in weight. Really rugged and easy to slide it along

- if the lazy jacks are mounted on the spreaders, out about 1' from the
mast, then the cover is held open better

Evan Gatehouse

Mack Pack ??
 

Allen,
Is the cover open along the bottom ? Are the two sides connected just where
the slides are attached ? It must at least be open where the reef lines
attach to the boom I'd think.

"bushman" wrote in message
m...
Why I like my MackPack.
I feel the same way about the lines and cover messing up my air flow
across
the sail, but we aint racing here, we're cruising and enjoying ouselves.
I think the MackPack is good for the sail. The sail stays in the lines and
does not hang on other objects or fall to the deck to be snagged or
stepped
on. Being tightly furled and sinched down is not good for the sail cloth,
being loosely flaked on the boom keeps the cloth and stiching from being
creased. Also the sail can breath and dry out in the sail cover.
Interesting thing I learned at the Sail show this weekend. Travis Blain of
Mack Sails told me to box up my old MackPack and send $53 to have any
repairs done. I will report back when it returns.
- Allen
P.S. maybe I am just a lazy sailor.

Mack Pack ??
 

"Garland Gray II" wrote in message
news:GN3df.237$0h5.168@dukeread10...
Allen,
Is the cover open along the bottom ? Are the two sides connected just
where
the slides are attached ? It must at least be open where the reef lines
attach to the boom I'd think.

Mine has three , two inch webbing straps that slip between the sail and the
boom , attaching to the other side with little half turn buckle. The two
halves are only sewn together at the aft end of the 16' zipper. The webbing
holds the bottom together under the foot , the zipper closes the top , and
the front hangs on hooks screwed into the mast.
The reefing lines can go under or over the cover and around the boom or
under the foot to take some of the belly out of the sail.
- Allen

Mack Pack ??
 

Thanks !

"bushman" wrote in message
...

"Garland Gray II" wrote in message
news:GN3df.237$0h5.168@dukeread10...
Allen,
Is the cover open along the bottom ? Are the two sides connected just
where
the slides are attached ? It must at least be open where the reef lines
attach to the boom I'd think.

Mine has three , two inch webbing straps that slip between the sail and
the
boom , attaching to the other side with little half turn buckle. The two
halves are only sewn together at the aft end of the 16' zipper. The
webbing
holds the bottom together under the foot , the zipper closes the top , and
the front hangs on hooks screwed into the mast.
The reefing lines can go under or over the cover and around the boom or
under the foot to take some of the belly out of the sail.
- Allen

Mack Pack ??
 

This thread has had several responses which I'll not repeat here, but I
wanted to ask about some issues I have with mine.

First, in the case of the grommets, I've put knots in the inner
section, the better to hold up the sides, or otherwise, it's not over
the sail when it's dropped. So, for mine, it's not held up by
friction. Something akin to a slab is needed, at least in my
application, to make it happen.

Second, if I don't have the jacks pretty well tensioned, the sail will
fall off to one side or the other when it's in the bag, so to speak -
so, I keep it tensioned, having an already-somewhat-abraded bimini over
the bows, just from the time it's spent in the yard/on the hard.

However, third, I'm about to build our awning/sunshade setup, which
will, of course, require the slacking/run-forward of the jacks for
installation. Aside from cinching down (recommended against by another
poster) of the total bag, how do you keep your sail from falling off?

Other than those items, we like ours very much. Ours is currently
attached to the mast, so when I'm up there doing other stuff related to
the electrical bits, I'll move them to the spreaders, a huge
improvement, I'm sure, in dropping. FWIW, when we bought the boat, it
had sail-tie tape on the main, just as you'd do with a
put-over-the-sail covering system - perhaps because the mackpack itself
was pretty well shot, it appeared. However, off it came, and some
mending later, it's fine. I see no reason to believe that, if one had
the concept, building your own couldn't be an easy project for someone
with the appropriate sewing machine (which we've just bought from
Sailrite, in our case, so ours will be a replacement at some point, but
the awnings are current project material!). I highly recommend it.

L8R

Skip and Lydia


Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig - Callsign Pending!
http://tinyurl.com/384p2 The vessel as Tehamana, as we bought her

"Believe me, my young friend, there is *nothing*-absolutely
nothing-half so
much worth doing as simply messing, messing-about-in-boats; messing
about in
boats-or *with* boats.
In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter,
that's
the charm of it.
Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your
destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never
get
anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in
particular; and when you've done it there's always something else to
do, and
you can do it if you like, but you'd much better not."

Mack Pack ??
 

Hi Skip,
Thanks for the comments.
I assume it is the "lazy jacks-thru-the-grommets" that dictate that the
system is sold only with its own lazy jacks rather than trying to fit to
existing lazy jacks. Since I already have lazy jacks I've wondered how the
systemwould work w/o threading the 'jacks thru grommets, but it
sounds like you wouldn't think it'd work.
Keeping the sail from flopping over is a concern of mine also. It was
suggested to me to thread small blocks or even shackles or rings on the
topping lift, one for each batten. A light line is tied between each ring
and the end of each battenso that when the sail is dropped, the line is
tight. This would keep the battens closer to the boom.
I have done this only with the bottom batten, and I guess it helped, so I
should continue with the others.

"Skip Gundlach" wrote in message
oups.com...
This thread has had several responses which I'll not repeat here, but I
wanted to ask about some issues I have with mine.

First, in the case of the grommets, I've put knots in the inner
section, the better to hold up the sides, or otherwise, it's not over
the sail when it's dropped. So, for mine, it's not held up by
friction. Something akin to a slab is needed, at least in my
application, to make it happen.

Second, if I don't have the jacks pretty well tensioned, the sail will
fall off to one side or the other when it's in the bag, so to speak -
so, I keep it tensioned, having an already-somewhat-abraded bimini over
the bows, just from the time it's spent in the yard/on the hard.

However, third, I'm about to build our awning/sunshade setup, which
will, of course, require the slacking/run-forward of the jacks for
installation. Aside from cinching down (recommended against by another
poster) of the total bag, how do you keep your sail from falling off?

Other than those items, we like ours very much. Ours is currently
attached to the mast, so when I'm up there doing other stuff related to
the electrical bits, I'll move them to the spreaders, a huge
improvement, I'm sure, in dropping. FWIW, when we bought the boat, it
had sail-tie tape on the main, just as you'd do with a
put-over-the-sail covering system - perhaps because the mackpack itself
was pretty well shot, it appeared. However, off it came, and some
mending later, it's fine. I see no reason to believe that, if one had
the concept, building your own couldn't be an easy project for someone
with the appropriate sewing machine (which we've just bought from
Sailrite, in our case, so ours will be a replacement at some point, but
the awnings are current project material!). I highly recommend it.

L8R

Skip and Lydia


Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig - Callsign Pending!
http://tinyurl.com/384p2 The vessel as Tehamana, as we bought her

"Believe me, my young friend, there is *nothing*-absolutely
nothing-half so
much worth doing as simply messing, messing-about-in-boats; messing
about in
boats-or *with* boats.
In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter,
that's
the charm of it.
Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your
destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never
get
anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in
particular; and when you've done it there's always something else to
do, and
you can do it if you like, but you'd much better not."

Mack Pack ??
 

"Garland Gray II" wrote in message
news:7udef.2202$0h5.1602@dukeread10...
Hi Skip,
Thanks for the comments.
I assume it is the "lazy jacks-thru-the-grommets" that dictate that the
system is sold only with its own lazy jacks rather than trying to fit to
existing lazy jacks. Since I already have lazy jacks I've wondered how the
systemwould work w/o threading the 'jacks thru grommets, but
it sounds like you wouldn't think it'd work.
Keeping the sail from flopping over is a concern of mine also. It was
suggested to me to thread small blocks or even shackles or rings on the
topping lift, one for each batten. A light line is tied between each ring
and the end of each battenso that when the sail is dropped, the line is
tight. This would keep the battens closer to the boom.
I have done this only with the bottom batten, and I guess it helped, so I
should continue with the others.

I see no reason not to use your existing jacks. The MP has two grommets in
line with the jackline, near the top of the slab, allowing enough room for
the zipper to work. The line goes through the outside, top, then the
inside, bottom, coming out again. The knot I put in is in between the
grommets.

So, if you were making your own, just cut and sew everything other than the
grommets. Allow enough to have the zipper meet comfortably, and soap-mark
that line. Hold the sunbrella slab in position on a slab-stacked sail, with
the jacks tight, and mark the line the jacks take. Insert grommets, untie
jackline, thread, knot, retie jack, and you've done it.

As to your modus of keeping the sail upright, it's interesting to me -
sounds like a variation on the dutchman system. I'll have to give that a
look, as I'd rather not have to keep the jacks tight, or, conversely, when
the awning is up, try to figure out how to keep it up. Oh, dang. Forgot -
the topping lift would also have to be pulled forward, or the shade won't
fit. That, or I'd have to make two of them, complicating the anticipated
rolled-up storage against the front of the mast...

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
http://tinyurl.com/384p2 The vessel as Tehamana, as we bought her

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you
didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail
away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore.
Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain