MacGregorSailors.com

Mike.

When the rubber hits the road I think the ONLY reason why the factory OEM mainsail does not have slugs is due to cost. It adds another 15 to 20% to the wholesale price.

Slugs or slides have been on "racing" boats before and after I was born. Not to mention several of the larger One Design classes still require them.

As far as the "hot" sail makers are concerned, very few manufacture their own fabric. They purchase it through one of the major producers such as Contender, D.P., etc.. They may each use a different name but it's all pretty much the same. Next time anyone drools over a net set of North's...ask the sales rep where they are made...Sri Lanka. Same goes for most of the other big boys.

I just replaced the sails on my boat. Other than my loft, there is only one I would consider using today. Hood. They still manufacture their own fabric and the sails are built in the U.S.. I would have built them myself but the boat is slipped in San Diego and I didn't have the time to take down the roller furling main and genoa to measure.

Telling a potential purchaser that slugs will slow a Mac down is ridiculous. Anyone who doesn't have them is simply missing out on a safer, easier sailing experience. That's what we tell our buyers.

What Art said - - - inside and outside.

Rick

Re the slugs inhibiting reefing, I just made an insert to fit inside the feed slot which allows the slugs to run right down to the goosneck also makes it easier to flake.
Just get the right size as mine are small and jamming, but they are being replaced.

go with the slugs,once you have your mac rigged up with all lines going aft,you can easily sail her single handed from the cockpit .

AWKIII wrote:Actually, there is a difference between sail slides and slugs.

A slug fits inside the channel of the mast and slides; outside.

Art is technically correct. However, the terms are used interchangeably, more and more. Even some chandeliers are using it incorrectly.

I was just using the term with Rainer, who is German, to differentiate from "snails" and "slugs". Sometimes things get lost in the translation.

~Rich

The trouble with getting a bunch of snail slugs is then you have to find a mast rake to keep them under control so they don't wander all over the boat.

Tony D-26X_SusieQ wrote:The trouble with getting a bunch of snail slugs is then you have to find a mast rake to keep them under control so they don't wander all over the boat.

I just sprinkle salt on them, or sometimes leave saucepans of beer out. Works every time.

kmclemore wrote:

Tony D-26X_SusieQ wrote:The trouble with getting a bunch of snail slugs is then you have to find a mast rake to keep them under control so they don't wander all over the boat.

I just sprinkle salt on them, or sometimes leave saucepans of beer out. Works every time.

brown ale or guiness works best for me,i bet your wife gets upset with you stealing her saucepans kevin