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Australia Newsletter DF95

DECEMBER 2017

Welcome to the DF95 Class newsletter. The DF95 is raced as a “Restricted Class”. This means that the

boat is to be raced as supplied by the Builder, with any changes “restricted” to those specifically stated in the

Class rules. To help promote the Class an informal Owners Association has been formed consisting of a Rep

from each State which has boats Registered. Items for inclusion in the newsletter, requests for info, etc.

should be sent to df95aus@gmail.com

Useful Links: www.dfracing.world - the site contains the Class Rules, drawings for constructing the other

allowable rigs and templates for the sail numbers, National letters, the Class logo and their locations on the

sails. There is also a link to Australia under the “Links” menu. As some of us also race the DF65 the same

can be done at df65australia@gmail.com. Requests for a DF65 sail number can now be sent to Kyle at

df65aus@gmail.com . For WA sailors – www.rsawa.asn.au

* Owners should also check the updated Class Rules Version 1.2, H.9 regarding the size to be used for

sail numbers, national letters and the Class logo and their positioning on sails. Templates/drawings

for all of these are at www.dfracing.world

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Boat Registration: Boats should be registered at df95aus@gmail.com

* The Hull serial number as supplied by HWH is the sail number.

* Personal sail numbers will not be issued.

* Club Personal sail numbers are not allowed at DF95 Class Association events

* Only boats registered with the DF95 Class Association may compete in DF95 State/National/World

events or use “AUS” on their sails.

State Class Contacts

Qld: Garry Russell. garryrussell51@gmail.com

NSW: Daniel Bergan daniel.bergan@yahoo.com.au

ACT: canberramodelyachtclub@gmail.com

Vic: John Toner. aus3488@yahoo.com.au

Tas: Kyle Stewart. kylet@iprimus.com.au

WA: Rodney Popham rod@sailprizes.com.au

S A: Jurgen Luther jurgenluther@gmail.com

NT: No contact yet.

Clubs sailing the Class:

Qld: Moreton Radio Yacht Squadron at Newport on the Redcliffe Peninsula. Some boats have

been sailing as visitors at Lake Kawana on the Sunshine Coast.

NSW: Forster-Tuncurry RCYC at Racecourse Lake, Tuncurry. Contact, Sailing Sec. Peter Burton

0417 239 809. Horizons MYC at Grahamstown Dam. North Lakes on Lake Maquarie. A

group sails at Blacktown Workers Club, Luddenham on Wednesdays from 0900 to 1200 and

every second Sunday from 1100 to 1400.

ACT: Canberra Model Yacht Club. Sail at the YMCA Sailing Club, Yarralumla Bay.

Vic: Patterson Lakes RMYC. Lilydale RYC. Yarrawonga YC RCD (Radio Controlled Division).

Contact is wayne.clement@cookedowsett.com.au who is organising the racing. Tom Crusoe

RC Sailing in Bendigo who sail a variety of classes and currently have 10 DF95s in the

group. Contact Mal Fields at crusoemal@gmail.com

Tas: Risdon Brook RYC. Lauderdale Canal. STRYC at Franklin and Port Huon in the Huon

Valley. Northern Tasmanian RYC at Launceston. North West RYC in the Devonport area.

S A: Mawson Lakes MYC. South Australian Radio MYC. South Eastern Hills MYC which sails

at Paris Creek.

W A: Wanderers RSC, Albany RSC.

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DF95 Class Rules updates: Version 1.2 (current version) is at www.dfracing.world

DF95 Rule interpretation (Rule F.7): In July I received a query from an owner regarding the fixing

point of the elastic tensioning the winch line and if it’s attachment point could be altered from deck eye#1

as he had a problem with the elastic breaking. I have received a reply from John Tushingham and the

answer is “NO”. Rule F.7 is quite specific on the elastic fixing point and the routing options. John’s

explanation for using deck eye #1 is that it provides the maximum length of elastic so that tension can be

maintained on the winch line with minimum strain on the winch. The Rule does allow for a different type of

elastic to be used other than the OEM stuff.

Current Registrations: 177

STATE REPORTS

QUEENSLAND: The Moreton Radio Yacht Squadron (www.moretonradioyachtsquadron.org)

located on the Redcliffe Peninsula will be holding a DF95 race day in February/March (actual date to be

confirmed) 2018. The event will be advertised on the QRYA website and will be open to all DF95 owners.

A fully catered lunch will be provided by the Café right beside the sailing venue. The entry fee will include

the cost of the lunch. Additional meals can be arranged at cost.

The Café

There are four new boats expected to be launched at the club in the New Year and when this occurs a formal

racing program will be implemented. Once this occurs and the minimum conditions are met, the Class will

attempt to seek recognition by the QRYA.

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The sailing area.

NEW SOUTH WALES: Foster-Tuncurry Radio Yacht Club has a strong fleet of DF95s sailing

on the Racecourse Lake Tuncurry on the 1st, 3

rd, 5

th Wednesdays of every month and every Saturday.

Visitors are welcome and for further information contact the Sailing Secretary Peter Burton on 0417 239

809.

DSF95 NSW: What a year it’s been, Clubs increasing the numbers of members and DF95 sailors from

young to old and beginner to advance sailors. It just proves how great the Df95 really are to sail. We now

have DF95 sailing in the south coast, Canberra, throughout Sydney areas, Hunter Valley, Lake Macquarie,

Grahams Town & Forster . Please let us know if your club is now sailing.

Contact us through www.df95nsw.com

NSWRYA Update: At the November meeting of the NSWYRA, the DF95 Class, applied for and was

granted “Sanctioned” status in NSW. This means that the DF95 Class can now use the NSWRYA web site

to promote their events in NSW. It allows the DF95 Class to refer and use the Racing Rules of Sailing as the

authority when conducting racing. It also allows the DF95 Class to use the HMS Scoring System. If and

when required. What this does not allow the DF95 Class to do, is host a DF95 NSW State Titles. For this to

occur either a State Owners Association or a National Owners Association would need to be established

with an ARYA approved Constitution. The DF95 Class already meets the three-club rule. We have seen

with the DF65 that this is possible within a short period of time where there is a Commitment from five

States to move forward. A National Association has been set up with a proposed date for their first National

Championships in May 2019.

As Daniel is moving on to warmer pastures Jason Roots has agreed to fill the void as State Class

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Coordinator. Four dates have been allocated in the NSWRYA calendar for the DF95 T.T Series. To-date,

two of the four have been allocated to NSWRYA affiliated Clubs. So, the next stage is, Incorporation of an

Association, recognition as a State Class in NSW and at least two more States and apply for National

recognition and host the first National Championships. Simple, anyone wants to take up the challenge.

Paul Martin.

Regatta Officer

NSWRYA

The Travellers series - Final Wrap Up.

Round 5 and final round of the Travellers Series has been completed at the new Hunter Valley club. We had

a great turn out with 19 boats sailing on the day. We kept the same format as all other series rounds having

a B fleet and A fleet without progression which has kept the sailing really tight.

Weather wasn’t the best with large storms brewing around the area a decision at the lunch time break meant

we had the major presentation earlier and an earlier day . This proved to be a good decision.

Peter Burton from Forster Club was the one to beat on the day with 4 first places and 1x 2nd

and dropping a

3rd

to be the overall winner of the day, finishing on 6 points. Craig Sargent was being his normal self and

consistent for 2nd

place, Daniel Bergan edging Jason Rootes by 1 point for 3rd

place.

The B fleet racing was just as close with Rod Wilson showing consistencies with the boat getting quicker as

the day went on finishing on 8 points for 1st place, Roger Smith was only 1 point behind on 9points for 2

nd

with Alan Taylor 3rd

showing Pace at times and hard to beat. All in all it was a great day and we had some

new sailors sailing for their first time with DF 95. It’s paved the way for a great series for next year.

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After 5 rounds of the traveller’s series one thing was clear. It didn’t matter who you were how you sailed on

the day, each round was pleasure to sail. The sailors and clubs that hosted the events did an amazing job and

made it worth the travel. Although the racing was tight it wasn’t all about the racing but coming together

sharing stories and having a good time with a common interest. A huge thankyou to all involved. With all

the boats being pretty much the same out of the box , the only difference was the way each sailor tunned

their boat and sailed it, This saw some amazing sailing and efforts throughout the series.

Craig Sargent’s effort to take out the overall series was an example of sportsman ship and consistency

showing Craig is great Bloke and a dam good sailor. In most cases Craig had the furthest distance to travel

living in Port Macquarie, Craig was there at all rounds regardless of weather conditions, great effort. Craig

won 3 out of 5 rounds and was second for both the other 2 rounds giving him a score of 5 after 1 drop to

takeout first place overall. Congratulations Craig on your victory.

Series Champion Craig Sargent

Peter Burton 2nd

overall (8 points) showed he was getting quicker every round. Peter was hard to beat and

throw Jason Rootes in the mix who was 3rd

overall (10 points) you soon realize that you had to work hard

for every bit of ground around the course. Congratulations to all 3 top places.

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B fleet was running its own series, and this was just as tough as the A fleet. One time after a series round

we had 3 fun races for a bottle of wine with all boats on the water. B fleet boats took out 1st & 2nd

for the

wine. So “B” doesn’t stand for much when you look at the calibre of the sailors. Roger Smith took out first

place on 8 points, Rod Wilson 2nd

on 11 points, Alan Taylor 3rd

on 15 points. It is worth mentioning, John

Rootes was in second position coming in to the last round, but due to illness missed the last round. I’m sure

John would have placed had he sailed the last round.

B fleet Champion Roger Smith

We had 40 sailors take part in the series; it was unfortunate that not sailors could attend all rounds. On

average we had around 20 sailors for each round. For 2018 great efforts have been made to ensure that any

DF95 series won’t clash with other classes and events. This will greatly boost numbers for future events.

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DF95 Traveller Series Round

Skipper Boat no

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Position

A Fleet

score

Craig Sargent 5 2 1 1 1 2 5 1

Peter Burton 99 4 3 2 2 1 8 2

Jason Rootes 196 1 2 4 3 4 10 3

Daniel Bergan

229 6 4 7 4 3 17 4

Phillip Page 3 5 6 3 8 8 22 5

Alan Griffith 95 9 5 5 10 8 27 6

Phil Page 282 3 7 10 10 8 28 7

Paul Martin 267 8 13 10 6 7 31 8

Roman Wenger 10 13 13 8 5 8 34 9

Peter Newman

430 7 13 10 10 8 35 10

Ian Walters 34 13 8 9 10 8 35 11

Robert Fielding 126 13 11 6 10 8 35 12

Juilan Clutterbuck 259 13 9 10 10 6 35 13

Andrew Sands 311 13 10 10 10 8 35 14

Grant Waring 4 13 13 10 10 5 38 15

David Page 11 10 13 10 10 8 38 16

Michael Harris 438 13 13 10 7 8 38 17

Mitch Gibbs 418 11 13 10 10 8 39 18

Peter Yates 100 12 13 10 10 8 40 19

B Fleet Boat no Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Position

Roger Smith 22 8 2 2 2 2 8 1

Rod Wilson 96 8 15 1 1 1 11 2

Alan Taylor 52 6 4 3 5 3 15 3

John Rootes 429 1 3 10 3 9 16 4

Neil Wasson 191 3 6 7 9 9 25 5

Paul Coombe 0 2 15 10 4 9 25 6

Barry Archer 23 4 7 10 7 9 27 7

Brain Lindsay 17 8 1 10 9 9 27 8

Rob Gower 318 7 11 4 9 7 29 9

Mark Rayner 24 8 5 10 9 9 31 10

Brian Bath 671 8 15 5 9 9 31 11

Bob Cann 666 8 15 10 9 4 31 12

Maurie Hotson 62 8 9 10 6 9 32 13

Tony Ovenden 330 5 12 10 8 9 32 14

Noel King 229 8 15 10 9 5 32 15

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Jeff Harris 133 8 14 6 9 9 32 16

Ian 711 8 15 10 9 6 33 17

Doug Monk 238 8 8 10 9 9 34 18

Alan Holder 416 8 10 8 9 9 34 19

Grahan Turner 326 8 13 10 9 9 36 20

Keith Johnson 15 8 15 10 9 9 36 21

A.C.T: Richard Jolley will not be representing Canberra MYC anymore. The CMYC Committee

decided that it could not host a DF95 Travellers Trophy, so Richard has decided to hang up his sailing

transmitter and concentrate on RC flying. Thanks to Richard for his efforts in trying to establish the Class in

the ACT. If any of the other DF95 owners in Canberra would like to take on the role of ACT Rep just let

me know.

VICTORIA: 2017 DF95 Victorian Cup: The event was held on Saturday 28th

. October at the

National Water Sports Centre. Patterson Lakes Radio Model Y.C. hosted the event. PRO for the day was

Mario Gulic ably assisted by PLRMYC Secretary Tony Smith and Club member Chris Darling. Mario got

racing under way on time at 10.00 in a very light shifting breeze. Fourteen boats fronted the starter with Paul

Martin flying the flag NSW.

After about six races the wind dropped to zero, so an early lunch break was called. During the afternoon the

wind settled more or less in the South with a bit of pressure in it. As seems to be the case in a lot of regattas,

the best winds for the day were during the last two races!! In total 18 races were completed with the winner

being Class newcomer (but ace Tasar, etc. sailor) Chris Dance from the host club on 29 points. Second on 34

points was Benson (I have a boat for every day of the week in every Class) Or and third on 56 points was

Frank (The Enforcer) Katers sailing Geoff Dawson’s boat. Tony Smith loaned his boat to Jason Shilton who

has never sailed the boat before and he proceeded to a heap of second and third places until the lunch break.

After lunch he handed the boat over to Michael Cosgriff to sail for the afternoon session and Michael was in

the hunt also – some new converts to the class?

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Racing was conducted in a relaxed manner – who wants to go to war for a goldfish farm - even so Mario

RULED and there were quite a few General Recalls!! It was a great day of really close sailing and even

among the backmarkers some of us were match racing for 15th

place!!

First (and only!) female skipper was Maureen Haymes who drew a few comments on her new sails,

“Maureen did you get those sails from your local “Sexy Land” store”, etc. I have to say that satin black sails

with pink jib luff tape and pink corner patches must be unique!

This is the second year that this event has been run. This year it has coincided close to the Laser “World

Champs” in Queensland. A lot of our DF95 owners also sail the Laser as it is an OD just like the DF95, so

to get 14 entries was very satisfying. Next year maybe we will get more of our local Laser/DF95 owners

and more interstate travellers sailing.

Patterson Lakes RMYC is to be congratulated on promoting the Class. From a very small fleet it has built up

the numbers sailing by attracting members from unaffiliated clubs to join and sail in a Class that will I am

sure will eventually be a recognised class by the ARYA (maybe not in my lifetime!!).

Paul Martin of NSW (AUS 267) used the regatta to get in some race time and some tuning before heading

off to Florida in the Good Ol’ USofA to compete in their DF95 Nationals from 10 – 12 November.

Hopefully Paul will provide a detailed report of the event for the newsletter as he did of last year’s event.

What makes you think that Paul may have some Irish in him? The Tricolour under the Class Insignia may

be a clue (notice he has it correct with the green next to the flag pole!) as well as the colour of the boat!!

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=====================================

TASMANIA: Summer is heating up in Tasmania, as is the sailing with the DF95’s. Sailing

continues in the North, North West and South, with many sailors heading along to adjacent clubs to sail

there. The DF95 really is strengthening the relationships between clubs, with it being the common class

amongst all but one club in the state now.

It was reported in the last newsletter that Risdon Brook radio Yacht Club was going to host a 2018 National

event immediately following the ARYA Nationals. There needs to be a correction in the naming of the

event. RBRYC will be hosting the “Hobby Warehouse George Fish Memorial Tasmanian State

Championship” on Sunday 25th

and Monday 26th

February. Same days, but as a State Championship rather

than National. That said, interstate entries are obviously more than welcome. The link for the NoR and Entry

is at http://www.risdonbrookradioyachtclub.com/club-ranking-events.html

Montrose Bay Yacht Club has proven extremely popular, and with new launch steps currently being

constructed, along with the already completed jetty upgrade, it is sure to become one of the premier facilities

available for RC yachting.

For those interested, but not yet aware, the DF95 will return to regular sailing after the new year at the North

West Radio Yacht Club, sailing in the Devonport, Sassafras, Penguin and Wynyard locations, at the

Northern Tasmania Radio Yacht Club, sailing at Breadalbane and Exeter, Risdon Brook Radio Yacht Club,

sailing at Risdon Brook Dam and Montrose Bay Yacht Club, and Southern Tasmania Radio Yacht Club,

sailing at Franklin and Port Cygnet Yacht Club.

Contact Kyle Stewart on 0419 561 513 and/or kylet@iprimus.com.au if you’d like any further information

or advice on sailing days at any of the DF95 locations

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SOUTH AUSTRALIA: Things have been a bit static in South Australia with no new additions

to our DF95 fleet. Things have also been a bit quiet on the sailing front with various skippers away for

extended periods and more recently, a reluctance to sail when other classes are on the water.

Our group was pleased to have been accepted by the South Australia RYC as an official class of the club and

home of the DF95 in South Australia. With the club also sailing each of the International classes a problem

has arisen when sailing in a mixed fleet. It’s not hard to imagine which boat comes off second best in a

collision between a DF95 and a Marblehead, 10r or A class. Unfortunately some of our DF95s have suffered

some unwanted and unnecessary damage. There seems to be a general problem in judging the position of a

DF95 relative to a larger boat at a distance. Perhaps it is the relative sizes of the two boats that causes the

problem?

Two steps have been taken to address the problem and maintain harmony within the club. Initially it was

proposed and accepted at the recent AGM, that the DF95s sail their Club Championship rounds on a

Saturday instead of Sunday which is the club’s normal sailing day. The second more recent proposal was

that on regular Sunday mixed fleet days the DF95s sail on their own course away from the other classes.

Time will tell whether a separate day or a separate course is the better option (or a combination).

How do other the DF95 fleets cope with mixed fleet sailing. Is it perhaps best avoided?

DF95 in Japan - 03/2017 – 12/2017

At Saiko Lake in Saitama, just north of Tokyo, the DF95s are regulars now, with stable numbers in the

monthly Saiko RC Yacht events. We are racing together with the AC36/600 “Gracious”, which have proven

to be a good match for the DF95, well, at least in A rig conditions.

I did not have much chance to participate myself this year due to commitments at work. So I kept watching

the photos and results, seeing consistently good positions of #50 Nagai-san, #43 Umebayashi-san and #25

Yoshida-san. In autumn, two races in a row had to be canceled due to approaching typhoons. Typical

autumn here in Tokyo.

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Finally the end of November weather was excellent, but we had to struggle with very light winds until the

early afternoon when the announced wind finally found its way to Saiko. The DF65 sailors got very busy all

of a sudden changing from A+ to A or even B rigs. No problem for the A rig on the DF95 though. We got in

4 heats and good fights between #50 Nagai-san, #17 Hatanai-san, #43 Umebayashi-san and #76 myself. I

was super happy to score my first win of a DF95 race, with Nagai-san in second and Hatanai-san in third

place.

The December race was a blowout, the first heat seeing overpowered A rigs, then B, later C, and even these

were overpowered sometimes. Saiko Lake is quite long, so quite some swell built up, requiring good timing

for tacks. Enormous fun, Dragons flying on the downwind leg. Looking forward to the photos, they will be

uploaded in the next days.

As we are not used to such “good“ winds, we had quite a bit of carnage. I encountered a strange problem

which I think is worth sharing: Every time the jib fluttered, the sheet eye would slide aft on the jib boom,

and then lock up in aft position when hauling in, blocking the sail winch. This resulted in a split winch

drum, slipping on the servo shaft. I quickly fixed it with a carbon roving and CA, but at that time I hadn‘t

understood the cause yet, resulting in another almost-DNF.

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Now all my sheet eyes are glued… I don‘t see this as allowed by the rules, but in my case it is a necessity.

Result of the race is not out yet, but I probably #80 Hashimoto-san won this one..?

This year‘s DF Racing Japan DF95 Race will be on Christmas Eve, so I will not be able to participate for

obvious reasons. I hope for good winds and great racing for all participants! Let us see if we can bring

together with 30 boats this time.

DF95 #76 Philipp. df95newsletter-japan@yahoo.co.jp

Links:

Saiko RC Yacht. http://www.geocities.co.jp/a24hby/

Nagai-san's homepage. http://www.geocities.jp/j75020002/index.html

JMYS Kanto (Japan Model Yachting Association, Kanto Area Branch)

http://jmys-east.o.oo7.jp/newHP/framepage1.htm

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2017 US DF95 National Championship Paul Martin

The second weekend of November saw the hosting of the second DF95 US National Championships, in

Naples, Florida.

Race area was a Lagoon with first class viewing for spectators.

After my last visit to Dallas to sail at the previous Nationals I was keen to get back and sail again in a large

fleet. Numbers were capped at 42 which allowed for A, B and C fleet racing using the HMS system for

promotion and demotion, with one exception, two seeding races and your best result counting.

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Ah well, ended up in B fleet to start with and spent most of my time between B and C, with an occasional

appearance in A fleet. The venue is a Lagoon of questionable water. Snakes and Alligators are known to

inhabit the reeds and surrounding ponds. No wet launch for me. Some did chance the odd dip with the toes

to launch but I stuck to the timber launching pad.

Races ran for about 10 – 12 minutes, with a start line in the vicinity of the leeward gate and a finish ¾ of the

way up the beat. Lines were sort of square but attention to detail was lacking. When the breeze changed

direction, the line stayed in the same place which caused a few pile-ups at the pin end.

The line was the longest I have seen at any regatta that I have attended so when a shift did occur in the 20

second period you went from hero to zero very quickly and vice versa. Because the DF95 is evenly matched

out of the box, trying to get back from this type of start is difficult with all the boats going at similar speeds.

So, like all other regattas playing it safe and not hitting the edges seemed to play for the top boats.

Occasionally you would see one that had had a bad start take a flyer and make it pay but this was the

exception rather than the rule.

For the first day’s racing they used a rectangular course with marks to starboard causing much excitement at

the windward mark when approaching on port from the favoured side. An International Judge was on hand

to settle protests that could not be solved with a turn on the water. Racing was polite, cordial and friendly,

with only one protest hearing, that I can remember.

The next change was to put a leeward gate in to replace the bottom reach of the rectangle, which seem to

improve the racing and shouting for room. On the last day they did get in a few port hand rounding’s and

again this seem to keep the racing respectable.

The winners played the shifts up the left side and centre of the course with the odd flyer out on the right.

Mark Gollison sailed well but did not have it all his own way. He was consistently at the front but

occasionally he was to be found back in the B fleet making his way forward. Steve Landeau sailed very

well at times and ok at others to get second. I will say that I thought that his sails looked fantastic and

seemed to tack with such ease compared to the rest. Top ten was made up of a selection of Cat, Rock, Stock,

Black Magic and Soch sails.

These boats are very evenly matched and can cope with different tuning settings without losing or gaining

significant advantages.

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Windward Mark activity. Marks were laid within 50m of the shore. Good A rig sailing conditions

Like all American events the customary meal and drink sessions were well attended on both the Friday and

Saturday nights.

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As you can see from the photo they also have a novel way of starting the day with sticky donuts and black

coffee. I had had my complementary continental breakfast at my hotel, The Fairways Inn of Naples, which I

would recommend to any skipper attending a regatta in this location.

Temps were in the high 20s’ but the humidity was a killer, for me anyway. There was plenty of free water

and soda on hand to help with the dehydration.

The more I travel with my DF95 the more I learn on what to bring and what to expect from the locals.

I used a new type of carry box for the boat which worked until the TSA guys got their hands on it. By

opening it and just stuffing everything back in, they managed to break of my masts on the way over. Not a

big problem as I had a spare.

On the home they managed to crush the hull because they wedged my transmitter cover on top of the hull

rather than by its side. Next time I will forget any fancy locking clips or straps and just keep the hull and

sails in the case.

Being a traveller you cannot bring with you some of what I consider essential at an event. Take for example

a chair. Sailing three flights gives you plenty of time to sit and watch, assuming you are not going up and

down between fleets. Not all of us can bring a chair on a plane and not every local brings a spare, so these

have to be arranged in advance.

Travel between the venue, your accommodation and any functions is not possible without a car and a car is

not always available. I arrived into Fort Myers Air Port at 1am and left at 6am. All Car hire companies are

closed for pickups and drop offs at those times. So, I head off to the Taxi rank and use a Taxi for the next

four days to get around.

I think we should pay more attention to skippers who make the effort to support our events that are from

outside the local area, something to think about when we are hosting events.

So, boat set up. Most were within 2mm of the 1135mm rake mentioned in the manual. Sails were set fuller

than I had expected for the conditions. In fact, many of the competitors had not sailed in such winds, middle

to upper limit of A at times.

Very little down haul on either jib or main. Both sheeted in with a bit more twist than usual. The photos on

face book will give you a good idea of a fast set up. If you watch any video pay particular attention to how

the top guys come into a tack and come out of it. Check and watch what they do with the sheets and rudder.

Sail clean, avoid the idiots, of which there were a few and don’t hesitate.

Would I go back there? No, not to Florida. I have already booked my ticket to Garland next November for

the DF95 Global Challenge Regatta. Qantas had a sale for $990 return Sydney to Dallas last week, which I

grabbed. See you all there.

RESULT: Pts.

1. Mark Gollison 54

2. Steve Landeau 77

3. Tony Gonsalves 79

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Making Sails – Part 2 Making the Main. Daniel Bergan

There is very little you can do to add or change you DF95. But thankfully the designers have allowed

enough room for sailors to make their own sails, or customise the sails with colour patches and number

colours to make it their own.

The rules are straight forward to making the sails below is a quick summary:

(There is further details relating to the mainsail this can be found at www.dfracing.world ) Construction

shall be a soft sail of a single ply. The Jib and Mainsail of any given rig size shall be constructed from the

same ply

All sails shall be constructed of a single panel with no seams and the maker shall not try to introduce

camber (shape) into the sail by means of heat or force.

The sails shall be attached to the rigging and spars by means of a single hole positioned within 10mm of

each sail corner point (points A, C & E Jib, A, G & L Mainsail) and a maximum of four other suitable

positions along the mainsail luff. Metal eyelets may be used to reinforce these holes

The Jib Luff shall form a straight line between points A & C. Tabling at the luff (front edge) shall form a

pocket for the Forestay. Maximum width of tabling shall be 12mm. Tabling forms part of the sail area and

must fit within the sail dimensions. Tabling shall be one, continuous pocket finishing within 10mm of

points A & C.

Jib - The Jib leech shall form a straight line between points D & E.

The Jib & Mainsail foot shall form a curve as described by full-sized templates available to download from

the website www.dfracing.world these can be printed out at full size on an A4 printer.

Sails may only be decorated using ink, but markings shall not interfere with easy identification of the sail

numbers, or national letters if fitted. Flow Stripes may be added using ink or soft adhesive tape. These are

limited to two stripes per sail and may be applied to both sides of the sail and shall not interfere with sail

numbers or national letters.

Tell-tales are permissible on the Jib and Mainsail. The number and position of them is not restricted,

provided that when streaming in their normal position they do not fall outside of the sail outline shape. A

wind indicator or burgee attached to the top of the mast or backstay crane is allowed provided its sole

purpose is to indicate wind direction.

Before making anything you need to count the costs. If you doing a one-off sail you will find the cost will

be well above what you can buy from Hobby Warehouse or Bergan Sails and alike. Reason for this is the

buy quantity and set of tools required. The flip side is once you have the equipment it does become cheaper

the more you make.

Getting Started:

The first thing you need to do is go to the dfracing website/or www.df95nsw.com and download the sail

templates and the measurement guide.

You will find you can print out over multiple pages of paper the pattern for the Jib and main, these will

have reference lines to line up each page so the measurements should be close, forming the paten. I use

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3mm MDF for my patens and glue the pages onto the MDF. Before cutting out the profile I double check

“ALL” the measurements and if I need to, correct the page before the glue dries.

The glue I use is standard watered down PVA wood working glue. I water it down to where there are no

hard spots and remains flat. After this is set I recheck the measurements again and cut out the profile to the

exact measurements.

Please note: in most case you only have 1mm-to 2mm of tolerance so care has to be given in this process. I

all so cover my Templates with Epoxy to seal the paper and MDF.

Once your template is complete you can know start to make your sails. Tools

required:

Sharp Standley knife

Cutting matt- or 3mm MDF to throw away

Whole punch

Scissors

Rule/ straight edge

Hammer

Eyelet punch

Side cutters

File

Portable table or bench at a good height Material required:

Insignia Nylon – for patches

Mylar Film- 50 micron, 75 micron depending on the suite of sail

Rip stop for the jib luff pocket

Double sided tape

Masking tape

Eyelets

Luff wire

Some items you might find hard to find and buy? Thankfully there is online shops:

Radio Sailing Shop, (Vic)

Radio Yacht supply’s Australia(WA)

Hobby Warehouse

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Between these shops you should be Ok for what you need. I think is important we support these guy’s too.

It costs a lot to hold stock they do a good job of it for our benefit. Yes, they make money from it, but they

make it really easy and cheaper in the long run for us.

Sailcloth Weight: A set- 50 micron B set- 75 micron

C set- 75 micron

D set- 75 micron

Clear your bench make sure it doesn’t have any markings at all as the film when rolling the patches can be

marked and dented very easily.

I find the main is a little more straight forward to make then the Jib. For the main the template it can be cut

straight away, which unlike the jib requires the luff tape to allow for the jib wire to be fit before cutting to

template size.

Make sure you have a good clean working area. Ensure your templates are correct, and roll out your film

to be cut to shape. I like to weigh down the template with weights to prevent any movement while cutting

around the template. It just makes it easier.

Another product that is handy at times is Artist spray adhesive. This has a low tack allowing the sail cloth

to stay in position while being cut and easily removed. The only thing is sometimes the residue can

sometimes stay on the sail and needs to clean off with soapy water afterwards. This good for large sails.

It’s like and extra pair hands.

Weighing down the template for cutting

Once the template is cut out remove everything from the bench, other than the sail ready to have the

trim added. As mentioned prior I use a plotter cutter to make all my corner reinforcements. They can

be cut out by hand from polyester insignia cloth. It’s much easier having them prepared and cut ready

to go.

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Plotter cut corners ready to be used

Carefully stick on the patches, you only get one chance to stick these on. Mess it up and you start again

from the beginning. Sometimes you need to trim the edges if it moved slight off line just keep within the

sail plan. Please take care while sticking these corners on. Repeat the process doing one side then turning

over to do the other side.

Corners stuck on and trimmed to sail plan

After the patches are on the next thing to add are the sail battens. Now the battens can be made from any

material you like. The length of the battens and were they are fasten to the sail is critical to get right.

There is some flexibility but you must remain within the rules. To help with this I pre-mark my

Templates showing exactly where I want the battens fitted.

Batten material can be made of plastic, Fibre glass and Carbon fibre etc. I fine plastic battens work the

best with these sails. I use off-the-shelf .5mm plastic sheet. You can buy these from any good hobby

shop. These come in clear or White in colour.

I then use a wider double side tape and stick one side to the plastic sheet and then begin to cut with a

Stanley knife the width and length of the batten ready to use. It then a simple peel off the backing from

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the double sided tape and stick into position on your sail once cut to size. It’s worth mentioning that I use

sail grade double sided tape. Don’t use craft double sided tape it just doesn’t hold up over time.

Clear Plastic .5mm sheet Double sided tape stuck to plastic ready to be cut to size.

Cut Lengths ready to be used

Make sure you stick the battens where you need them to go. It also worth mentioning , what side

do you put the battens and whether you stagger the battens and go alternate one side then the

next goes the other side etc… I tried having the battens all on one side ( same as the produced

ones) or alternate sides and found no difference in performance. Have a try yourself.

Once the battens are in place stick the reinforcement patches over the top of the battens. This helps

to make the batten to stay fastened to the sail.

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Now that the corners are in place and the battens are fastened on, the next thing is to add the eyelets. I

use a hole punch for the cutting of the holes for eyelets. It’s easier and cleaner. The alternate is to use a

heated nail or drill bit and melt a hole. Note, I don’t use Eyelets for the luff tie areas, just

reinforcement and a 1mm hole from holes punch.

After the eyelets are in and looking good, it’s just add numbers and trim lines if you want them and class

logo. I use thin Vinyl for all these items and use the plotter cutter to make what we need and colour

options. There is nothing too hard and with practise you will find your sails will look and sail great. I

hope this was helpful. Good luck and see you on the water.

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This will be a huge event. A Seeding/Ranking system will be developed for attendance. Paul Martin has

been approached to gauge Australian interest in the event. The email address in the above flyer has been set

up to report back to the organisers about Australian numbers that may be interested in attending

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For details contact Nigel Brown at: www.catsails.co.uk

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Soch Sails

Boat photos - Sue Brown – Thanks Sue! Sail Photos – Tim Long

The DF Racing Sail Specialists For top quality race proven custom sails and sticker sets to suit your DF

Racing yacht delivered to your door fast look no further.

web – sochsails.co.uk

shop – www.sochsails.online

If you don’t see what you need on the shop then drop us a line to

info@sochsails.co.uk

and we’ll make it happen for you!

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CHECK FOR CURRENT PRICES ON THE WEBSITE.