SNIPE

Our goal at North Sails One Design is to design and produce Snipe sails you can win with. Our current line up includes designs that provide the best sails for every sailor no matter where they sail or what equipment they use. Our sails are designed to be easy to set up and use, so that can concentrate on racing. We take your input seriously and lately have worked extra hard to make our sails fast and durable.

As you look over our sails for the Snipe please feel free to ask us any questions you might have. We are Snipe sailors ourselves and would be happy to discuss any aspect of Snipe sailing with you. All our sails come complete with our comprehensive Snipe Racing Guide which includes straightforward and simple information on how to set up your Snipe for great performance.

Choosing your Mainsail:

Depending on the conditions that you sail we can help you to choose the North sail(s) that is recommended for the wind range.Please contact the Snipe Experts.

NEW! M6X Mainsail

After many months and thousands of hours of sail testing and development, North Sails snipe experts are excited about the high performance capabilities of the new M6X Mainsail. This sail was designed to give more power to help the boat through the chop and waves. If you sail mostly in the ocean or other choppy and wavy venues, this is the sail for you. It is very easy to set up with standard tuning.

Mainsails include:

• Snipe insignia
• Sail numbers with country code
• Custom tapered battens
• Shelf foot
• Jib leech sighting window
• Roll bag

AP 5+ Mainsail

The AP-5+ is our easiest sail to trim. It is designed with more twist, which makes it much easier to prevent the sail from stalling out. The flatter top also makes this sail great in flat water. If you sail mainly in flat water lakes or bays, the AP-5+ would be a great choice.

After taking this sail to Japan and running it through the Advanced Sail Analyzing Software Program, some small adjustments were made to the luff curve to bring the draft a little further aft in the bottom 25% of the sail. We also made the entry a little finer in the bottom 25%. This proved to be a great improvement to sail’s overall performance.

Mainsails include:

• Snipe insignia
• Sail numbers with country code
• Custom tapered battens
• Shelf foot
• Jib leech sighting window
• Roll bag

Download the North AP5+ Quick Tuning Guide

R2-LM Jib

2010 South American Champion

Designed by the Olympic Gold Medal winning designers at North Sails Japan, this jib is the perfect fit for any sail inventory. This sail finished 2nd and 4th at the 2010 Snipe World Championship. It is constructed with radial panels in the head and foot with three cross-cut panels in the middle. Based on computer modulated load paths in the sail, the decision was made to use two different types of sail cloth to make the highest performance and longest lasting jib on the water. Whereas the BR1D jib is great in flat water, the R2-LM really excels in the chop and breeze. The R2-LM gives the Snipe a wide groove that makes the boat really easy to steer and helps keep the boat going at full speed longer.

Jibs include:

• Fixed or adjustable luff wire
• Monofilm vision window
• Leech trimming telltale
• Luff telltales
• Roll bag

BR-1D Dacron Jib

The BR-1D Dacron jib is our All-Purpose jib that will deliver pure speed in all wind and water conditions. The BR-1D Jib features the new redesigned leech that maximizes sail area.

Jibs include:

• Fixed or adjustable luff wire
• Monofilm vision window
• Leech trimming telltale
• Luff telltales
• Roll bag

>> Contact the Snipe Experts for additional information and questions about our products.

Tuning your Snipe for Speed

>> Download the North Snipe Tuning Guide

>> AP-4 Mainsail Quick Tuning Guide

>>AP-5+ Mainsail Quick Tuning Guide

Read also: Notes taken at a Snipe coaching session

Have a Question? Ask the North Snipe experts.


Snipe FAQs:

Could you tell me a bit about how you trim the jib through the wind range?

I have found the jib trim to be very important in the snipe.  Pablo and I talk a lot about how best to trim the North jibs so we both have very similar technique.  In light air, our lead-to-lead measurement is around 68cm.  In heavy air we go outboard about 6cm.  We ease the jib simultaneously with any mainsheet ease to keep the slot open.  In heavy air, I have found it best to be in a more bow down mode with both tell tails streaming straight back.  In light air, I keep an eye on the upper leach tell-tail to make sure it is flying 100% of the time, but on the verge of stalling.

Going over the mast tuning guide things have changed and here is what I see.

My Old Tune
Spreader Length 16.5", Tip to Tip 29.5"

Old Tuning Guide
Spreader Length "The range adjustment for this setting is 15 1/2" to 16 5/8"
Tip to Tip "Range of adjustment on this setting is 27.5" to 30.5"

New Tuning Guide
Spreader Length - "For Most Boats this length is 16 3/4"
Tip to Tip- Starting point 30 11/16" (Between 29 15/16 to 31 1/2" depending on wind)
Then they go through a chart which leaves a lot of questions and is a bit difficult to understand.

Reading the new guide I moved my spreader length out 1/4" and spread my tip to tip out 1 3/16"
Am I making a big mistake?

I do think that lengthening your spreaders and spreading them is a good idea to try. At 325 you could use the power. I would check that the mast is straight laterally in the boat when sailing up wind...sight up the back. This would set the spreader length. Bowing to windward too short..sagging to leeward too long.

As far as the sweep look for inversion wrinkles in the main only below the spreaders...I wonder with them being swept a little farther aft that you haven't been able to vang sheet as well in a breeze and the boat is harder to hold down as a result. If the mast is over bending you can't sheet as hard or vang as hard and the upper leech may be too " firm"...maybe a stiffer mast will allow you to vang against it a bit more and then allow you sail with a little more twist and a forgiving groove... I'd give it a shot. The little extra sweep won't stiffen the mast much at all in the lighter stuff so you'll be fine there still. I'd just check the lateral mast straightness and go from them. Let me know how it works!

I have bought recently a set of Snipe sails 2 x BR-1 jibs and 1 AP-3 . I am one of the few guys still using skipper boat and I want to know your opinion if it need any changes in the boat tunning using as reference the North tunning guide updated by Paradeda.

I use Sidewinder and our crew weight is 150 Kg. We do well in heavy wind, but have problems using this main in very light wind . We are not very worry with our weight because when we use a very straight old main the boat goes well, but we prefer to have only an all round main. I was wondering if the fact that the Skipper has the mast butt higher than the other boats makes it more difficult to achieve ( without much tension) the prebend this main needs with lighter winds. Anyway all suggestions will be very well received.

Our tuning for light in cm. is : Shrouds 6.55 / Rake 6,61 / Spreaders 42,5 / S. Angle 76 / Shroud location 179. With heavy we change the shrouds to 6,38 and the jib lead 5 cm forward and we go really fast upwind.

It sounds to me like the mainsail is setting up too full fro light air. The problem is most likely that the mast does
have enough pre-bend in it for the light winds. You need to have about 2.5 to 3 cms of prebend with the boat on the trailer for the light wind setting. Here are some ideas to try. I would try one at a time and see how it goes. Keep careful notes of your progress:

1) File down the front of the mast butt casting. This will help the mast bend more easily and with the higher floor Skipper this is important. File it down enough so that one the bakc of the mast butt sits on the mast step.
This allows the mast to rock forward and "prebend" in lighter winds.

2) Sail with the outhaul pretty tight in all conditions, even light air. The AP-3 is pretty full in the bottom and easing the outhaul upwind never seems to help.

3) If you can move the shrouds forward on the sides of the boat. This will move the spreaders forward and halp to induce more pre-bend.

4) Get adjustable spreaders and sail with more sweep in lighter winds. Moving the spreaders forward in the breeze will help to stiffen the mast but when the winds drops you need to sweep the spreaders back to "soften the mast". Check the tuning guide for the range of adjustment here.

5) When the wind is light enough that your crew is inside the boat, make sure you move the mast forward .5 cm. This will put more bend in the mast too obviously and help to open the leech of the mainsail which is what is really slowing you down.

Hope these ideas help. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.

Should the mast pusher/puller be off when sailing in medium wind conditions, or do you "lock" the mast at the neutral position with tightening both fore and aft pusher/puller ?

We "lock" the mast so that when we trim the mainsheet the mast stays put and does not bend too much.

I sail my Snipe on the light side…what can I do to hang on in big breeze?

The first thing you need to remember is that the Snipe, like almost every boat has to be sailed flat to go fast. To be able to keep the boat flat as a lighter crew you will need to depower a bit more than the other guys. Tighten your shrouds a ½ hole or two and keep the mast rake the same to tighten the headstay which will depower the jib. Also be sure to drop the traveler so you can keep both parts of the bridle tight when trimming the main most of the time, this will help keep the headstay tight.. Keep your eyes forward and play the main sheet in anticipation of the puffs so the boat does not heel and go sideways in the puffs. Allow the mast to move forward of the neutral mark as much as needed to depower the main and keep the boat flat.

For tuning help contact the North Snipe experts.

North Sails is proud to present our full line of Star boat covers, all handmade to the highest quality standards. Constructed using rugged premium 12 oz polyester 900D fabric, North One Design boat covers will give you piece of mind when storing your Star or taking it on the road.

Available for the Snipes:

Snipe Hull Cover

• Heavy 900D fabric is reinforced at wear spots like the chainplates and rudder gudgeons.
• Mesh in bottom near automatic bailer allows water to drain out.
• Shockc ord around top makes for tight fit.
• Webbing with buckles go across to make closing quick and easy.
• Reflective material on transom makes your boat more visible to other vehicles.

Snipe Deck Cover

• Designed for use with mast up or down.
• Heavy duty zipper opening to install around mast has fabric flap to protect from UV exposure.
• Shockcord around bottom makes for tight fit.
• Webbing straps with adjustable buckles go under hull to tie down securely.
• Webbing loops along top allow halyard to be attached to keep cover up and water from pooling.

Snipe Daggerboard Cover

• Snipe daggerboards are heavy and have sharp edges.
• This cover is meant to protect these foils.Heavy 12 oz. 900D fabric over closed cell foam means that you canaccidentally drop your board with no damage.
• Closes at top with wide Velcro. Heavy webbing around edges makes it even more durable.

Snipe Rudder Cover

• Fully padded this cover will keep dings and scrapes off your valuable rudder.
• The cover fully encloses the rudder and is closes with buckles and webbing at top.
• Easy to use. Carrying handle for convenience.

Snipe Mast Cover

• Made from heavy 900D fabric.
• Extra layers of re inforcement are placed at wear spots of the spreader brackets and gooseneck.
• Closes at end with drawstring. Velcro/webbing closures along length keep material tight at high speeds.
• A red flag is sewn in the top end for safety.

Contact the Snipe experts:

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