If you wreck your sail, take it to the sailmaker. Sounds logical, makes sense - as long as there is no wind forecast for the next few days. Because if you go to the sailmaker on a windy weekend on Lake Garda or a pronounced phase of low pressure in northern Germany and would like to get back on the water "tomorrow", you will usually only receive a tired smile and a discreet reference to the pile of work on the sewing table. If a sheet is completely torn and the sail is hanging in tatters, there is unfortunately no alternative, but if you have a few tools in your luggage, you can often save the trip and even patch up large holes so that you can still have a few good sessions with it. And you can always have windsurfing sails repaired afterwards if you value a nice look and are prepared to invest a few euros.
Most people are probably familiar with the good old basic trick of using stickers or duct tape, but as soon as a tear reaches the seams or Dacron strips, this is no longer an option. So alternatives are needed.
Hole in the windsurfing sail: repair or continue surfing?
You can continue surfing, for example, if there are dents in the monofilm: once the monofilm has deformed, it remains as it is. It doesn't look nice, but is actually harmless and remains stable! Even small holes in the X-Ply do not necessarily mean the end of the session:
X-Ply consists of two thin layers of monofilm with polyester or aramid threads glued between them. This prevents tearing and the session can continue for the time being. To be on the safe side, however, you should patch up the hole with stickers or duct tape after surfing. This also applies to large, whitish discoloured creases in the monofilm; these are predetermined breaking points where the windsurf sail will tear sooner or later
You should always repair holes in the monofilm: after damage, monofilm continues to tear under load until the next seam. A small hole can quickly turn into a total loss. Even if the hole ends directly at a seam, a repair is necessary. We show you how to do this in the picture gallery above!
Materials for repairing windsurfing sails
As described above, a sticker or duct tape is often sufficient for an initial quick repair of minor damage - which no surf bag should be without anyway. For a permanent repair, the aforementioned Dacron tape is available in many variants, colours and dimensions, for example from Amazon . Specials Monofilm tape for windsurfing sails is also available relatively cheaply, so that the sail window, for example, remains transparent and free from visual obstructions. The tape can also be used to reinforce creases or dents to prevent them from tearing.
