What kind of sail is this?

[overland]

I've been looking for a small sail for a SOF skiff I have, mainly for downwind sailing. Here's one that appeared on Marketplace--it's for a small pram. What kind of sail is it? Would it work? The luff is about 100", the foot is 76" and along the mast is 72". I don't know the length of the fourth side.
I'll be grateful for any thoughts.

[Peerie Maa]

If that is a big cringle at the peak, it will be a spritsail.
By the way, the lacing is better going back and forth rather than spiraling round and round.

[Thad]

Looks like a spritsail, cleat for snotter well up the mast.

[overland]

What would you estimate is the square footage? Would it work for my application?

[Woxbox]

Spritsail yes, but odd in that it has a conventional boom. But it probably came off a small pram or dinghy. Do you have a photo of the pram? Does it already have a rudder, daggerboard, mast partner, etc.?

Details aside, it should work well enough, maybe quite well.

[ahp]

I had a Water Bug (Herman Boats) sailng pram many years ago, rigged with a spitsail, and a boom. It sailed quit well, but not as fast as a Dyer Dink or Dow.

[Rich Jones]

Spritsail yes, but do you have the sprit?

[pvg]

If I'm not mistaken, the luff is the edge along the mast, the longest edge is the leech...

[Canoeyawl]

I'll guess...
about 38 sq. ft.

[WI-Tom]

Spritsail yes, but odd in that it has a conventional boom.

That's not odd--I've often seen spritsails with conventional booms.

Tom

[Spot]

When presented with a 4-cornered sail like this, how does one know whether it needs a yard or sprit? Asking for a friend that giggles at the word 'snotter'...

PS I get 31.5 SQFT assuming head is 36".
sail1.png

[WI-Tom]

When presented with a 4-cornered sail like this, how does one know whether it needs a yard or sprit? Asking for a friend that giggles at the word 'snotter'...

A spritsail typically has a big(ish) grommet or loop of line at the peak of the sail--that's for the tip of the sprit to fit in. A lugsail will have a grommet at the peak for the outhaul/sail tie (so probably a smaller grommet?), and needs to be laced/tied to a yard, not to a sprit.

I agree with an earlier poster who noted that the cleat higher up the mast is probably for a snotter, meaning the sail pictured in post #1 is probably a spritsail, not a lugsail.

Tom

[P.I. Stazzer-Newt]

That's not odd--I've often seen spritsails with conventional booms.

Tom

You don't suffer from an excess of optimism

[Zane Lewis]

Every Optimist sail training dinghy has a sprit rig with a boom.
Z