Cruising Cloth - Bruce Finlay Sails

Bainbridge International's Bermuda range of fabrics are the choice of sailmakers world-wide who wish to offer customers economically priced sails built from quality cloth.

Make no mistake; Bermuda is not the cheapest sailcloth available to your Sailmaker. It is a premium cruising sailcloth designed for the sailor who knows that a small increase in price is a worthwhile investment. All Bermuda styles have been optimised for value by careful attention to yarn selection, construction and finishing, not by cost cutting. They feature an ultra tight weave and durable finish compared to some cheaper cloth where a more open weave is stabilised by an increased impregnation. These products will give similar initial performance, but as the finish breaks down will quickly loose their shape and will age quickly compared to your Bermuda sail.

Bermuda fabrics are ideal for applications from quality OEM production sails, to offshore cruising inventories and will provide many seasons of reliable performance.

Most woven cruising sailcloth ranges are manufactured using similar constructions in different cloth weights. The Bainbridge range employs different constructions at each level designed to offer maximum performance in the intended application.

Lighter 5.0 and 6.0 oz styles, feature balanced constructions where warp and fill strength are similar. These products are ideal for cruising yachts from 20ft to 35ft (6 to 1Om), where low aspect sail plans put less emphasis on threadline strength and where shape retention is more dependant on all round stability. These weights are suitable for both crosscut and radial panel designs.

Heavier 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0 oz styles feature unbalanced high aspect constructions. These are suitable for high load cross-cut applications on yachts of 35ft to 50ft (10 to 15m) where threadline stress has a far higher impact on retaining sail shape. These styles all feature large denier fill yarns, locked in place by more closely spaced warp ends. This allows the fill yarn to remain straight thereby reducing stretch.

Bermuda fabric is finished with a Melamine impregnation to stabilise the weave. Bainbridge developed this finish and has consistently improved it over the years to deliver sails that retain their design shape over many seasons use.

Bermuda is produced in 5.0, 6.0, 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0 oz styles. A lightweight 3.9 oz style is available in a variety of colours for use in dinghy sails. 9.0 oz is available in bright orange for stormsails.