Alot of F16 parts are commonly available from 3rd parties. Basically all the blocks, sails, lines and general fittings like bolts etc. F16's are not a One-Design class where everything MUST be bought from the builder itself. The builders do indeed sell all these things, but if you got a good local chandlery about then there is no reason to not go there.

I think that that is one cause to the result the F16 builders and class don't spend much effort on price-listings and replacement part listings. But it also just grew that way. The F16 class at this time seems to be a group that often communicates directly with other people and parties in the class and that works out fine.

Best advice is what other gave givin, just contact the builder and ask. With the current US$ exchange rate swinging all about any price quote that isn't given out very recently is undependable anyway.




2- I am 140 lbs , my crew is 120 lbs. Is it enough to safely sail a F16 in all conditions ? and what max wind would be recommended for such light weight team ?


260 lbs combined = 117.78 kg

I partly agree with the others here. Indeed is dependent on the regular conditions you will be sailing in. However at 260 lbs you'll be at the light end of the scales. Typical competitive (racing) weight range is 125 kg - 155 kg = 275 - 435 lbs with crews between 135-140 kg (295-310 lbs) being regarded as pretty content. However the F16's are regarded by many to have a very flat dependency on crew weight. There is alot to do on the boat (spinnaker etc) and trim is extremely important. This pulls the focus away from being at the correct weight and puts it back on developping your sailing skills and honing your manouvres till you can execute them perfectly.

Afterall we are finding that doublehanded F16's and singlehanded F16's can race first across the line very well despite the obvious large gap in crew weights. Removal of the jib for the singlehanders does indeed help alot in this case but still ...

I personally think that crews above 110 kg should be able to sail the F16 well. But I also believe these crews really should have the rig adjusted to their weight by a respected sailmaker. At those crew weights you'll want flatter sails. The F16 class rules allow that of course and you should make use of that. When sailing with these sails that are optimized for you I think you be pretty happy with how the boat sails (performance) and behaves.

I don't think there is a max windspeed that is different for you at 260 lbs then most other crews. You just need to learn how to depower the rig properly. We singlehanders have gone out in 25 knots of wind and race (for example last year F16 global challenge). I'm not even near to 117 kg myself. I put 90 kg on the scales but that is still lacking 27 kg relative to you guys. I'm not using a specially optimized singlehander sail, I just use my 2-up mainsail that is cut for 150 kg crew weights. Okay, I very much would like to have a special 1-up mainsail like the current F16 world champ or Mark Pressdee recent purchase but I can manage with my old mainsail just fine. Especially when I'm sailing recreationally.



3- Given our weight, is it possible/recommended to use smaller sails, for 1 up and 2 up ? again I can't find any part list on the web for sails.


Yes, as long as you don't cross any of the max. limits set out in the class rules you can do whatever you want. Personally I wouldn't go for smaller sails, but just flatter sails. Like the others write. Make a report on all factors like your crew make-up and sailin conditions and discuss with a respected sailmaker what type of cut you suit of sails will have. Keep the normal size of the sails and just have the sailmaker adjust the cut of the sails. This seems to work really well for specialized 2-up and 1-up sails and should for the same reasons work just as well for yout 260 lbs sails.




Contact Joanna Lienti or Lynn Olsen, I think there are sailing (and winning many races) at 275 lbs.

You can e-mail them at : jdlquilts(AT)hotmail.com

Wouter