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In order to minimise drag on a race boat the need for the hull and foils to be ‘fair’ is most important. Fair in this case means that the hull/foil is smooth and water can move across/around it with the minimum of changing of direction. Obviously a hull has shaping so the water can’t travel in a straight line, which is its preference. What we are looking to achieve is the water not having to make unnecessary changes in direction.
To do that we are looking smooth out unnecessary bumps, dips and scratches etc, while retaining the intended hull/foil shape. Studies have suggested that boats can reduce their hull drag by around 14% by fairing the hull and foils. This is a benefit you get for every second you are sailing and doesn’t require training to get. While is not a trivial task it is a gift that keeps on giving.
Hulls are relatively easy to do this for, they have large surface areas and usually reasonably thick outer coatings. High performance foils are a trickier they are smaller, tend to have compound curves and the training edge in particular is fragile and easy to wreck.
To that end we give our foils to our composites and boat building expert Nick Harvey. He has the experience and skills to fix and fair the foils with a cracking finish. Super smooth and fair.
The before and after gallery
Before
After
The quality of the work is excellent, with the leading and trailing edges absolutely straight and faired. The surfaces are faired painted and polished.