nylet

THE sailmakers ~ 78 years. Britains longest established professional model sailmakers ~ fine quality model yacht sails, perfect cut and finish. Comprehensive sailmaking service world-wide.

A yacht's sails are its only 'engine' - so fit the best, don't settle for less.
1932 - Commencement of full size sailmaking
1945 - Model sails in Egyptian cotton
1950 - Varnished Terylene sails
1966 - Coloured Terylene sails
and today - Nylet racing sails in scrim, Dacron, and film; vintage sails & pond yacht sails in natural or dyed cotton, also varnished Terylene, classic 1960's style sails in Dacron. Any size sails, of any type, made to your drawings or templates.

See this page for racing model yacht sails, replacement kit sails, also Classic cut Dacron sails, Varnished Terylene sails, and sailcloth. Synthetic sails priced from 30 pounds. Sails see sections 4 & 5 of our product & price list. Sail rigs, see section 7. Sailmaking materials & racing numbers see section 5, all sailcloths sold by the metre, see section 6 (and text below). We also manufacture cotton sails & vintage sails

A customer comment - Got the sails this morning. Brilliant. Thanks very much for a great personal service. I will be recommending you to others. Yorkshire

Vic Smeeds "STAR BABY" . . . in white Dacron. Sails also available in racing scrim material. For suitable rig bags click here, & see the price list
Customer comment - The sails for Star Baby arrived a week ago - they look excellent. Thanks so much for the prompt and friendly service.New Zealand

Finely made up to the minute racing yacht sails in Dacron, scrim & film - expertly cut and finished for the ultimate 'wind catching' shape. For the 1950’s yachts we manufacture sails in varnished Terylene. Classic cut Dacron sails are manufactured exclusively by us. Vintage style model sails also made in fine cotton, for class and pond yachts, barges, yawls, pilot cutters, schooners, etc. See link above to cotton sails page.

A note about sizes of sails in our price list, often these are described as, for instance - Marblehead no.1 suit sails (1900mm) in panelled scrim. Where there are a multiplicity of different suits we pin down the size by the dimension of the mainsail luff (leading edge). Where there are fixed 'standard' sizes, such as the IOM class (International One Metre), suits are simply described as either number 1, 2 or 3 (only 3 suits are allowed under that particular rule).

Sail rig kits for the One Metre (IOM) consist of a suit of racing sails, alloy mast & booms plus fittings pack, with assembly drawings booklet.
Rig kits for Marblehead, Ten Rater and A-class are all available to order. One off "custom" rigs also made to order. Upon receipt of your instructions we shall be most pleased to quote for your requirements.

Any questions, or simply want advice, then email us clicking on the contact details below.

Making your own sails? See our sailmaking 'how to' handbook (B20), section 1 in the price list, or click books

Some customer comments -
. . . to let you know that the (IOM) sails you provided me with a few years ago proved to be so good that I have had to make virtually no adjustments since, regardless of wind strength or direction. Taunton.
The sails have arrived, beautiful as always, and very pleased with the white 'squared' Dacron. Chorley, Lancs.
Thank you Frank, all your items have been excellent and I shall be ordering a storm rig later this month, many thanks again for being a great retailer. Blyth, Northumberland.
(Picture left) Just a quick note to say that the (IOM) sails are fantastic and getting used every day after work. Valencia, Spain.

Racing sails, a summary.
Our sailmaking techniques incorporate the latest thinking, and racing sails are cut for maximum drive and smooth air flow. Lightweight luff tapes are used on all but storm suits and sails reflect the need for efficient air flow, also the need for minimum all up weight. Scrim cloth is a stable material and is used extensively for racing sails, and when making sails we automatically select the correct weight (we stock several weights of scrim cloth). The picture at the top of this page is the heaviest weight and is of an A-class Highlander suit, and below is a IOM jib in scrim, numbered "20". Dacron is available for those who prefer a traditional sail for perhaps the older racing yacht or for fun sailing, and is suitable for most yachts of any size.

Sails are made using either white or coloured corner patches and are complete with battens, eyelets etc. If you require a certain colour scheme (corners/luffs) then please state exactly what you require when ordering. Corner patches can be made in either red, flo orange, orange, flo yellow, white, blue, grey, green or black – please state which. There is no extra charge for coloured corners unless you select fine finger patches. For sails larger than Ten Rater size we make corners as per the photo of the Highlander suit (see top photo). Lightweight scrim and film suits are edged with leach film tape to maintain stability. Click here to find out more about Nylet sails and to see pictures.

We manufacture model yacht sails for small and large racing yachts - for A-Class, Six Metre, Marblehead, Ten Rater, One Metre and Thirty-six inch racing yachts. We also make sails for most model yachts and in a variety of different materials and we welcome special orders. My late fathers hand-written sail cutting book includes designs from the 1940’s and very early 50’s so we have access to many of the older sail plans such as March Hare, Genie, China Boy, Trapper, Cracker, Highlander, Pacemaker, Mosquito, Starlet, Mad Hatter, etc. We also produce sails for the following, to give you an idea:- Billings Caroline, Colin Archer, Comtesse, Dolphin, Gosling, Micro Magic, Star Baby and many, many more (see sail list for more information).
Replacement kit sails made for - Victoria, Fairwind, Northwind, Seawind, Yamaya, etc. Don't see your yacht listed here, then just ask us!

Customer comments - Just to let you know that I am very pleased with my Victoria sails (in scrim) and fitted them straight away. The yacht performs much better and is far more responsive to controls, she's almost as fast as a Marblehead now. Members of our club were very impressed also. I am happy to recommend your company to anyone interested. Alan (Worcestershire).
Frank. I think the sails are beautiful. I can readily understand now why you were so pleased with them yourself. They will act as a spur to get on with the rest of the boat. Somerset.

Upon receipt of your instructions (sizes or templates etc) we shall be most pleased to quote for your specific sail requirements - don't forget, we make any size sail to your drawing, sizes or templates.

Sailcloth by the metre, or piece, see section 6 of our Product & Price List.
Dacron sailcloth is sold in white 2.99oz weight. Coloured Dacron cloth is no longer available. Scrim material is widely used for racing sails of any size, it starts at 1.5oz weight, is extremely stable and is available up to 2.4oz. Note that 2.4oz scrim (see top picture) is actually 'tougher' than 4oz Dacron! Cotton is sold by the metre run, or over a metre length we can cut by the half metre, as required. For more information on sailcloths see news.

Sailmaking materials & numerals, see section 5 of our Product & Price List. This includes various sail 'extras', also numerals (black 105mm) & sail insignias, double sided self-adhesive tape, adhesive backed luff tape and sewing threads. The Polyester patching (for decking and patches, sail corner patches, etc) is sold in standard size rolls, in various colours.

Nylet model sails made using varnished Terylene cloth. And including Classic Dacron sails in 60's style, fully sewn.

Information on “Classic” Nylet Dacron sails (also varnished Terylene classic sails). Classic sails are made exclusively by Nylet.
M-class Genie with classic Nylet sails

Our Classic sails are generally suited to yachts built before the early 1970's (as an arbitrary point). Sails thus manufactured in synthetic Dacron sailcloth are made with sewn luff tablings (tapes) and with sewn corner patches, sewn battens (where necessary) and corner eyelets with mains'l luff as specified by the customer. In the case of larger “class” yacht sails (A-class etc) an aluminium headboard is usually fitted to the mainsail head. Our classic sails are fully sewn thus replicating how Nylet sails were made in my father’s time 45 years ago. Classic cut sails can be made in one piece, that is to say, not panelled. Sails were generally made in this manner out of a single piece of material. Only towards the late 60’s, as Terylene became more widely used, did the advantages of panelling become recognised. Naturally, all “shape” for air flow is worked into the luff of the sail so that you will enjoy the advantages of classic style and have sails that “fill” correctly and perform nicely. Having said that however, if you wish, we will make the sails with panels to give them that extra 'shape'. Classic sails are not priced in our price list as they are made individually to your order and therefore are very much "one offs". Pictured to the right is a Genie M-class yacht built by a customer in Belgium and rigged with classic Nylet Dacron sails (2010).
Varnished Terylene classic sails are made in authentic Terylene cloth and in the style of Nylet sails in the 1950's (in my father's time) when we were using that material. Varnished Terylene is becoming increasingly "rare" as it has to be loomed in several thousand metre batches and is only made now to special order. We are lucky enough to secure stock as it comes available but the day may soon dawn when production will cease. At the moment however it is available, subject to our stocks. Pictured left is Munin 784 with Nylet varnished Terylene classic sails, and seen here racing in the A-class Nationals in 2006.

A customer comment - Sails received with thanks. You are a true craftsman. Glasgow

Standard and custom sails, making up time. On standard suits generally between 2 and 4 weeks but times may be extended in the high season (April to August). On special suits made to order to your sizes please allow 5-8 weeks, possibly longer in the high season.

If you wish to make an order, or simply look through our extensive range of products available we suggest you download and print off the price list and also the postage rates & terms page; both are pdf files.

Click here to open a printable page of a bermudan suit that you can fill in with the dimensions you require your sails making to. You can also use it if you only require a price. You can if you wish scan your completed 'form' and email it to us instead of using the post. If you have a cutter or barge with several sails including gaff mains'l then please click here

J.Parsons & Son ~ F.Parsons ~ Nylet. 1842-2010 ~ 5 generations ~ 168 years of manufacturing.
Learn more about our family business and history.

Nylet
PO Box 5416
Bournemouth
Dorset
BH6 5XT
UK
tel: 01202 420370 - International +44 1202 420370