Touring the world's best sail loft

I was lucky enough to get a full tour of North Sails in Minden, Nevada! Check out how they turn raw fiber into perfectly 3-dimensional sails that power everything from America's Cup foiling monohulls to every kind of cruising boat out there.

[@johnborton4522]

So cool that they gave you that tour.
Almost 40 years ago, I used to work for a hang gliding manufacturer (Pacific Airwave/Windcraft) and our own sail loft developed and made those pretty traditional hang gliding harnesses that the guys using to move around over the sails.

[@TruceBags]

Whoa that's awesome! I hadn't thought about it but yeah they totally do like like hang gliding harnesses!

[@cheyenneroll]

Amazing process, nice to have a viewing!

[@NigelTufnel612]

Nice tour; Lowell North would be proud. The evolution of fabric, yarn and shape is astonishing; I am old enough to remember sailing with canvas genoas, then dacron, to spectra, to kevlar, to cuben fiber right out of America 3, then carbon strands, but the game changer was North's 3Di technology, which we just saw here. Prior, sails were laid out and cut on flat loft floor vs a perfectly shaped mold.

[@TruceBags]

Thank you!! Totally agree, the 3Di is crazy cool!

[@sbrunner69]

3DL was the original molded concept. 3Di came much later.

[@NigelTufnel612]

@@sbrunner69 Yes, I meant 3DL, sailed many miles with first gen 3DLs and they were a quantum leap forward IMO.

[@hamishurquhart5577]

Amazing and not a palm and needle in sight.

[@mosca3289]

Looks exceedingly expensive.

[@johnnymossville]

Pretty impressive to put it mildly. That is incredible. Great video. Thanks for taking us along! Did you snag any remnants while there? ;-p

[@TruceBags]

You bet I did! Grabbed some scrap out of the bins and made some stuff (pictured on the Instagram account) but I'm working on getting more!

[@alunjones2550]

The irony of being based in the driest state in America.......☺

[@jpkatz1435]

Love the content,DISLIKE the "music".