Hall Spars and Rigging

The new J/111 from J/Boats launched in early August with a full set of Hall Seamless spars. "It's really fun to drive," says Ben Hall following the initial stepping and sail trials. "The helm is beautifully balanced. The sailplan has a very high aspect ratio, and the a-sail is really big," he adds. "Combined with the lightweight hull, the overall speed is impressive." The new J/111 mast features Hall's single-piece Seamless construction combined with carbon nanotube technology. Zyvex Corporation's Arovex is a new line of carbon nanotube pre-pregs made to our specifications just for the J/111 project. To create Arovex, carbon nanotubes are mixed into resin. The resin/nanotube mixture is then combined with carbon fibers to create a pre-preg. During our autoclave-curing process, the nano-infused resin is heated until it becomes liquid, at which point it completely surrounds the carbon fibers. When the resin sets, the nanotubes add strength to the resin, improving the overall strength of the finished product without adding the weight of additional fibers or the expense of a higher modulus of carbon. The tall, powerful sailplan of the exiting new J/111 is the perfect platform for this technology. We're looking forward to the launch of Hull No. 2 shortly, and many more to follow.