WRONG!!!! When the sail was cut it was done indoors with no wind! If you watch the video they show a clip from a movie where it is done the sail is clearly full of wind and bowed out in a letter D pattern. The problem is this... If the sail is full of wind several things change... The canvas is much tighter, the angle of the sail is NOT at 90% from the ground, the sail would actually be blown against the person making a lot of friction against that person as they slid down the sail.
I would suggest that this myth be revisited outside with the sail full of wind as it would be at sea. This would give them a much more realistic idea of how a real sail would behave if a person cut it!!

I agree, with wind in the sails it would give a different result. Thanks for posting this.

we agree too. where was the wind?!

I have to agree completely
but i would like to add that the tension in the sail would also help cut through the seems in the sail that the knife kept snagging on
that and the sail being used in the experiment went all the way to the ground the knife even being used by buster never got the chance to get to the bottom of the sail where the seem would be strongest

Logged on to post this idea as well, but it seems someone beat me to it.

With the wind blowing the sail, the "pirate" could ride down the sail, causing friction in turn slowing the "pirate." Also since the blade was getting caught on the seems, the knife should be made sharp enough to cut through, as there will now be more friction and a lower fall speed for the "pirate."

It would have to be enough wind to push the person firmly against the sail though. Otherwise the person might not be able to hold the knife on the curved canvass.

Even if there was enough wind .... I still think they'd have trouble holding the knife onto the sail's shape.


Something that might be a factor is the canvass's age..? The more worn out the easier it might be to get through that seam. Maybe pirates practiced sail surfing? :-o Who knows... I don't really want to see it redone though. I'd expect the same negative results. Things look easier to do when you're watching it on tv.

Darn you guys are quick!
I was not thinking necessarily of the wind, but of a sail that is "full" as a result of the wind. It would be "puffed out" in a somewhat curved formation as apposed to lying limp from the ceiling. As well, on older ships as well as new sailing ships.....the bottom of the sail would be supported by a spar and each end of the spar (cross member) would be tied off to hold the best angle to the direction of the wind. And one final observation. I just do not buy the fact that pirates (or any other sailing ship for that matter) used the modern canvas I saw displayed on the show. The materials that they would have had available would have been much more primitive. I believe I even heard of the sails being made from some sort of linen. Then made waterproof.

I definately know that this myth needs to be revisted and don't forget to make the knife sharp! What pirate would be caught with a dull knife? Perhaps the knife could be twisted slighlty to control the speed of the drop?

I'd imagine a sail being bowed out would make this action much more difficult if not impossible.

...But a fabric difference maybe have different results......either in age or makeup.


EDIT::::::

Oops......I was thinking opposite when I said it'd make it impossible. (Was thinking he'd be riding the concave side :-| )

I agree you need wind. I also think the sail needs to be mounted at the bottom as well as the top so the sail will be more taut. Also find someone with stronger wrist Pirates were much stronger than Tory. (I would think)

Ha ha ha ha ha.... Are telling us that Tory is "limp wristed"???

It's good to know that I'm not the only one thinking about this angle of the myth. I would definately add wind to it. Almost all of the old movies (including the clip that was shown) had wind to change the angle the pirate was knifing his/her way down.

Not only would the angle be changed, but the pirate would be knifing a lot slower. Knowing this, the knife would be sharper so go through the layers and be readily available to cut up a scurvy land-lubber.

This myth definately needs to be revisited.

First this was NOT a myth, just a movie stunt. THe stunt was done on a "sound" stage not out doors. Futher, One TINY detail that was left out on the knife in sail Fairbanks Sr. movie stunt. When the stunt was set up, the sail stage was not vertical, but set at an angle of I believe 15 degrees or so. So Fairbanks was laying on the top of the sail and sliding down it. Also the canvas was precut. The camera filming from the side was also angled back to give the illusion of a vertical sail. An old TV show made a few years ago called Movie Magic, a show on movie stunts had the background on this stunt was made.

Wrong wrong wrongity wrong on the windy idea.
If the wind blew the sail out at a "D" then at the halfway point you will fall out, due to the fact that you will not follow to UNDER the fall angle. Physics.
The wind being there, does not change the cutting ability of the knife nor the cuttability of the sailcloth.
Period sails WERE canvas. Sailcloth is tradionally been canvas for many many years. Linen was only in places like egypt, and it was only on certain high functunaries formal boats. Linen was very high priced.
The myth was a movie stunt. MYTH BUSTED>
Wolfy

i agree with the first poster, as far as i know sails are usually not straight up and down, but are blown by wind into a "D" or bowed shape, so therefore you would be able to slide down with the knife in the sail, because you wouldnt be falling just on the edge of the knife, you would be falling on the sail, like a playground slide if you will

[quote]you would be falling on the sail, like a playground slide if you will[/quote]

For the first part of you fall. Now imagine if your playground slide got steeper and steeper, then curved back under itself. You'd just fall off.

I do agree with you that physics Would make you fall out at the half way point and that it was simply a movie stunt. My main point was that when they showed the movie clip of what they where trying to bust the sail was full of wind and not limp as a curtain like the one they cut. Also showing it this way and having the Buster fall out at the halfway point would have helped further bust this myth. It also would have looked a lot cooler:-)

i totally agree! i logged on during the show but couldn't figure out how to post the damn thing so someone beat me to it as well! any way the sail needs to be full and also where are you going to get a clean unused sail back in pirate days? the canvas needs to be conditioned in the sea salt air, which'll make the canvas more brittle, easy for cutting.

[quote]If you watch the video they show a clip from a movie where it is done the sail is clearly full of wind and bowed out in a letter D pattern.[/quote]

If you watch the video, you'll see the creative jump cut just as the "sailor" reaches the middle of the bulge - the point at which he would find his feet, and them himself, dangling over empty space with nothing to hold on to. Just before this point, the scene cuts away to his miraculous landing, in both cases.

In other words, it can't be done, and is pure movie hogwash. At least in the Mythbuster's segment, the leaper had some vague chance of actually surviving. In the movie, there was precisely none if we're to assume it actually happened as depicted.

Myth totally busted.

I have to disagree completely. People do not fall in the shape of a letter D. They weren't testing the myth that a blown out sail would safely slow you down, they were testing the myth that a knife in the sail would slow you. If you notice the pirate movie clip, the sail was attached at the bottom as well as the top. Because if you watched them try the myth, when Tory hit the seem, the bottom flung out and, I think, made somewhat of a shockwave and aided in the knife coming out. From there they should have pulled it down, not completely tight, but how a sail should be. Then I think they would have had better results.

Ever stuck a knife in something that has been pulled or stretched tight? It pops apart. If the sail were full of air and pulled tight under pressure it would most likely just pop apart as soon as the knife were stuck into it, at least to the point of the next seam.