Roller Furling

[tvanbeck]

Hello all,

I purchased my 99 26X about 6 years ago. When I purchased it came with roller furling that the previous owner had removed. Through the years I've just been using the hank on jib. My reason for not putting it back on was because I didn't want to complicate the setup time. My thoughts on why: I currently don't use the the mast lifting system. I dead-lift the mast up and my wife will hook the head stay. My concern is the roller furling will add lots weight to the mast when lifting. Does it flop around when trying to move the mast forward or back and when moving the base to the bracket? Not to mention how it sticks out past the bow when on the trailer.
Are these concerns out weighed by the performance and ease of having a fuller while sailing?

Any thoughts appreciated.

[Azzarac]

It seems people either love them or hate them, but I'd give it a try to find out which camp you belong to. I find the ease of furling the head sail far outweighs all your concerns. I don't think you will find setup to involve any additional time with the furler. You may even find it takes less since you do not have to hank on a sail. While I usually use the MSR I can dead lift the mast with furler attached and I don't consider myself unusually strong for a middle aged guy. It does tend to flop around a bit if left loose while raising the mast, but this can be controlled using various methods addressed in other threads here. It does stick out past the mast when in the trailerable position but supports can be made cheaply with PVC pipe. http://svchameleon.weebly.com/pvc-furler-support.html They work well and are easy to handle. Give it a shot. You may find you regret not doing it 6 years ago!

[Tomfoolery]

I'll take the roller furler over hank-on any day, and twice on Sundays. I like the convenience, and the safety of being able to hoist and haul it quickly, as I sail as much single-handed as with crew. I just need an autohelm now, but that's a different topic.

I use the MRS, but I bungee the foil at the furler to the top of the MRS pole, so it follows along with the music, and no additional effort is required on my part. But you could always stop a couple of times and slide it along the deck if that's your preference, which is what I did until someone here told me to strap it to the pole (doh!). When the mast is all the way up, I put some Wellie on that MRS to stretch the shrouds a little, pin the forestay, and release the MRS. The shrouds come down to the right tension. No help required.

For long trips, I unbolt the forestay at the hound and slide the whole thing back. For short trips, I just use a stick of wood as a splint of sorts, which works well. But something a little more engineered, like what Azzarac showed, would make some sense, and I wouldn't have to bother unbolting the top of the forestay.

Great! Now I've got to put that on my to-do list, too, which never seems to get any shorter.

[tlgibson97]

One time I got to the lake and realized I left the MRS in the basement. I was going to have my son help me lift it since I have the genoa on the furler. I had it lifted before he was able to get up to help. It was much lighter than I expected. I just had him hold the mast up while I pinned the forestay. It is helpful to have someone guide the furler while you are lifting but not necessary.

I think that was before I had it properly rigged though. I have to put a bit of tension on the MRS to get the pin in now. I don't think I'd be able to do it without some leverage. If I forgot the MRS again, I'd probably use the spinnaker halyard to pull the mast forward a bit more.

[tvanbeck]

OK - I have been talked into it. As @Azzarac says - I should give it a try. The PVC furler suppor mod is great. I have a big PVC pipe in storage that I'm not doing anything with that will work perfectly.
Next question. When the boat is on the trailer or in storage. Do you have a sleeve or cover that goes over the head sail to protect it from the elements or do you take it off when in long term storage?

[Tomfoolery]

Most head sails on a furler have a UV strip sewn into the leach and foot, but you can also pull a sun cover up from the bottom, using an extra halyard.

[Highlander]

Gez I got 4 furlers on my boat & have no issues , I have Harken O furlers for my genny & jib super fast & easy to install & remove the sails not like the CD furlers , my jib & genny have uv covers sewn into them so no issue left on for short trling or while slipped or anchored , but I do remove them for longer trips or long term storage like winter
its nice to control the head sails from the cockpit
J

[mastreb]

I love the roller furler, and won't go back to a hank-on. It's how I reef. I find I can leave the mainsail fully aloft up to 20 knots as long as I can furl the headsail, and keep the boat balanced using the mainsheet.

But I wouldn't try to raise the mast with the heavy roller furler on, especially now that I'm running a 7oz. headsail vs. the stock 4oz. It weighs 2x as much. The MRS works well--why not use it?

Matt

[kadet]

Gez I got 4 furlers on my boat & have no issues , I have Harken O furlers for my genny & jib super fast & easy to install & remove the sails not like the CD furlers , my jib & genny have uv covers sewn into them so no issue left on for short trling or while slipped or anchored , but I do remove them for longer trips or long term storage like winter
its nice to control the head sails from the cockpit
J

What he said but I only have 3

Alado Jib reefing furler
Ronstan Genoa flying sail furler (I use it like a code zero no reefing all in or all out)
Selden GX Spinnaker furler

Would never go back makes single handing and sail handling so much easier.

[tek]

I have the Harken 00 as well (similar to the Harken 0). Much easier to operate than the factory furler that came with my boat. My factory furler wasn't the CDI, I have no idea who MacGregor was getting his furlers from in 2010.

I'd sailed other boats in the past with hank-on. I'd put a furler on any of them now.. and spend the extra for the Harken if I was the one choosing.

I however haven't tried to turn my into a cutter... yet..

[Highlander]

I have the Harken 00 as well (similar to the Harken 0). Much easier to operate than the factory furler that came with my boat. My factory furler wasn't the CDI, I have no idea who MacGregor was getting his furlers from in 2010.

I'd sailed other boats in the past with hank-on. I'd put a furler on any of them now.. and spend the extra for the Harken if I was the one choosing.

I however haven't tried to turn my into a cutter... yet..

Here,s a little incentive for U







http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab1/ ... 4942-4.jpg

J

[mastreb]

I have the Harken 00 as well (similar to the Harken 0). Much easier to operate than the factory furler that came with my boat. My factory furler wasn't the CDI, I have no idea who MacGregor was getting his furlers from in 2010.

I'd sailed other boats in the past with hank-on. I'd put a furler on any of them now.. and spend the extra for the Harken if I was the one choosing.

I however haven't tried to turn my into a cutter... yet..

The factory was making their own furlers in 2010.

[Highlander]

I have the Harken 00 as well (similar to the Harken 0). Much easier to operate than the factory furler that came with my boat. My factory furler wasn't the CDI, I have no idea who MacGregor was getting his furlers from in 2010.

I'd sailed other boats in the past with hank-on. I'd put a furler on any of them now.. and spend the extra for the Harken if I was the one choosing.

I however haven't tried to turn my into a cutter... yet..

The factory was making their own furlers in 2010.

Actually I think it was 2008 I have one for sale

J

[tvanbeck]

Here,s a little incentive for U







http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab1/ ... 4942-4.jpg

J [/quote]

Good Grief -- I feel strangely inadequate.

[drams_1999]

I had a hank-on the first few years and upgraded to roller furler when I had the extra boat bucks.

Wouldn't ever go back now.

Yes, it's heavier to raise the mast, but I have a raising system so no big deal.

Yes, it flops around when sliding the mast back and forth to raise and to secure for the road. No big deal either.

Yes, it sticks out forward of the bow, but with a pvc pipe it's easily secured, so no biggie.

Now for the good news.

You can use a bungee on the side rail and set the furler inside it when raising and lowering....it's a nice way to keep from scratching the deck.

I secure it under the spreaders when the mast is down. You can pull it behind them while the mast is still up before you lower it. It makes roadway travel safer and easier. When you raise the mast again, pull it around forward of the spreaders again.

I find it did not increase my rigging time any measurable amount. I have to trailer for each use and it's no big deal.

I like to single hand - so the furler is great because when I'm feeling lazy I can sail with just the headsail (I have the genoa) for most points of sail, and only use the main when I want to get closer to windward.

I like the fact that I can furl as much or as little as I want.....sometimes there's too much wind or not enough, and the genoa on a furler is wonderful for any of those cases. I find it much more useful than a main sail alone, reefed or not.

Fair winds!

P.S. I'm jealous of that bow pulpit with all those furlers!