Headsail furlers. Are they needed for cruising?

As a sailmaker for over 40 years, I think furlers are pretty good for cruising. They do have issues on occasions but have improved immeasurably over the past 20 years. I won't go into all the details and pros and cons as it would take pages. But a few points, fitting a new furler, then test it thoroughly in strong conditions before heading off for long hauls or short handed. The foam (or rope) luff padding has several points. It does not fix the problem of shape change when partially furled but it does retard it. It won't be as good as a smaller sail properly set on Hank's or in furler but it is easier to change down and you will still be able to work to weather. On the downside the padding does add some windage if you are racing. The answer, how often do you use the sail furled? If regularly then get the padding, if rarely then don't bother, it will still reef ok.
The best solution for long distance short handed cruising, a cutter rig with two furlers.

with envy sirgallivant
Galatea After pricing out altering the furlex 100S Ive been refurbishing from 5 mm wire it was to costly as you need to buy extra parts to up size the rigging wire size .
Ive an option for a stay sail which is added when needed and have thought , Id add the furlex onto the stay sail set up using the existing 5 mm .
I guess it would mean furling the genoa before going about .
Years ago there was a furler available that had no foil for this purpose I think . I'm not sure if the furlex can be used in this way but I was going to look at it
, thats why its still here.

There are pics aplenty in the library of Rhapsody but here is another one from yesterday swimming in latte. I was boat hunting for over two years before l came across this one.

The rig was designed for a yankee head sail which is a very high clewed cruising rag in conjunction with the inner stay. When sailing with the stay attched one must reef the furler partially to tack or wear. I learned this the hard way sailing home as l ripped my 120% genoa a bit while learning the ropes.
The sail plan is in my library if interested.

Not too many stays on this one to be worried about...

I'm not sure right now I can recall reading about a removable staysail furler someone made one years ago probably 20 years

But I keep churning it around in my head one day might have a go at it.
My staysail halyard is removable as I guess the Genoa would have problems with it being a permanent fixture , As my old boats a ketch not a cutter head ketch ( 600mm longer Bow spit)

My use would be aimed mainly for high winds so furling the Genoa and utilize the staysail as I get old I don't really want to go forward as much I'm no acrobat . Also sailing short tacks might be handy

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Sectorsteve said..

Bushdog said..
If you're sailing solo, hanking on the headsail is possible, but a furler will be safer and give you more confidence. You can't stow a hanked on headsail without going forward. If you drop it in heavy winds and it goes in over the side, with sheets tangled... Get a furler. I got an Alado for a 27 footer, relatively inexpensive, DIY installation, and bullet proof. Keep in mind you'll need to modify your existing headsails or grab a second hand one with bolt rope.

hey mate just looking at these alado reefer furlers. looks good. wondering what size you went with for your boat?

Steve did you find the Aussie agent for Alado?

Had a look at their site and as you said looks good.

Seems like we need an A1 size?

Australian made budget furlers
www.furlings.com.au

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Galatea said..
Australian made budget furlers
www.furlings.com.au

they look alright!!

Both the Alado and Reefurl furlers use the same principle for hoisting the sail in that the halliard block is at the top of the foil rather than using a halliard from the mast. The Alado seems to be a better quality and designed unit than the Reefurl and apparently can be fitted without disconnecting the head stay or changing the bottom terminal.

However these units with the halliard block on the top of the foil tend to induce forestay sag when the luff is tensioned because in effect you are applying a 2:1 compression to the forestay.

Whether this would be more or less compression than from a conventional halliard on the mast tensioned with a winch is debatable. Either way or even without a furler having an adjustable back stay tensioner is necessary to eliminate fore stay sag which is a big enemy of efficient pointing ability.

I am interested to hear what Galatea, Rumblefish or Whiteout might have to say on that.

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Yara said..


Cisco I think you are imagining the old trailer-sailer system with a swivelling halliard at the top end of the stay. These units have the halliard sheave fastened to the top of the foil. So all the compression is in the foil, and the forestay is not involved.

I know what you are saying but that is not what I am imagining. I put a Reefurl on the Peterson 42 I had years ago which was in survey and I was chartering out of Cairns. The reason I put it on of course was to make life easier with sail handling on these two day one night trips. In that it worked well but when sailing longer distances and having to reduce sail at times, it was not very effective as a reefer.

Admittedly I did not spend much on modifying the sail as it was fairly old. Just cut the cringles off and sew in a bolt rope and no luff cushion. Also my back stay was fixed with no means of tensioning so I had to live with forestay sag.

The compression in the foil acts against the fore stay. If there were no fore stay the halliard tension would bend and collapse the foil. So these units usually get a permanent bend in the foil away from the side of the halliard which in turn spoils the sail shape especially when reefing. When reefed the bend will always trail away from the wind and if you have no back stay tensioner the luff sag will exacerbate the bend in the foil.

For what they are these units are quite ok but you have to say they are a price compromise for which the down side is a reduction in sailing efficiency.

If you are going to have a reefing furler I say don't compromise. Spend the money to get a top quality reefing furler designed for that and get a sail also designed and built for that purpose.

Everything with boats is a balance between budget and best practice. If you do not have the bucks to buy the right thing, wait until you do. I love my yacht and when I spend on it , I spend first class.

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cisco said..

Yara said..


Cisco I think you are imagining the old trailer-sailer system with a swivelling halliard at the top end of the stay. These units have the halliard sheave fastened to the top of the foil. So all the compression is in the foil, and the forestay is not involved.

I know what you are saying but that is not what I am imagining. I put a Reefurl on the Peterson 42 I had years ago which was in survey and I was chartering out of Cairns. The reason I put it on of course was to make life easier with sail handling on these two day one night trips. In that it worked well but when sailing longer distances and having to reduce sail at times, it was not very effective as a reefer.

Admittedly I did not spend much on modifying the sail as it was fairly old. Just cut the cringles off and sew in a bolt rope and no luff cushion. Also my back stay was fixed with no means of tensioning so I had to live with forestay sag.

The compression in the foil acts against the fore stay. If there were no fore stay the halliard tension would bend and collapse the foil. So these units usually get a permanent bend in the foil away from the side of the halliard which in turn spoils the sail shape especially when reefing. When reefed the bend will always trail away from the wind and if you have no back stay tensioner the luff sag will exacerbate the bend in the foil.

For what they are these units are quite ok but you have to say they are a price compromise for which the down side is a reduction in sailing efficiency.

If you are going to have a reefing furler I say don't compromise. Spend the money to get a top quality reefing furler designed for that and get a sail also designed and built for that purpose.

Everything with boats is a balance between budget and best practice. If you do not have the bucks to buy the right thing, wait until you do. I love my yacht and when I spend on it , I spend first class.

So, Cisco, what you actually saying is that these systems with compressed foils tend to buckle the foil, and the buckling has to be resisted by the forestay. That sound about right, as they are long and slender. If you beefed up the foil to reduce the slenderness ratio, it would be too large. Oh dear, is there no perfect answer to anything in life?

Is the tack higher than it previously was with the new furler fitted? You can shorten the link plates (can see it is a profurl) which will pull everything down and forward.

Don't think you have many options then,
you can take some off foot by moving tack aft and recut luff from that new tack point to existing head point. This would lower the clew.
I have done this on plenty of second hand sails to make them fit.
Bit frustrating to do it on a new sail, you will lose a bit of area but have a sail that works.

Charriot, I guess you don't have a track - so why not put the turning block where you need it and then take the sheet aft to a second block to get the right lead to your winch?

Sure I have a track, Moving sheet any forward Leech is stretched ok but foot getting baggie .
I think this is example of terrible workmanship! considering this is a T/S with build in shallow keel
not a drop keel, and position CG of Genoa very high, the boat leans much more and speed is affected.
I was waiting 10 month for sail to be made, because the rig was not completed.
As per sailmaker, the sail will be made to fit new rigging. That's how new sail fits.
Genoa used to push the boat hull speed with around 15 knots wind, not any more.

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cisco said..

Yara said..


So, Cisco, what you actually saying is that these systems with compressed foils tend to buckle the foil, and the buckling has to be resisted by the forestay. That sound about right, as they are long and slender. If you beefed up the foil to reduce the slenderness ratio, it would be too large. Oh dear, is there no perfect answer to anything in life?

Yes that is what I am saying and no, , there are no perfect answers to anything in life.

If there were I think life would be fairly boring. There are about 10,000 people around the corner and up the road from me who have no problems and do not need perfect answers. That is the local cemetery. It therefore logically follows that having problems and seeking answers constitute signs of LIFE.

If you don't have any problems that you seek answers to, you better get you some before you end up around the corner and up the road.

The word for problem solving is......intelligence. Sailors have it by the bucketful........don't they????.