I have been out a few times now this sping, made new mistakes every time out and am having a blast learning this new boat. I am having some trouble with the jib furler and wondered what others have done with theirs. In particular, the furling line going aft to the cockpit comes out of the furler at a fairly sharp angle, so at times is quite hard to furl the sail in, particularly with the wind up. I was trying to think of an arrangement to get the line coming out of the furler at the correct angle (ie: going down at an angle towards the keel) then back to the cabin rooftop to go through the fairlead. It only has to come down maybe a foot. Perhaps a block attached by a line to the small bulkhead at the front of the boat will angle this line down. Anyone else with this problem? Any suggestions?
Secondly, when we unfurl, the jib will generally not unfurl all the way. It seems the turnbuckles on the top of the forestay stop the furler from turning easily. The forestay leads into a fairly large turnbuckle at the top, then to the fitting that goes into the mast. It will turn under high pressure, then does not want to turn back as the turnbuckle lays against the mast and is under too much pressure to easily turn. Anyone else address this issue? Maybe I need a new forestay that goes straight to the mast fitting, without the extra turnbuckle at the top?
Thanks for any comments.
Craig Berg
Hull#5
4 comments:
Craig,
I added the block to the furler line to hold it at a better entry/exit angle. I simply installed a small eyestrap to the short bulkhead at the bow, and used a piece of 3/16" line to the block. Made fuling a lot easier.
I don't have a turnbuckle at the mast on the forestay, so can't comment on the second question. But, we generally don't have any problems as you describe.
I also added a small line to a block to improve the lead angle to the furler and that worked fine. It was suggested that if the furling line is not kept with tension on it there is apossibility of the block flopping around and fowling the furling line. It has not happened yet, but the alternative suggestion is to run a length of bungee cord through a tube, with the bottom of the cord attached to the small bulkhead and the other end tied to the block. Because this set up is pre-tensioned the tube and bungee keep the block sitting upright even when there is no pressure from the roller furling line.
Brian Pickton
I figured out the problem with the twist in the forestay. It is because the fitting at the base does not turn well under pressure (it appears to have no bearings in it). As we furl we are adding twist to the forestay because the fitting does not turn easily once the pressure is on from tightening the mast jask. I try to furl now with the wind from astern, to take pressure off the forestay as much as possible and let this fitting turn easier.
Craig Berg
Hull #5
I've run into the same problem with the forestay/furler. The tension is so high on the SS straps (two thin units) that they have twisted about a 1/4 turn out of true. I've had a stronger single SS strap fabricated to replace the OME.
Post a Comment