Battens for In-mast Furling Main

[Bill Hall]

I have a Hunter 410 and read a Sail Magazine article about someone who equipped his dismasted boat with a Selden furling mast and Doyle vertically-battened main. Does this sail have any advantages over the loose-footed furling main and how does it work?

 

[Bill Colombo]

Battened R/F Mains

Bill, Conventional roller furling mainsails trade performance for the convenience of furling. Because they have to furl they cannot be fitted with standard battens. This leads to the typical R/F main design with leech hollow instead of positive roach. Not only are these sails smaller in terms of area, but without battens to support the leech they tend to develop leech hook fairly quickly. Adding Vertical battens allows the sail to be designed with a moderate roach that does not hook. It is still loose footed. The vertical battens will fit into most but not all furling masts. People that switch to this type of sail are always pleasantly surprised at how much better their boat sails.Thanks,Bill ColomboDoyle Sailmakers

 

[LARRY W.]

vertical battens

Bill Colombo; Is is possible to re-cut a r/f main and add the vertical battens along with a panel to increase the roach?

 

[Bill Colombo]

Retrofit Roach not really practical

Larry, Adding battens to a sail is not a big deal and adding vertical battens to a roller main might improve the sail by eliminating most of the leech hook. This is not a bad idea. However it is really not practical to add roach to the sail. It would be difficult to make a smooth transition from the old cloth to the new cloth since they would have different stretch characteristics. Also since you are increasing the head and clew angle you would need to rebuild or replace the head and clew patches. Putting this much labor and materials into a used sail is usually not worth it.Thank You,Bill ColomboDoyle Sailmakers

 

[Bill Hall]

Comparison with folding battened main and cost

Thanks Bill,My boat is a Hunter 410. What approximately are we talking about for cost? How do the vertical battened mains compare with the folding battens?

 

[Bruce Mulford]

Bill Colombo...

I also have a 410 (2002) with the standard roller furling main. I would like to know the answer to Bill Hall's question also. If you don't want to post $$$ on this site you may e-mail me at mulf@comcast.net

 

[nick naggio]

bill columbo

I am looking for info on none in mast furling ,change to in boom furling with leisure boom furling by forespar,any info about this system good or bad and its for 29 hunter.