Catastrophic Failure of StreamStay Furler

[J. Tesoriero]

My circa 1985, #9 Hyde StreamStay One has been trouble free until this year. I rebuilt the halyard swivel last year however this spring, the system began to jam and then release when I tried to unfurl or furl the jib. This weekend out on the water, the lower furler drum spun completely apart , separating the furler rod and drum from the assembly attached to the stem piece on the boat. Fortunately, the jib was mostly furled and the wind was light. I managed to attach several unused halyards to the bow to keep the entire mast from falling into the cockpit. I had planned to rebuild the lower furler this winter, but now I am considering replacing the entire system. Has anyone had a similar experience or can I get your advice about the reliability of these systems.

 

[Steve Dion]

Look at a Spin-Tec

Take a look at the Spin-Tec unit that is sold in this website. They have a lifetime warranty and require ZERO maintenance.They are the most bullet proof system that I have seen.

 

[David]

Stream Stay

I had a Stream Stay on a previous boat and I was always a little nervous as the furler is actually the forestay and I would have an experience such as yours. The last two boats have had the Cruising Design furler with excellent performance and no maintenance.

 

[Terry Arnold]

Streamstay 1 bearings

Rig-rite sells the bearing kits for the Streamstay 1. About 400 I believe. The lower bearings, (there are two ball bearings taking the axial thrust) have the thrust of the halyard tension plus the thrust of the forestay loading them- plus the challenging environment of a steel bearing in a salt spray environment. Even so the furler should turn easily with just a hand on a furling drum and roughness or difficulty in rotating signals a need for replacement of the bearings. I have one on my 79 H33 and expect to keep it indefinitely. I believe that the furler is safe and strong if maintained properly.I'm glad that your separation failure didn't result in a dismasting. You are lucky