A few days ago I went sailing with my 5 year old son. The wind came up pretty strong and I tried in vain to furl my genoa. Ultimately, I had to drop the anchor, unwrap the partially furled genoa, and then take it down, which wasn't easy because the halyard was fouled. All the time I was forward -- about 30 minutes -- my son was alone in the cockpit or below. Not the safest situation. Now, I understand that I must have setup the sail incorrectly causing halyard wrap and that a functioning furler increases safety, so I'm not arguing those points at all. All I really want to know is it possible to safely sail with a hanked on headsail? Does anybody prefer hanked on headsails?
Curse of the Roller Furler
- Thread starter Stephen OBrien
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Racers use hanked-on headsail
You failed to mention the size of your boat. It may make a difference. The sail material used for racing usually prevents the use of roller furling. The experience you had on deck would be the same experience every time with a hanked-on headsail. Even if it were hanked-on and off dockside, you still may need to go on deck to secure it before raising or after lowering. My vote is to get the furling working correctly and stick with it rather then the hanked-on headsail.
You failed to mention the size of your boat. It may make a difference. The sail material used for racing usually prevents the use of roller furling. The experience you had on deck would be the same experience every time with a hanked-on headsail. Even if it were hanked-on and off dockside, you still may need to go on deck to secure it before raising or after lowering. My vote is to get the furling working correctly and stick with it rather then the hanked-on headsail.
Racers use a foil, not hanks.
The roller part of the setup is for cruising and short-handed sailing. If the roller furler can be converted to foil-only for racing then you're all set. But that assumes the boat is equipped with another full suit of high performance sails. But one things for sure, no modern fast racer uses hanked on sails. OK folks, any examples to prove otherwise? Stephen, Try to locate the manual for your setup. Your problem could have been as easy to fix as providing tension on the furling line WHEN YOU SET SAIL. A little tension on mine will help the line coil properly on the drum and not be too hard to pull when reducing sail. Other things that help are to provide a turn of the genoa sheet around a winch for the same tension when furling. That keeps the sail pretty on the headstay. And to insure that the halyard snap shackle is near the top of the foil no matter how short the luff of the sail used. Those are concerns with my Harken. Other systems may have other needs. What are you using?
The roller part of the setup is for cruising and short-handed sailing. If the roller furler can be converted to foil-only for racing then you're all set. But that assumes the boat is equipped with another full suit of high performance sails. But one things for sure, no modern fast racer uses hanked on sails. OK folks, any examples to prove otherwise? Stephen, Try to locate the manual for your setup. Your problem could have been as easy to fix as providing tension on the furling line WHEN YOU SET SAIL. A little tension on mine will help the line coil properly on the drum and not be too hard to pull when reducing sail. Other things that help are to provide a turn of the genoa sheet around a winch for the same tension when furling. That keeps the sail pretty on the headstay. And to insure that the halyard snap shackle is near the top of the foil no matter how short the luff of the sail used. Those are concerns with my Harken. Other systems may have other needs. What are you using?
True,....
...most racers do not use hanked on sails. Hanking on is time consuming, but it is a reliable time tested way of raising and lowering sails. If your foil has twin grooves then it can be used as a foil only as well as a roller furler. The major difference is that a sail raised for roller furling MUST be lowered before another sail can be raised. If it is used as a foil, a second sail can be raised before the first is dropped(a peel) Your problem comes from the fact that your roller furling system has been set up wrong. If you had a properly installed furling system it should be able to furl your headsail no matter the conditions. I would suggest you have a qualified rigger examine your system and make corrective suggestions.
...most racers do not use hanked on sails. Hanking on is time consuming, but it is a reliable time tested way of raising and lowering sails. If your foil has twin grooves then it can be used as a foil only as well as a roller furler. The major difference is that a sail raised for roller furling MUST be lowered before another sail can be raised. If it is used as a foil, a second sail can be raised before the first is dropped(a peel) Your problem comes from the fact that your roller furling system has been set up wrong. If you had a properly installed furling system it should be able to furl your headsail no matter the conditions. I would suggest you have a qualified rigger examine your system and make corrective suggestions.
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