I installed a CDI FF4 about a month ago and really enjoy it. My question is when I was installing it I tightened the forestay to the tension I had on it before I put on the roller furler (maybe a little tighter). The luff seemted to be "ok". When I put the sail on I noticed it had a little more flex (for lack of a better word) in it. When I am out sailing I notice quite a bit of flex/bend to leeward. Not enough to notice a diffence when sailing but I am new at this. I always had some flex with my hank-on genny. I walked around my dock and found some boats with furlers on that were similar to mine in flex and some that were much firmer. So I guess my question is how tight should the stay be with a furler? I have an O'Day 25. I was sailing yesterday in 12-16 knot wind when I noticed this. Thanks in adavnce. Scott
Don and others - Sail Trim Question and Furlers
- Thread starter Scott R21226
- Start date
- Status
Furler flex
Scott, I don't think that you can get all the flex out. Where you have a masthead Rig, you are able to get more flex out of the luff than I can with my fractional rig. If I was to try to pull up on my back stay or tighten my fore stay, my mast would probably bend aft. I think that it's something that you're going to have to live with depending on how loose you have it right now. As long as your fore stay has toggles on both ends, that's the important thing. One other thing that I might add; Some O'Day 25s had a single pad eye with a sheave on each side of the deck for the Gennie sheets. If you have a similar arrangement, you may need to install tracks and cars so that you can make sail adjustments. I delivered a 75 O'Day 25 from the Cape Cod Canal area to Bristol RI a few years ago, and this boat had a new furler with no tracks and cars. The Gennie was so noisy when I tried it, that I couldn't stand listening to it. So I furled it up and didn't use it for the whole trip. The sail trim on it was so bad, that the sail was actually luffing and probably wearing. I plan on delivering an 86 OD 227 from the Cape to Bristol RI on Monday. It has a wing keel and I hope she sails well. I don't have too much experience with furlers, myself. I just tried mine for the first time last week and I love it. My boat probably won't be able to point-up as high with it, than when I used a conventional sail set-up with hanks, but it's well worth the trade off to be able to roll it out when I need it and pull a line to furl it back up. Maybe someone else on the forum has some thoughts on this. The only way that I'm going to know if mine is set up tight enough is to have my friend Wayne check it out while I'm sailing along beside him down the river. Joe
Scott, I don't think that you can get all the flex out. Where you have a masthead Rig, you are able to get more flex out of the luff than I can with my fractional rig. If I was to try to pull up on my back stay or tighten my fore stay, my mast would probably bend aft. I think that it's something that you're going to have to live with depending on how loose you have it right now. As long as your fore stay has toggles on both ends, that's the important thing. One other thing that I might add; Some O'Day 25s had a single pad eye with a sheave on each side of the deck for the Gennie sheets. If you have a similar arrangement, you may need to install tracks and cars so that you can make sail adjustments. I delivered a 75 O'Day 25 from the Cape Cod Canal area to Bristol RI a few years ago, and this boat had a new furler with no tracks and cars. The Gennie was so noisy when I tried it, that I couldn't stand listening to it. So I furled it up and didn't use it for the whole trip. The sail trim on it was so bad, that the sail was actually luffing and probably wearing. I plan on delivering an 86 OD 227 from the Cape to Bristol RI on Monday. It has a wing keel and I hope she sails well. I don't have too much experience with furlers, myself. I just tried mine for the first time last week and I love it. My boat probably won't be able to point-up as high with it, than when I used a conventional sail set-up with hanks, but it's well worth the trade off to be able to roll it out when I need it and pull a line to furl it back up. Maybe someone else on the forum has some thoughts on this. The only way that I'm going to know if mine is set up tight enough is to have my friend Wayne check it out while I'm sailing along beside him down the river. Joe
- Status