Drilling the Mast

[Ken]

The previous owner of my 1995 Hunter 26 installed a roller furling on the Jib. It is a bit long. I have shortened the chain plate as much as I can to tighten it, but it still has a sag in it and now the roller is rubing on the plate at the bow and the tack of the jib now rubs on the pulpit. What I was thinking was drilling a new hole about 8 inches above the existing one in the mast above the jib halyard. This would allow me to raise the whole thing getting the furling off the bow and be able to adjust the tension on the forstay. Before I drill the hole, does anyone have any comments or a better idea.

 

[Michael]

Sounds like your real problem is that the headstay (and the roller furler itself) is too long and need to be shortened. Have the pro's do it, it's not dyi. Once that is done have the sail recut to fit so that the foot of the sail rises above the pulpit. To tighten the sail you will need a cable that attaches to the tack of the sail and the rollar at the bow. Be sure to set the cable tension for all of the stays and especially the backstay, since the headstay is not adjustable, to spec. Proper tension will allow the roller furler to turn properly and will remove any sagging in the headstay and thus the roller furling system.