We experienced a major jam on our Furlex (headsail furling system) yesterday in 10kts of wind, and light seas. The furling line jammed between the guide (internal plastic piece that helps build the lay of the line on the drum) and the housing. I could not free it and had to take the jib down to get back into the harbor. In the slip, we removed the sail, and partially disassembled the Furlex to free the jam. This is the second major jam on this system. My thoughts: 1. Too much line on the drum - I could easily remove a dozen turns and still have "enough" - but how many wraps should I leave on there to help get things started? 2. Wrong lead angle - The block that leads this line is approx centered on the Furlex openning (but mounted on the pulpit rail). I could lower it to try to keep the line from building at the top of the spool, but that might cause a larger buildup at the bottom of the spool. When freed (but without a sail installed, it spins freely. - Any similar experiences?
Furlex jam(s)
- Thread starter Ken Johnson
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B36 Furlex Jam
Ken, Mine has also not been trouble free. I just purchased a new 155% sail which requires more wraps and that seems to be the problem. When bring the sail out the furling line cloggs and suddenly the housing (for lack of a better word) completely rotates. This worries me. I've got a rigger friend who is familiar with these (he says they're good) and I am going to have him give it a going over. Retracting the line to douce the sail hasn't been a problem except that it can be difficult to get the line going. But after the initial resistance it works fine. Hope some others can help here.
Ken, Mine has also not been trouble free. I just purchased a new 155% sail which requires more wraps and that seems to be the problem. When bring the sail out the furling line cloggs and suddenly the housing (for lack of a better word) completely rotates. This worries me. I've got a rigger friend who is familiar with these (he says they're good) and I am going to have him give it a going over. Retracting the line to douce the sail hasn't been a problem except that it can be difficult to get the line going. But after the initial resistance it works fine. Hope some others can help here.
Headsail Furler Jams
Have had similar experiences. Another way to help the situation is to remove the core from about half of the furling line. The lines are usually way over sized for the loads that they encounter and removing the core causes the line to lay flat and take up less space in the furling drum.
Have had similar experiences. Another way to help the situation is to remove the core from about half of the furling line. The lines are usually way over sized for the loads that they encounter and removing the core causes the line to lay flat and take up less space in the furling drum.
I have a Furlex 200
...and it has jammed twice in the two seasons I've had it. I talked to the dealer/supplier/rigger and he suggested the following, which I've done and it seems to work: (1) I've reduced the number of turns on the drum when the sail is furled to 5-6 turns. It previously had about 30. (2) I readjusted the angle of the line coming out of the drum to the lead block so that (in my case) the lead block is just about at deck level and makes a 90 degree angle coming out of the drum. I fly a 150 all the time and so that is a lot of sail to furl. The reduced turns on the drum and changing the lead angle of line from drum seem to have worked -- at least no more jams since I made those changes. I also have a ratchet block as the last block before the cleat and I keep a steady pressure on the furling line when I'm unfurling the sail. This helps the line wind better on the drum. Hope this helps.
...and it has jammed twice in the two seasons I've had it. I talked to the dealer/supplier/rigger and he suggested the following, which I've done and it seems to work: (1) I've reduced the number of turns on the drum when the sail is furled to 5-6 turns. It previously had about 30. (2) I readjusted the angle of the line coming out of the drum to the lead block so that (in my case) the lead block is just about at deck level and makes a 90 degree angle coming out of the drum. I fly a 150 all the time and so that is a lot of sail to furl. The reduced turns on the drum and changing the lead angle of line from drum seem to have worked -- at least no more jams since I made those changes. I also have a ratchet block as the last block before the cleat and I keep a steady pressure on the furling line when I'm unfurling the sail. This helps the line wind better on the drum. Hope this helps.
Furlex Jam
Todd, A couple of weeks ago I experienced the same thing you describe. When deploying the headsail in about 12 to 15 knots of wind, the line wrapped around the "body" or housing of the furler and I was not able to free it without going forward and "muscling" the line by physically rotating the housing back the "other way". I was able to do it. I used the furler several times after that on the trip (16 day cruise) without incident. I would be interested in hearing what you finally come up with. Tom
Todd, A couple of weeks ago I experienced the same thing you describe. When deploying the headsail in about 12 to 15 knots of wind, the line wrapped around the "body" or housing of the furler and I was not able to free it without going forward and "muscling" the line by physically rotating the housing back the "other way". I was able to do it. I used the furler several times after that on the trip (16 day cruise) without incident. I would be interested in hearing what you finally come up with. Tom
Furlex jam
I had one of these jams while tied to the dock when I was drying the jib. I was able to mussle the furler line back into place with a screwdriver. After giving it a lot of thought I remembered that about the last foot or so of unfurling was very quick and sudden. My analysis is that when that happens inertia causes extra line to fly into the housing, as the jib stay stops rotating, and this extra line can tangle or loop around the plastic guard inside. My fix was to be sure to keep some load on the furling line when unfurling so that momentum can not carry too much line into the furler. Since then I have not had a jam.
I had one of these jams while tied to the dock when I was drying the jib. I was able to mussle the furler line back into place with a screwdriver. After giving it a lot of thought I remembered that about the last foot or so of unfurling was very quick and sudden. My analysis is that when that happens inertia causes extra line to fly into the housing, as the jib stay stops rotating, and this extra line can tangle or loop around the plastic guard inside. My fix was to be sure to keep some load on the furling line when unfurling so that momentum can not carry too much line into the furler. Since then I have not had a jam.
Furlex Jams
Had similar problem when a squall whipped the headsail out too fast just as we were unfurling. The wind gusted up to 27 knots from 10 steady. Solved the problem by adding a block attached to the pullpit in between the furlex and the last stanchion. This helps keep the furling line feed properly and in the right direction.
Had similar problem when a squall whipped the headsail out too fast just as we were unfurling. The wind gusted up to 27 knots from 10 steady. Solved the problem by adding a block attached to the pullpit in between the furlex and the last stanchion. This helps keep the furling line feed properly and in the right direction.
Changed the Sail-set procedure
I always unfurled this sail motoring into the wind - now I do so sailing off the wind (close reach) and use the furling line to let it out - the wind does all the work, the furling line resists, and the sheet is just wound up (not pulled). Since I made that change (and removing some excess line, and re-setting the lead from the last block) I have had no problems. More wind - close hauled; less wind - beam reach. Seems to work.
I always unfurled this sail motoring into the wind - now I do so sailing off the wind (close reach) and use the furling line to let it out - the wind does all the work, the furling line resists, and the sheet is just wound up (not pulled). Since I made that change (and removing some excess line, and re-setting the lead from the last block) I have had no problems. More wind - close hauled; less wind - beam reach. Seems to work.
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