Furlex question

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R

R. marble

My 27' Hunter has a furlex that came on it. The drum is rubing on the front red/green light when the drum turns. Someone told me that there is a way to tighten this so that the drum is lowered so that it does not rub. I think he may be right because the back stays can't be tighted any more and the front stay is a little slack. Anyone out there got a furlex that can help?
 
J

Jim LeBlanc

Backstay adjuster

I have a different brand of furler on my 24 ft S2, which fits over the turnbuckle and hides it from view, so I am not an expert on Furlex systems. However, if the turnbuckles are tight and you still have slack in the system, you may need to shorten your forestay, or better yet, install a backstay adjuster. If your backstay is split, you only need to rig up a system with two pulleys with metal sheeves, a large ring (or better yet a triangle) and a 4 to 1 ratio block and tackle (like a boom vang). Put one pulley on each of the split backstays. Connect the two pulleys and the block and tackle with the ring and attach the other end of the block and tackle to a strong point on the transom of the boat. When you are out sailing, pull the block and tackle tight, which will cause the two pulleys to ride down on the split backstay, forcing the mast backwards and tightening the forestay. The racers do this all the time, it causes the jib to fly better, since there is no sag in it, the roller furling will probably stop rubbing and you can release the extra tension when the boat is at the dock by simply releasing the block and tackle.
 
K

Kevin

There may not be a turnbuckle

Furlex's current model for boats under 30 feet is the 100S (at least this was the case last winter when I was shopping for a new furling unit) which doesn't come standard with a integral turnbuckle for adjusting the foresaty length. The instructions call for tightening the forestay by adjusting the backstay. Perhaps you have this or a similar model in which case you'll have to shorten the forestay. Kevin
 
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