Hank or Furler???

Fred · Dec 16, 2008

For cruising I don't think that you can beat a furler. It does take a bit of extra effort and care when trailering the boat. Last summer I noticed that I must have kinked the forestay cable at some point and several strands had broken. This likely came about from moving the furler back while on the trailer and forcing a small radius bend at the hounds. Now I unbolt the forestay from the hounds when I take the mast down.

Capt. Kermie · Dec 17, 2008

Switch Over

Well, I had the same dilema and finally made the switch after five seasons with hank-ons. At first I started regretting it due to the hassle of installing and tweaking. There was a bit more to it than I thought. I got the Shaefer Snapfurler CF700 and had to do some upgrades to use it. A 5/32 forestay was required, so rather than change the one on my oem forestay turnbuckle, I simply replaced the entire forestay & turnbuckle, so I went from the 1/4 turnbuckle to the 5/16 turnbuckle with 5/32 wire. I now have an oem spare. There were fairleads to add for the furling line and I also had to get my two headsails converted to #6 luff at $150.00 per sail. After first test sail I had to bring the mast down and install the little peice of hardware to prevent halyard wrap.
Now that it is all done, a lot of work, I kind of like the convenience of rolling the headsail real fast when it is time to go out or come in, and it adds to the ease of single handing. Prepare for some installation challenges if you decide to go this route.

Robspan · Dec 17, 2008

I got a CDI roller furler and 150 genoa from Sail Warehouse last March and I'm very happy with them. The roller furler is a great way to reduce sail, especially when you're singlehanding. As others have noted, it takes more care when you're trailering. I'm in a mast up yard, so I don't have that problem often.
I had to buy a new headstay because the original fittings wouldn't fit inside the foil.

Chris & Lenore · Dec 17, 2008

Go with the Schaeffer - I'd trade for my CDI in a heartbeat.

The CDI works fine but the internal halyard has significant disadvantages in regard to sail tension adjustment and ease of changing sails.

Pay a little extra for Schaeffer.

Chris

walt · Dec 18, 2008

Another .02.. My main use of the boat is a lot of day sails where I have to raise the mast each time. My first saiboat was a Catalina 16 with a roller furler and then this Mac 26S with hank on. Despite a significantly longer/heavier mast, the Mac is easier to get the mast/sail set up partly because of the gin pole and partly because of the hank on jib. So I plan to stick with the hank on jib. During the sailing season, I leave whatever jib I used in the last sailing session in a bag laying on the deck of the boat so the setup is fast.

But... as you know, when your out sailing, the sail is either full up or full down (I can easilly raise or take it down from the cockpit). I will sometimes go from the working jib to the genoa if the wind is getting less - but going from the genoa to the jib almost never happens - partly because the hassle and partly because I dont want to take a swim.

I think if I took a lot more overnighters or had a slip, Id go with roller furling.

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

I have both. I made a furler out of PVC and I slid it over the existing forestay. I can keep the hank on sails in the event I need them or someone needs a sail fast, and I made my 150 Genoa into a furler. I think the cost was under $30.00 for everything. I spent about two hours putting it together for the first time, andfine tuning it, but now I have a furler. I can get you a list and maybe take photos if you want to have a hank on furling sail.

caguy · Dec 18, 2008

I'd like to see your plans and pictures.

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

I will take a couple of pictures. I will look for the material list and post it. The plans are in my head, but it is really simple to assemble. Cutting and drilling the holes might take a little creativity. I know it is proven as I was in 20+ knots of wind in the Bay and it has held up.

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

Here are the rough instructions. I will post pictues soon.

1 20' length of 3/4" schedule 40 PVC cold water pipe (the white kind)
2 -/4" PVC inline connectors
1 slip-in 3/4" PVC plugs
1-1X 3/4 slip red. Bushing
1-1X 1/2 slip red bushing
2-6” slip caps for styrene (these are flat caps)
1-1” slip coupling
Clear PVC Glue for the barrel assy.

The first step in getting the materials was to find a 20' length of 3/4" schedule 40 PVC, for which I had to go to the lumber yard of the local Lowes. This was big enough I could get the jib hanks through the pipe and attached to the forestay, so the pipe wouldn't have to support the load of the sail. The 20' length of pipe was cut down to the length of the luff of the jib--it should have been cut to 6" longer than that, but I forgot to leave room for the furling line to wind around it. Fortunately, I had already purchased 2 inline connectors for the plugs to fit in, and the PVC had a flared end, so I cut 6"
Rather than using slip-over endcaps, I chose slip-in plugs, which necessitated the use of the inline connectors to hold the plugs. The reason I chose plugs was so that I could cut a slot 3/4 of the way across the plug, and then slipping the plug into the inline connector would keep the slot from coming open. This allows the plugs to be pried open and slipped on and off the forestay, yet when the furler is assembled the stay can't slip out of its hole.
The first step in assembly is to drill holes large enough for the forestay in the PVC plugs. Try and get them fairly centered, as it should make furling a lot easier. One of my holes was off center by about 1/16", and once assembled you couldn't tell it was off center. Next, cut a thin slot 3/4 of the way through the plug with a scroll saw, passing through the hole. This will allow you to slip the plug over the stay, and snap it into place with the stay in the hole. If you only go 1/2 way through, you won't be able to pry it open enough, so you do need to overshoot your hole.
Next, determine how the jib is going to attach to the stay/PVC, paying close attention to the ends, as those may need to be dealt with separately. In my case, the bottom of the jib had a small shackle, which I put through a slot in the PVC, and the top had an eye which I let project slightly above the top of the furler, and it slips directly over the forestay. To get the hanks of the jib attached to the stay, I used a hand grinder to cut openings about 3/4 inch long and 1/2 inch wide for each hank, and used a 1/2 inch sanding drum to round these out into ovals about 1 inch long and 3/4 inch wide. This was enough room to let me slip a bit of wire into the hole, hook the stay and lift it to the top of the hole, and get the hank clipped on the stay. Getting the hanks on takes a bit of time and practice; the first one took a few minutes of fiddling with, but after I started using the bit of wire to hold the stay in place, things went much faster. The jib must be attached to the stay before the mast is raised, since there's no way to get up high enough to attach the jib once the mast is up.
Since I had to remove the forestay completely to assemble the furler, I went ahead and removed the jib halyard and its block, since it is no longer needed. The jib hanks in their small slots can only move a small distance, and then the PVC will take up the load and keep the sail straight. If the jib halyard turns out to be needed (it hasn't been missed so far), then I'll have to come up with a plan B--even a swivel won't work, because the jib will be spinning around the forestay, which would tangle a halyard. Plan B would probably involve running a second stay for the furler. With luck, that won't be necessary.
Once the jib is attached to the furler, the furling line is tied onto the bottom of the furler--in my case I tied it onto the shackle at the bottom of the jib. Roughly furl the sail to keep it out of the way as you raise the mast--don't worry about winding the furling line, that will be done after the mast is up. Now hook the forestay onto the masthead, and raise the mast. Hook up the jibsheet, and point the boat into the wind so you can adjust the furler.
As you pull on the jibsheet to deploy the jib, the furling line will wind up on the base of the furler. Once the sail is deployed, go ahead and wind the line around a couple of more times--the reason for this is that the sail was loosely furled before, and as you run it in and out a few times, it will furl tighter and need more turns. Repeat this process until the furled sail is a nice, tight roll with just a small triangle of sail sticking out. Now run the furling line through an eye on the foredeck to keep it lined up with the bottom of the furler, and place the running end within reach of the cockpit, and cleat it down to keep the jib furled. To deploy the jib, just uncleat the furling line, and pull on the jibsheet until you have as much sail as you want deployed, then re-cleat the furling line. I ran the furling line under the foredeck cleat, anc cleated it to the jib halyard cleat, and it worked just fine.

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

The PVC Furler for Hank on sails

Here are a couple of pics that I have. I will post what I have in diferent posts as they are kind of large. Unlike a CDI or other furler, this system has virtually no pressure on it. It is just used to roll in and out the sail. THe forestay is still taking all of the pressure.

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

Here are some more pcis....

Gregg9020 · Dec 18, 2008

The last two......

RJG 26S · Dec 19, 2008

Gregg,

This is beautiful! With this design, I could leave the Furler home on day sails when I want a shorter rigging/derigging time and have the convenience of the Furler for multi-day cruises and save about $1000.

Thanks,

Bob

Gregg9020 · Dec 19, 2008

Bob, I use it all the time. I only take it off when I put the boat away for the winter. I love not having to go forward and change out sails. The SF Bay an get rough in a heart beat. This is awesome.

Let me know if you need any assistane.

This is beautiful! With this design, I could leave the Furler home on day sails when I want a shorter rigging/derigging time and have the convenience of the Furler for multi-day cruises and save about $1000.

Thanks,

Bob[/quote]

caguy · Dec 21, 2008

Gregg, how do you tension the luff?

smitroe · Dec 22, 2008

looking for pics

Gregg9020 said:
I have both. I made a furler out of PVC and I slid it over the existing forestay. I can keep the hank on sails in the event I need them or someone needs a sail fast, and I made my 150 Genoa into a furler. I think the cost was under $30.00 for everything. I spent about two hours putting it together for the first time, andfine tuning it, but now I have a furler. I can get you a list and maybe take photos if you want to have a hank on furling sail.

Gregg 9020- Do you have some pics of your system? Sounds real nice and real easy, I might try it myself...thanks Smitroe... smitroe@sbcglobal.net

Gregg9020 · Dec 22, 2008

Re: Hank-on oR Furler?

I trailer my boat. I just use a lot of bungee cords, and I also use the halyards to tie everything up.

Gregg9020 · Dec 22, 2008

CA Guy I kept the halyard on the mast, and I have a swivel block up top, but I pulled the luff really tight when I made the cut outs in the pipe, so there is really no need to use the halyard to tighten up the luff. It is not easy to get together, but doing it once a year... I can handle that.

Hank or Furler???

Robeon

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