In a week I will be bare boat charting a boat with in mast furling. Any pointers from anyone who has used one or has one? ct
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No Battens
Although I don't have in mast furling,I know a few people who do. Not having battens, you'll have to experiment with the traveller, vang etc. to find the best angle of attack you can get when close hauled (from what I hear), but that's the biggest complaint. Downwind they're just like anything else. I'm not sure if the center of effort is affected on that main, but it might be.
Although I don't have in mast furling,I know a few people who do. Not having battens, you'll have to experiment with the traveller, vang etc. to find the best angle of attack you can get when close hauled (from what I hear), but that's the biggest complaint. Downwind they're just like anything else. I'm not sure if the center of effort is affected on that main, but it might be.
I have it
The only downside I've found is all those folks who don't have it telling you how your boat will lose performance because there is no roach, and no battens and how you will probably die in a storm because it will surely jam while your trying to reef the main. I had one quote from an obviously knowledgeble expert comparing a boat with in-mast furling to sailing a bathtub. Well my bathtub gets around quite well thank you. Assuming your not chartering this boat to enter some big race, you'll probably love it. Sails like any other boat, you'll just get to that end of the day cocktail a little quicker because you and your crew won't be messing around securing the main. Let the forum know what you think after your charter.
The only downside I've found is all those folks who don't have it telling you how your boat will lose performance because there is no roach, and no battens and how you will probably die in a storm because it will surely jam while your trying to reef the main. I had one quote from an obviously knowledgeble expert comparing a boat with in-mast furling to sailing a bathtub. Well my bathtub gets around quite well thank you. Assuming your not chartering this boat to enter some big race, you'll probably love it. Sails like any other boat, you'll just get to that end of the day cocktail a little quicker because you and your crew won't be messing around securing the main. Let the forum know what you think after your charter.
In Mast Furling
I just got a boat with in mast furling so I am clearly not an expert. From my experimenting, I can tell you, however, that you will need to use the outhaul to adjust the draft of the sail. Loosen the outhaul to get more shape, tighten it to flatten it out. A friend of mine said to think of the sail in the same manner you think of the head sail. With the steady and higher winds in the Carribean this time of year, I doubt you'll have much trouble and will appreceiate the abilty to quickly furl or to reef the main. Enjoy. Dan
I just got a boat with in mast furling so I am clearly not an expert. From my experimenting, I can tell you, however, that you will need to use the outhaul to adjust the draft of the sail. Loosen the outhaul to get more shape, tighten it to flatten it out. A friend of mine said to think of the sail in the same manner you think of the head sail. With the steady and higher winds in the Carribean this time of year, I doubt you'll have much trouble and will appreceiate the abilty to quickly furl or to reef the main. Enjoy. Dan
Hey Bill
I've got one too and I know exactly what you're talking about! I had one guy tell me that the extra weight up the mast was going to capsize the boat. (That's on a 32 foot boat btw.) Sometimes people really get freaky about other people's stuff.
Tuning the sail is different but my wife and I like the convenience and if we really wanted to get somewhere fast we would have a sinkpot.
I've got one too and I know exactly what you're talking about! I had one guy tell me that the extra weight up the mast was going to capsize the boat. (That's on a 32 foot boat btw.) Sometimes people really get freaky about other people's stuff.
Tuning the sail is different but my wife and I like the convenience and if we really wanted to get somewhere fast we would have a sinkpot.Pretty simple
Keep a little tension on the opposite line when furling or unfurling so that there is no slack in either line. You'll be amazed at how simple it is! *5
Keep a little tension on the opposite line when furling or unfurling so that there is no slack in either line. You'll be amazed at how simple it is! *5
Apply tension to the outhaul
This will give you a tight furl in the mast which make it less difficult to unfurl and prevent jams. I have in mast and love it.
This will give you a tight furl in the mast which make it less difficult to unfurl and prevent jams. I have in mast and love it.
Some hints on using in mast furlling
As I understand the question your boat does not have in mast furling but you have chartered a boat which has in mast furling and want some hints. I have been in exactly the same situation - we do not have in mast furling on our own boat and don't really want it however we have enjoyed the convenience of in mast furling on charted boats. It is very easy to use. There is one area that can provide problems. You probably already know that there is one line to furl into the mast and one line fastened to the clew (an outhaul) to pull the main sail out. When pulling the sail in it is advisable to keep a light tension on the outhaul to keep the sail from rolling up losely and subsequently snaging in the furler. This becomes more important the stronger the wind is - either letting it out or taking it in as you must keep it under control to keep it from flailing around and potentially shaking things lose (ie a shackles). This happened to a friend who chartered a year prior to my first time with an in mast roller furler. Fortunately as a result of his experience I was prepared. A second bit of advice - on two of the three boats we chartered the roller furling line and the outhaul were led back to the cockpit. This is great. On the last boat we chartered the roller furling line was on the mast and the outhaul in the cockpit. This is not a great arrangement particuarly when you are reefing in wind and waves. What really gave us trouble was that you had to use a winch handle on the mast furling however it wasn't a ratchet. As a result the winch handle hit the boom so you had to do 3/4 of turn take the handle out and reposition and make another 3/4 of a turn all in 25 knots of wind and the resulting waves - one hand for the boat and one hand for yourself becomes a problem when taking out and replacing a winch handle at the mast. It wasn't until a week of the two week charter was up that we found a funny looking short winch handle and wondered what it was for - for 10 seconds - it fit under the boom so we could much more easily reef/furl the main. The roller furled sail did well for us in day long sustained winds 30 to 40 knots (max 43). It performed better than I expected, however the sails looked like hell - I am sure that the furling was not good for them. They underperformed. I just bought a new boat - it does not have main sail furling not because of the price but for reasons of performance and sail longevity. On the other hand if I was chartering a boat I would't have it any other way.
As I understand the question your boat does not have in mast furling but you have chartered a boat which has in mast furling and want some hints. I have been in exactly the same situation - we do not have in mast furling on our own boat and don't really want it however we have enjoyed the convenience of in mast furling on charted boats. It is very easy to use. There is one area that can provide problems. You probably already know that there is one line to furl into the mast and one line fastened to the clew (an outhaul) to pull the main sail out. When pulling the sail in it is advisable to keep a light tension on the outhaul to keep the sail from rolling up losely and subsequently snaging in the furler. This becomes more important the stronger the wind is - either letting it out or taking it in as you must keep it under control to keep it from flailing around and potentially shaking things lose (ie a shackles). This happened to a friend who chartered a year prior to my first time with an in mast roller furler. Fortunately as a result of his experience I was prepared. A second bit of advice - on two of the three boats we chartered the roller furling line and the outhaul were led back to the cockpit. This is great. On the last boat we chartered the roller furling line was on the mast and the outhaul in the cockpit. This is not a great arrangement particuarly when you are reefing in wind and waves. What really gave us trouble was that you had to use a winch handle on the mast furling however it wasn't a ratchet. As a result the winch handle hit the boom so you had to do 3/4 of turn take the handle out and reposition and make another 3/4 of a turn all in 25 knots of wind and the resulting waves - one hand for the boat and one hand for yourself becomes a problem when taking out and replacing a winch handle at the mast. It wasn't until a week of the two week charter was up that we found a funny looking short winch handle and wondered what it was for - for 10 seconds - it fit under the boom so we could much more easily reef/furl the main. The roller furled sail did well for us in day long sustained winds 30 to 40 knots (max 43). It performed better than I expected, however the sails looked like hell - I am sure that the furling was not good for them. They underperformed. I just bought a new boat - it does not have main sail furling not because of the price but for reasons of performance and sail longevity. On the other hand if I was chartering a boat I would't have it any other way.
Some tips to help enjoy
Corky, We have in mast furling on our 376 and absolutely love it. All of the advise that I read seems sound. DO -Always pull sail out by outhaul, never use the furling line to try to deploy the sail. -In higher wind, to prevent the sail from opening all the way, you must keep some tension on the furling line (in). This keeps the furler from freewheeling out on it's own. -Reef early. It ia a bunch easier to let out then to furl in during high winds. - Let out your jib first. Preferably on a port tack if yours furls in clockwise. - Furl your jib first before your main. - Heave to, if you have trouble furling in higher winds. Once again on the tack that allows the easiest path for the sail to wind into the mast. - You may use a winch to furl in but use caution to make sure all is free. Don't -Let your sail freewheel out in high winds. Have someone keep some tension on the furl in line to provide friction on the system. -Don't ever pull on the furl out line. This will spin the sail in the mast and jam it. The one and only time I have ever had an issue in 7 years. Generally, it is a lot easier than a conventional main to handle. You should enjoy it's ease of use. You basically can decide to use the main and change your mind 10 minutes later without any great effort or lose. I notice a lot of boats not using their main because of the hastle, especially if the wind conditions are borderline. Good luck and I hope you enjoy.
Corky, We have in mast furling on our 376 and absolutely love it. All of the advise that I read seems sound. DO -Always pull sail out by outhaul, never use the furling line to try to deploy the sail. -In higher wind, to prevent the sail from opening all the way, you must keep some tension on the furling line (in). This keeps the furler from freewheeling out on it's own. -Reef early. It ia a bunch easier to let out then to furl in during high winds. - Let out your jib first. Preferably on a port tack if yours furls in clockwise. - Furl your jib first before your main. - Heave to, if you have trouble furling in higher winds. Once again on the tack that allows the easiest path for the sail to wind into the mast. - You may use a winch to furl in but use caution to make sure all is free. Don't -Let your sail freewheel out in high winds. Have someone keep some tension on the furl in line to provide friction on the system. -Don't ever pull on the furl out line. This will spin the sail in the mast and jam it. The one and only time I have ever had an issue in 7 years. Generally, it is a lot easier than a conventional main to handle. You should enjoy it's ease of use. You basically can decide to use the main and change your mind 10 minutes later without any great effort or lose. I notice a lot of boats not using their main because of the hastle, especially if the wind conditions are borderline. Good luck and I hope you enjoy.
Loosen boom vang and main sheet...
before you unfurl the main and before you furl the main back in. This allows the boom to lift so the outhaul is at the correct angle. If the main sheet and boom vang are tight, it is difficult to pull the main out. Unless you are a racer, you won't notice much difference in performance. I feel like the ability to adjust body and shape with loose footed main outweighs the reduced performance due to the reduced sail area.
before you unfurl the main and before you furl the main back in. This allows the boom to lift so the outhaul is at the correct angle. If the main sheet and boom vang are tight, it is difficult to pull the main out. Unless you are a racer, you won't notice much difference in performance. I feel like the ability to adjust body and shape with loose footed main outweighs the reduced performance due to the reduced sail area.
Learning Curve on Furlers
I don't have an in-mast furler, but rather a boom furler, and an old model at that. It has taken one whole 12-month season learning the quirks and techniques to get the most performance out of it and discovering ways to make it usage easier. I believe that many of the negative comments are from first time users feeling somewhat inept at using new-to-them equipment. Near hull speed runs are common place for me now....hang in there, keep an open mind and experiment with it.
I don't have an in-mast furler, but rather a boom furler, and an old model at that. It has taken one whole 12-month season learning the quirks and techniques to get the most performance out of it and discovering ways to make it usage easier. I believe that many of the negative comments are from first time users feeling somewhat inept at using new-to-them equipment. Near hull speed runs are common place for me now....hang in there, keep an open mind and experiment with it.
performance secret
Since in-mast-furling mains are necessarily loose-footed, trimming the outhall is far more important than on conventional sails, where people tend to set the tension for the day and then leave it there. Depending on the cut of the main, the center of the foot should be about 4-6 inches away from the boom when going to weather (unless you're overpowered and flattening on purpose). What this means is that every time the wind changes, and every time the apparent wind angle changes, you adjust the outhall in rseponse in order to keep the shape where you want it. On the other hand, a broad reach calls for much more belly in the sail, where the foot is eased at least a foot away from the boom in order to power things up. On an average day I'm adjusting my outhall every 15 minutes or so, and even after six years of sailing with a furling main I'm still amazed at what a difference small outhall adjustments make. Think of it this way: if the foot of your jib has a different shape than the foot of your main, one of those sails is trimmed wrong.
Since in-mast-furling mains are necessarily loose-footed, trimming the outhall is far more important than on conventional sails, where people tend to set the tension for the day and then leave it there. Depending on the cut of the main, the center of the foot should be about 4-6 inches away from the boom when going to weather (unless you're overpowered and flattening on purpose). What this means is that every time the wind changes, and every time the apparent wind angle changes, you adjust the outhall in rseponse in order to keep the shape where you want it. On the other hand, a broad reach calls for much more belly in the sail, where the foot is eased at least a foot away from the boom in order to power things up. On an average day I'm adjusting my outhall every 15 minutes or so, and even after six years of sailing with a furling main I'm still amazed at what a difference small outhall adjustments make. Think of it this way: if the foot of your jib has a different shape than the foot of your main, one of those sails is trimmed wrong.
When you furl
Our sail has a fitting on the leech about six inches from the clew. Our first mistake was to over furl the sail so that this fitting, a flat plastic piece entered the mast. This became stuck and we could not unfurl. Once we realized the problem it was no big deal to go forward with a screwdriver and work the piec out but it did take a few minutes and some aggravation so look out for that pitfall. We do love the roller furling. It makes my Catalina 350 easier to sail and single hand than my 19' Flying Scot.
Our sail has a fitting on the leech about six inches from the clew. Our first mistake was to over furl the sail so that this fitting, a flat plastic piece entered the mast. This became stuck and we could not unfurl. Once we realized the problem it was no big deal to go forward with a screwdriver and work the piec out but it did take a few minutes and some aggravation so look out for that pitfall. We do love the roller furling. It makes my Catalina 350 easier to sail and single hand than my 19' Flying Scot.
Gregg...
You mentioned that you singlehand your C350. Can you describe that process? How do you handle the mainsheet and jib sheets? Thanks for any info. Jack "Friendship" C350, #80
You mentioned that you singlehand your C350. Can you describe that process? How do you handle the mainsheet and jib sheets? Thanks for any info. Jack "Friendship" C350, #80
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