I know that most, if not all, of you who have in-mast furling have, at one time or another, had a sail that could not be deployed.). My diagnosis for the cause of the problem on my boat (the first time this has happened in the three years I have owned my Beneteau 323) was that I had the boom too high when I tried to deploy the sail and did not get a even pull on both the leach and the foot of the sail and the leach of the sail got "jammed" in the slot. The sail came out of the slot up to about the spreaders, but I couldn't get it out beyond that point. Fortunately, I was able to refurl the sail (but the problem remains--the sail is still jammed in the slot). In this context, what is the best way to "unjam" the sail and get the furler working again.
in-mast furler issues.
- Thread starter new323owner
- Start date
Been there before, primarily with Beneteau charter boats and to a lesser degree with my boat.
1. First thing, do not try to man handle it out with the winch; that will only cause it too jam more and may actually tear the clew that the outhaul line is attached to.
2. If you can reach the area on the sail where it seems to be binding either standing on deck or from a bosun's chair, spray the sail liberally with sail coat dry lubricant. Release all tension on the sheet and boom vang and try to furl & unfurl several times to clear the jam.
3. If you can see the spot where it is jamming in the slot, you may be able to use a pole or oar and press on the sail along
the edge of the sail/slot interface while someone gently furls & unfurls to get past the jammed sail. I did this on a charter boat along with the charter company owner to get past the jam. They used this trick on occasion to unjam their sails.
4. As you attempt to unfurl the jammed sail, the boom will rise because of the jam. Gently pull the aft end of the boom up & down and sometimes this action will allow the jam to clear all at once. I did this trick several times when mine jammed.
5. Last resort is to go up the mast and try to pull on the leach of the sail while someone on deck is furling & unfurling the sail.
Finally, these are some suggestions to try to prevent the jams from occurring.
1. Try to get as tight a wrap of the sail when furling.
Release tension on the vang & mainsheet. Keep some tension on the outhaul line as you are furling. And try to prevent
as much flogging / severe luffing when furling. Neilpryde also suggests furling on a minimal port tack with wind out of
the sail to improve the line of entry of the sail thru the slot. A tighter wrap of the sail on the furling inside the mast will
allow the sail to unfurl easier without bunching up in the slot.
2. Make sure that the mast is "tuned" correctly. On these in mast furling systems, you ideally want a straight mast with no
bends to ensure that the sail is furling evenly on the furler.
3. Might want to have a rigger take a look and also have a sail loft evaluate your sail. I did both when I initially purchased
my used boat. If the sail is blown out it will not furl evenly and tightly in the center of the sail where the cloth is
stretched. I experienced this on the charter boats; a new sail solved their problem. The sail might be capable of being
recut to eliminate the "belly". In my case, the loft stated that the sail still had a few years to go and advised converting
from the old vertical battens that were thicker and had batten pockets that were closed with Velcro. They converted it
to Neil Pryde's thinner battens and new pockets that didn't have the Velcro closures. The result was a thinner profile
that didn't jam.
1. First thing, do not try to man handle it out with the winch; that will only cause it too jam more and may actually tear the clew that the outhaul line is attached to.
2. If you can reach the area on the sail where it seems to be binding either standing on deck or from a bosun's chair, spray the sail liberally with sail coat dry lubricant. Release all tension on the sheet and boom vang and try to furl & unfurl several times to clear the jam.
3. If you can see the spot where it is jamming in the slot, you may be able to use a pole or oar and press on the sail along
the edge of the sail/slot interface while someone gently furls & unfurls to get past the jammed sail. I did this on a charter boat along with the charter company owner to get past the jam. They used this trick on occasion to unjam their sails.
4. As you attempt to unfurl the jammed sail, the boom will rise because of the jam. Gently pull the aft end of the boom up & down and sometimes this action will allow the jam to clear all at once. I did this trick several times when mine jammed.
5. Last resort is to go up the mast and try to pull on the leach of the sail while someone on deck is furling & unfurling the sail.
Finally, these are some suggestions to try to prevent the jams from occurring.
1. Try to get as tight a wrap of the sail when furling.
Release tension on the vang & mainsheet. Keep some tension on the outhaul line as you are furling. And try to prevent
as much flogging / severe luffing when furling. Neilpryde also suggests furling on a minimal port tack with wind out of
the sail to improve the line of entry of the sail thru the slot. A tighter wrap of the sail on the furling inside the mast will
allow the sail to unfurl easier without bunching up in the slot.
2. Make sure that the mast is "tuned" correctly. On these in mast furling systems, you ideally want a straight mast with no
bends to ensure that the sail is furling evenly on the furler.
3. Might want to have a rigger take a look and also have a sail loft evaluate your sail. I did both when I initially purchased
my used boat. If the sail is blown out it will not furl evenly and tightly in the center of the sail where the cloth is
stretched. I experienced this on the charter boats; a new sail solved their problem. The sail might be capable of being
recut to eliminate the "belly". In my case, the loft stated that the sail still had a few years to go and advised converting
from the old vertical battens that were thicker and had batten pockets that were closed with Velcro. They converted it
to Neil Pryde's thinner battens and new pockets that didn't have the Velcro closures. The result was a thinner profile
that didn't jam.
Thanks for the reply. With the help of a friend (and a winch, but I have had to use a winch since I purchased the boat about three years ago), I was finally able to get the sail unfurled and then furled again. I then tried to unfurl it once again and had the same old problem. I generally do keep tension on the sail as it is being furled. One thing that I did notice today is that, when I am unfurling the sail, some of the furled sail begins to appear in the sail track alongside the sail that is emerging from the track and then (as expected) I generally cannot get the sail to unfurl farther. I immediately thought that perhaps the main halyard might not be tight enough, but I checked it and it is tight. I am beginning to suspect that the sail may be getting blown out in the middle. That, as you say, would explain the problem. I would appreciate your reaction to my response to your response....
