I am having some difficulty with the in mast furling main on my 2004 B331. The sail is fairly difficult to furl and unfurl. I usually need to use the winch. Not impossible by hand but extremely difficult. I lossen the main sheet and vang as suggested, but this only helps a little. I do not beleive I had this much difficulty when the boat was new --although by the end of last seaon the problem was evident. Are those of you with similar size beneteaus using the winch to furl and unfurl the main or are you able to do it by had?
In Mast Furling
- Thread starter James Hill
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bill
furling main
I have in-mast furling on my Oceanis 281 and I usually have to use the winch. In heavy winds, the sail will unfurl by wind pressure alone but I need to use the winch to furl/reef it. One of the problems is wrinkling in the main sail. If you get wrinkles when it is furled/reefed, they seem to be permanent, like they have been pressed in with an iron. I sent my main to Sailcare a couple of years ago and they sent it back wrinkle free. I now have new wrinkles. I really don't see much of a problem with using the winch, single handed and from the cockpit, I still get the sail put away in a minute or two. It is easier and quicker than I could lower, flake, secure, and get a cover on a similar conventional mainsail, especially in windy conditions. Mine works easiest if I'm on a starboard tack with moderate halyard tension and the mainsheet, vang, and topping lift all pretty loose. I keep some tension on the outhaul as I furl to help minimize wrinkles. Good Luck Bill
I have in-mast furling on my Oceanis 281 and I usually have to use the winch. In heavy winds, the sail will unfurl by wind pressure alone but I need to use the winch to furl/reef it. One of the problems is wrinkling in the main sail. If you get wrinkles when it is furled/reefed, they seem to be permanent, like they have been pressed in with an iron. I sent my main to Sailcare a couple of years ago and they sent it back wrinkle free. I now have new wrinkles. I really don't see much of a problem with using the winch, single handed and from the cockpit, I still get the sail put away in a minute or two. It is easier and quicker than I could lower, flake, secure, and get a cover on a similar conventional mainsail, especially in windy conditions. Mine works easiest if I'm on a starboard tack with moderate halyard tension and the mainsheet, vang, and topping lift all pretty loose. I keep some tension on the outhaul as I furl to help minimize wrinkles. Good Luck Bill
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Jack
Furling Main Problems
You must use a liberal amount of WD-40 on the bearings at the bottom of the furling assembly. Trust me on this! That's all you need. Also, forget any rumors about not using WD-40 on your rig, this information came to me direclty from Z-Spars USA. I have been sailing Beneteaus with in mast furling for over five years now. That's the problem! Very easy. Best of Luck, Jack
You must use a liberal amount of WD-40 on the bearings at the bottom of the furling assembly. Trust me on this! That's all you need. Also, forget any rumors about not using WD-40 on your rig, this information came to me direclty from Z-Spars USA. I have been sailing Beneteaus with in mast furling for over five years now. That's the problem! Very easy. Best of Luck, Jack
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Charlie Gruetzner - BeneteauOwners.net
McLube
JJ, I prefer using McLube Sailkote over the WD-40. First of all it is not neqrly as "messy" and it is made primarly for the marine environment. Again, that is just my personal opinion Charlie
JJ, I prefer using McLube Sailkote over the WD-40. First of all it is not neqrly as "messy" and it is made primarly for the marine environment. Again, that is just my personal opinion Charlie
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Dragonfly
Drum locked tight on Dragonfly...
JJ. My experience was similar to yours the first year we had Dragonfly -- 2003. In the spring, I could pull out by hand with final tension with the winch. By September, I had to winch most of the way out. At the end of the season I removed the drum. The bearings looked ok, but it was jammed tight. I sent it to US Spar who replaced the line and sent it back. My take was the line became frayed and just bound up. I also wondered if they had the wrong line from the factory. The line for the 331 is one size smaller than the 361. the old line was red, the new blue. It worked good last season. On the sails this season, I've been able to pull out about 3/4 before using the winch. And yes, I keep the McLube handy and spray top and bottom bearings on a monthly basis. http://home.att.net/~dragonflyb331/ Mark
JJ. My experience was similar to yours the first year we had Dragonfly -- 2003. In the spring, I could pull out by hand with final tension with the winch. By September, I had to winch most of the way out. At the end of the season I removed the drum. The bearings looked ok, but it was jammed tight. I sent it to US Spar who replaced the line and sent it back. My take was the line became frayed and just bound up. I also wondered if they had the wrong line from the factory. The line for the 331 is one size smaller than the 361. the old line was red, the new blue. It worked good last season. On the sails this season, I've been able to pull out about 3/4 before using the winch. And yes, I keep the McLube handy and spray top and bottom bearings on a monthly basis. http://home.att.net/~dragonflyb331/ Mark
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Pat
Furl Problem
I have a 2001 B331 and I am fortunate not to of had any problems with my in-mast furling that weren't self induced. One important item to consider is the position of the boom relative to the mast. If you have a bimini on your 331, you have to raise the back of the boom, using the topping lift, in order to collapse the bimini. If you leave the boom in this position, it can make it considerably more difficult to furl and unfurl the main. Remember to keep the boom as level as you can so the furling line has a good angle in relation to the drum. I also have a little more pre-bend in the mast than other 331's. Putting a little more tension on the babystay will bend the mast quite easily. With light to moderate (wind) pressure on the sail, I'm able to furl/unfurl without using the winch. If everything's lubed and operating within the design parameters on the furling mechanism, than it could be a bad drum or simply a line that is too thick on the drum.
I have a 2001 B331 and I am fortunate not to of had any problems with my in-mast furling that weren't self induced. One important item to consider is the position of the boom relative to the mast. If you have a bimini on your 331, you have to raise the back of the boom, using the topping lift, in order to collapse the bimini. If you leave the boom in this position, it can make it considerably more difficult to furl and unfurl the main. Remember to keep the boom as level as you can so the furling line has a good angle in relation to the drum. I also have a little more pre-bend in the mast than other 331's. Putting a little more tension on the babystay will bend the mast quite easily. With light to moderate (wind) pressure on the sail, I'm able to furl/unfurl without using the winch. If everything's lubed and operating within the design parameters on the furling mechanism, than it could be a bad drum or simply a line that is too thick on the drum.
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russell
Furling mainsail prob beneteau 390
i am having trouble winching the mainsail out of the mast .the drum and sail appear to be jamming inside the mast making it very hard to winch out. Its jamming half way up the mast i don't have any trouble furling in the sail. I have taken the sail off the drum the drum appears to be very floppy inside the mast the drum appears to be unatached to whatever at the top of the mast. I also ended up with a fistful of groundup rope looked like a bird nest. Can anybody help.Russell
i am having trouble winching the mainsail out of the mast .the drum and sail appear to be jamming inside the mast making it very hard to winch out. Its jamming half way up the mast i don't have any trouble furling in the sail. I have taken the sail off the drum the drum appears to be very floppy inside the mast the drum appears to be unatached to whatever at the top of the mast. I also ended up with a fistful of groundup rope looked like a bird nest. Can anybody help.Russell
Furling Problem
If all the above tricks don't work: You probably didn't have this much trouble when the boat was brand new because the rig was tuned right before you took delivery. If you've sailed the boat for a season, especially a brand new one, the rig loosens up considerably over those few months. Go stand at the base of the mast to see if you've got a lot of rake, and if so, a quick retune will probably be all you need. I have a 331 and noticed a huge difference between the time I did the three month tuning and when I next checked the rig 14 months later. Good luck. Steve
If all the above tricks don't work: You probably didn't have this much trouble when the boat was brand new because the rig was tuned right before you took delivery. If you've sailed the boat for a season, especially a brand new one, the rig loosens up considerably over those few months. Go stand at the base of the mast to see if you've got a lot of rake, and if so, a quick retune will probably be all you need. I have a 331 and noticed a huge difference between the time I did the three month tuning and when I next checked the rig 14 months later. Good luck. Steve
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brad
Furling Main Problen
had similar problem on 351, found that main was furled too loose, solution, keep tension on outhaul as main furled into main
had similar problem on 351, found that main was furled too loose, solution, keep tension on outhaul as main furled into main
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