The boat's being transported by truck. Why would or wouldn't you remove the main from an in-mast furler ? Seems to me that's the safest place for it to make the trip. It's all getting shrink wrapped anyway. Whats the difference ?
Is it necessary to remove the sail ?
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Shrink wrap it and send it down the road. It should be safe in the furler. Is the trucking company the one that wants it removed?
My mast went 1600 miles No sail, but it was wrapped. The halyards and everything else made it with no problems.
Dave
My mast went 1600 miles No sail, but it was wrapped. The halyards and everything else made it with no problems.
Dave
Shrink wrap
I would think shrink wrapping would protect every thing and sail be safe in mast,unless the riggers think different when taking the mast down and maybe when halyards are loose and no tension is not good for the sail inside the mast.
What are you being told to do,by the transporter and riggers.
Nick
I would think shrink wrapping would protect every thing and sail be safe in mast,unless the riggers think different when taking the mast down and maybe when halyards are loose and no tension is not good for the sail inside the mast.
What are you being told to do,by the transporter and riggers.
Nick
Halyards are tied to the cleats on the mast so it shouldn't matter. The rigger stands to make more money taking them down. That's why I'm asking. Every time there is something to do its a new added expence to the boat owner. The bill just keeps escalating.
I would take..
I would take the sail off. Here's why; the foil the sail rolls up on, inside the mast, is unsupported between the head and foot of the sail. With the mast upright the foil remains relatively and somewhat static and centered in the spar. Lay the mast down and the weight of the sail could have it resting on the internals of the spar. Now add road vibrations and bumps and you have a potential for chafing of the sail. Of course if it's going ten miles it's probably no big deal, but long distance I'd spend the ten minutes to remove it.
It takes about 10 minutes to remove the sail and fold it if the guys are competent..
I would take the sail off. Here's why; the foil the sail rolls up on, inside the mast, is unsupported between the head and foot of the sail. With the mast upright the foil remains relatively and somewhat static and centered in the spar. Lay the mast down and the weight of the sail could have it resting on the internals of the spar. Now add road vibrations and bumps and you have a potential for chafing of the sail. Of course if it's going ten miles it's probably no big deal, but long distance I'd spend the ten minutes to remove it.
It takes about 10 minutes to remove the sail and fold it if the guys are competent..
Nope. The bottom is secure and the top is secure via the haylard pulling on it. I think it's actually better to have the sail in to protect the rod it is attached to. When the sail is out, that rod bangs around like there is no tomorrow. With the haylard pulled tight, it's not going anywhere.
I'd second what MaineSail said... chafe on the sail can damage the stitching and as he said, it only takes a few minutes to remove and flake the sail.
Aux contrast, I would think the sail would had stiffness to the foil and the mast during transport. Less flopping around.
It may but the sail adds bulk which is already in close proximity to the spar and this can potentially cause chafe while in the horizontal position.
An easy way to prevent the foil from flapping, without potential damage to a Charleston spar, is to put the head swivel at the top in the spar and secure it to the sail hook at the bottom swivel with spare piece of line. A few pieces of foam along the extrusion and your done
On my Charleston Spar the halyard did not tighten the foil only the luff of the sail in the foil. In fact on a Charleston spar the foil is free floating at the top with no upper swivel bearing.
Everyone's deductions have merit. I was hoping someone has left one in and will know first hand, yea or nae. Its not a big deal to remove it. We just want to see if its OK to leave it in.
Franklin, Because your helping me, that makes you the monkeys uncle. Sit back and lets see what feedback we get.
Franklin, Because your helping me, that makes you the monkeys uncle. Sit back and lets see what feedback we get.
You act as if I've never owned a main sail furling system just because I don't currently own one?
I have owned an in-mast furler (see photo) and would never leave my sail in the spar, for shipping, for the reasons I mentioned above. I spoke from experience...
Again, it takes 10 minutes to remove the sail and fold it. If it were to chafe how much would that cost?
I've seen AwlGrip chewed through from rigging chafe during transport and Awlgrip is pretty tough stuff. My buddy Chris has a few chafe spots on his two year old spar and he only goes about ten miles.
Chances are he may be fine leaving it in but for the potential risk and the minimal time to remove I would not personally take the gamble.
The OP can do as he wishes. I'm just pointing out a potential area of concern as he did ask;
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My in mast furler (so I can comment on a level playing field
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I would Remove
If it was me I would remove the sails,why take the chance it's not that hard to remove ,I did remove mine in-mast for winter when still in NY.
You could do it and get to know your equipment workings,very easy to do yourself and save the money.
Nick
If it was me I would remove the sails,why take the chance it's not that hard to remove ,I did remove mine in-mast for winter when still in NY.
You could do it and get to know your equipment workings,very easy to do yourself and save the money.
Nick
Why not remove it? Because that pole that the sail is attached to is protected by the sail. Take the sail out and bounce that mast around and that might break. How much does that cost? That pole is made of aluminum and it will bounce like crazy if the sail isn't in it.
With the sail in and the haylard tight, NOTHING is going to move OR shafe at all, regardless of whether the mast is up or down.
It's not a matter how much time it takes to take the sail out, it's a matter of what is better for the mast.
With the sail in and the haylard tight, NOTHING is going to move OR shafe at all, regardless of whether the mast is up or down.
It's not a matter how much time it takes to take the sail out, it's a matter of what is better for the mast.
Franklin,
These masts are shipped with no sail in them. Catalina, Beneteau and Hunter all ship spars sans sails to places far and wide. As do the manufacturers like Charleston and Selden when they ship to the manufacturers.
Perhaps on your spar the halyard tightens the foil or you have the type with an internal tensioning wire. On a Charleston Spar it does nothing of the sort. The halyard swivel simply slides up and down the extrusion just like on a head stay furler and never quite reaches the tip top of the foil. It only serves to tighten the luff of the sail. My spar shipped with only the foil in the spar and no sail. I know because I was the one who unwrapped the spar, as it came from the factory, and installed the radar. It shipped all the way from FL to MA and there were no issues. A few pieces of foam was all that was in there.
The current Selden furling spars also do not tension the foil using the halyard they use an adjusting screw that adjusts the foil. It is adjusted so that with the spar laying horizontally the foil does not rest against the inner spar wall at the mid point. The foil rides in a top swivel bearing and bottom bearings.The halyard swivel simply slides up and down the foil, like on a Furlex, an tightens only the luff of the main sail.
Tightening the halyard only tightens the luff of the sail. You can see photos of this in Selden's catalog on page 95. In this photo you'll clearly see two bearing configurations. One is the halyard swivel for the head board of the sail, which like a head sail furler allows the sail to roll but not the halyard. The other bearing, pictured above the halyard swivel, allows the foil its self to rotate. this bearing is called the top swivel bearing. You will also notice the foil, North of the top swivel, is bolted to the mast head.
Selden Catalog Go To Page 95 (LINK)
Furler foils get man handled a lot more than the 5" of max movement that the foil in a spar would see and you rarely see one have a problem and these are usually sectional splices. Just visit any Northern boat yard in the fall or spring and you'll see furler foils with bends at 5 times+ the range of what can happen inside a spar..
What spar do you have where the halyard adjusts or changes tension or prevents movement of the foil? I was under the assumption, and I may be incorrect, that the 376 uses a Selden furling spar? If yours is a Selden I have yet to see one, but I'd like to, where the "bottom is secure and the top is secure via the halyard pulling on it".
$2.00 worth of pipe insulation, slid up the foil, would go a long way to preventing "banging around like no tomorrow" and you would not risk any potential for sail chafe.
If you admit the foil will "bang around like no tomorrow" what is to prevent the sail, which when furled is slightly smaller than the ID of the spar, from doing the same?
You still don't get it.
The haylard is connected to the sail's head. The sail's tack is connected to the bar. Pull the haylard tight and it pulls the bar up as far as it can go via the sail. That's why it doesn't move around when the mast is up. Gravity has nothing to do with it. Take the sail out and you loose all that tension that holds things in place. Like I said before, it doesn't matter if the mast is up or not, if the haylard is tight, the sail is not going to move. If it did, then our sails would shafe all the time during storms at the dock.
The haylard is connected to the sail's head. The sail's tack is connected to the bar. Pull the haylard tight and it pulls the bar up as far as it can go via the sail. That's why it doesn't move around when the mast is up. Gravity has nothing to do with it. Take the sail out and you loose all that tension that holds things in place. Like I said before, it doesn't matter if the mast is up or not, if the haylard is tight, the sail is not going to move. If it did, then our sails would shafe all the time during storms at the dock.
Settle down now boy's and girls. Lets not get into a fist to cuffs over a dumb question. There has to be a reasonable answer to the equation. Leave the speculation at the dock and bring some experience to the table and we'll get this sorted out properly so we can put it to bed.
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