Pennsacola

[sailaway78]

As I had posted up previously, helped a friend take his H36 over to Pennsacola this past week. Spent three days going over, last day a 24 hour overnighter, from Gulfport to Pennsacola. The weather was pretty nice, but a little bit cool at night. I did learn some things about the Hunter. I have been on this boat a couple of times before, but not offshore. He has all the bells and whistles, and has so much extra stuff on the port side, that he added 300# of ballast on the starboard side, to get rid of the list. And this may add some to the problems I noticed, it does squat a couple of inches. This boat pounds badly in a head sea. More than my old 28, more than my 37. Lots more. It is also slower than either one of those. Our max speed over the trip, was a little under 7 knots. Under similar circumstances my 37 will make 9 knots or better. ( 20 - 25 knots of wind ) on a close reach. We also had problems with the in mast furling on the main. Seems like almost every time we pulled the main out it would jam. On one occasion it took over an hour to get it out. It seems that if you roll up the main, with not enough, or too much tension on it, the stupid thing gets wrinkles in the sail, and then there is not enough room in the mast, and the sail wads up when you unroll it. This boat definately deserves an A in areas of creature comfort and making use of space, but these items sure left a bit of a bad taste.

 

[Ctskip]

You just never know till you sail it

Just like anything else. You don't notice all the little things till you own it.It's no wonder they dont let you take it for the wknd. It's really to bad about the inmast furler. I thought that was going to be a star. Guess I'll stick with the folding wheel. I do like the stainless arch too! Time will tell. Lets wait to hear the stories from other Hunter owners now. If they'll tell? Keep it up, Ctskip

 

[Bob V]

Should we discuss in mast furling while we wait

I think hunter is not alone in this one. In mast furling is a compromise that is accepted by people who think they won't be able to handle those big battened sails. The worst problem with in-mast systems (that is not unique to Hunters) is that they often fail to work when you need them the most which is in high wind. The other problem the furling system contributes to is the speed.The good news is Dutchman systems work very well when installed and used properly. Lazy jacks also help and neither of these systems tend to jamb in high winds.

 

[captain]

I disagree

I have a 2002, 356 with in mast roller furling and disagree with the comments made by nice and easy.1st the roller furling is great, but like any mechanical device you have to use it correctly. Yes you must keep a little tension on it when furling. Heck, even head sail furling will jam if not furled properly. If the main sail jams, I find you refurl and then unfurl with a loose boom and the wind on the starboard side of the boat, seems to help remove any jam. By the way, make sure when you are furling, you are wrapping the sail in the correct direction. If not you are asking for a jam.As for the port list, the large stowage available on the port side seems to have that affect on all of these models. I simply move stuff around. However, if you have the batteries and a generator on the port side, there is not a lot you can do. I have seen a 356 where the batteries were moved to under the setiee on the starboard side to correct for this.As for sailing qualities, every boat has a better point of sail. I find the 356 points well with a minimum amount of pounding, particularly if you are driving it into the wind.It is however, a wide boat and it carries it's beam from well forward to the stern. That is the price you pay for room in the boat. As for speed, there are few boats in my class that can beat me on a beat, however, the small jib is a disadvantage on a reach in light to moderate windsAll I can say is; knowing what I know today, 5 years into owning my 356, I'd buy it again.

 

[Steve Dion]

"not a Hunter problem"

I will have to agree that the problem with the in mast furling is NOT a Hunter problem. We took a GibSea 41 from S.F. bay to Half Moon bay. Each time we tried to unfurl the main it jammed. It took between 45 & 60 minutes to deploy the sail. "too much tension, too little tension" I don't know but give me an in boom furler and let's see what problems that presents.

 

[David10790]

In Mast Furling in a blow

I have had experience with in mast furling on both Hunter and Beneteau in winds up to about 30 knots, and I have found out the following:1. Halyard tension is really important. A bit too loose and the luff will sag inside the mast, leading to bunching. Too tight and the bearings on which the roller rotate will be under too much tension and it will be hard to furl or unfurl.2. Mast bend. Don't even think about it. Obviously rig tuning must keep the mast in column or else the roller will be rubbing on one side or the other. This can be a real problem in charter boats that are not well maintained.3. One side will always be favoured over the other. The slot through which the sail feeds to the roller is narrow, and if the wind is blowing the sail against the slot, rather than away from it, there will be a lot of friction. So if the slot is on the starboard side and the roller goes counterclockwise, the boat should be on the starboard tack when furling, so the sail is streaming away from rather than into the slot.On balance, I still like roller furling main. I recently had to do a standard slab reef in the middle of the night in in a squall. I would rather have stayed in the cockpit.

 

[abe]

Love my inmast furling on my H36....

I have reefed it and furled in at 45knott winds. Always furl with the wind on a slight starboard tack...almost stalling but enough that it adds a little tension and thus furls in nice and tight. I also loosen up the mainsheet when furling and unfurling. Sometimes I wished I could shape the sails a little better...but when you have 45 knott winds and big waves it is nice to do all of this from the cockpit.abe

 

[Jim Seamans]

Agree with Captain and David

I'm starting my fifth season with the 356/36 and would not trade the in-mast furling. Joan and I have been out in 35kts 6-8 sharp seas on the Chesapeake Bay. Most times we head up into the blow to adjust the main, we find it easier with the pressure off the sail. Last October we made adjustments with the wind at 120 over the port. It was a bit harder to adjust since the wind wanted to pull the entire sail out at once. It required some interesting line handling for the main control lines. I have had two jams but was due to the clew catching on the slot while trying to roll in the sail.JimS/V Java

 

[sailaway78]

I agree

Some of you took a little offense I think, but this was just observations, and not a shot at the Hunter. I also stated that this boat is loaded until is sits below the waterline in the stern, which I can accept as being part of the pounding problem. He has added three hundred pounds of ballast on the starboard side to level the boat out.This isn't something that you can say is a problem with how the boat is being sailed. Beating upwind into a head sea, is just beating upwind into a head sea. This boat pounds, I just am not sure how much of it is design, how much is the broad beam carried well aft, and how much is all the added weight in the stern. But it pounds in a head sea worse than anything I have been on. I agree that the in mast furling is not just a Hunter deal. It is a Selden mast and boom. The owner has only had this boat for less than a year, and I have never messed with this before, so there is a lack of knowledge here. He is also having a rigger look at it to make sure there isn't something else wrong, but it appears the tension on the sail is somewhat critical, to keep it from jamming. On one occasion we did furl it with I also give Hunter all the cudos in the world for what they do with space. With all that being said, there is absolutely no way that this boat can begin to sail with my S37, which is a foot longer, with the same beam, but not carried as far aft as the Hunter. I may not know enough about the roller furling, but I do know when a sail is trimmed right. Under the same conditions, the S37 is at least three knots faster. Been there, done that. I don't think it will stay with my 28' S2, but that would be a little bit closer. All in all, I like the boat a lot. The in mast furling is a real neat deal, when it works, and maybe there is a problem with it the rigger will find. But I will have to see it work a lot better before I would want one on my boat. 99% of my sailing is single handed, I am 68 years old, and I am just about at my limits with the 37. Don't need something else to screw up that I have to take care of, especially in a seaway.

 

[Jerry Clark H356 SV Persistence]

Must hold tension on the outhaul when furling

When you furl the in-mast main, you have to keep some tension on the outhaul so the wrap is tight. On bringing out the main, you have to use the outhaul while pulling on the out line of the furler. If it gets stuck, then hold tension on the outhaul while furling in using the in furling line. If you are rigged right and follow this procedure, it works flawlessly all the time. I am on my fifth season and wouldn't have a sailboat without in-mast furling.With a genset, two 4D lifelines and a group 24, I also have a list. Have looked into moving the batteries under the salon, but haven't yet - you get used to the list.