I installed a Profurl furling system last year and so far am really impressed with its quality. The jib I used was a 100% and was cut to fit the luff of 39ft. I want to try a 130% but the luff is only 36ft. Although not the ideal situation, I'm assuming that I can attach a 3ft pennant to the tack allowing the sail to be hoisted to the top and avoiding any tangling up there????? I'm the first to admit that I'm a moron on sail knowledge so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Basically I just want to mess around with a few used sails to get a feel for what works best in the Maritime conditions and my boat(Hunter30) before I settle on having a new one made. Hate to spend $2500 and find out I erred.
Profurl Furling
- Thread starter Rick2413
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Not sure what you would learn with a sail three feet off the deck. You would be tacking above the rails when you are trying to see how the 130 tacks. Also the clew will be in a completely different arc. I think I would install it normally at the furler drum.
Could you just buy an old used 150 that fit? Starting with that you could cut it down to find what works best.
Could you just buy an old used 150 that fit? Starting with that you could cut it down to find what works best.
Always attach the painter at the bottom of the sail with a profurl. Never....Never...Never attach anything at the top.
My Profurl recently had problems. I spoke with Profurl and they sent me the parts to fix it, including a new piece of extrusion. It cost me just the price of the shipping and they covered it under warranty. Their customer service is awesome and I am a very happy customer.
My Profurl recently had problems. I spoke with Profurl and they sent me the parts to fix it, including a new piece of extrusion. It cost me just the price of the shipping and they covered it under warranty. Their customer service is awesome and I am a very happy customer.
I agree with Bad Ob. Also, ALWAYS make sure your jib halyard is tight at the top so the top swivel remains high near the "Darth Vader" -- don't let it droop.
The contact that I had with Profurl was Martina at 401-683-5055 extension 227. She was awesome and very knowledgeable.
Adding a pennant makes a lot of sense... if you add it at the bottom, it will help the sail's foot clear the lifelines and bow pulpit when tacking it, but it will put the sail's center of effort up higher...
The profurl I installed works great. We were easily able to furl even in heavy winds.
I have a 110 and a 150. The 150 is just too much sail for the area I live in. If you can try out some sails, it would definitely make your purchase of a new one a lot more sure.
There are a few posts, I believe in the C30 forum about what sized head sail is best. A 135 seems to be what the general consensus was.
I have a 110 and a 150. The 150 is just too much sail for the area I live in. If you can try out some sails, it would definitely make your purchase of a new one a lot more sure.
There are a few posts, I believe in the C30 forum about what sized head sail is best. A 135 seems to be what the general consensus was.
My Profurl has a 'wrap stop' extension piece on the upper swivel which needs to be hoisted high enough to engage in a slot in a fixed cap on the forestay. This ensures the halyard does not wrap around the stay.
I hoist the sail with the tack unattached until the head will not go any higher and the wrap stop engages and then I pull a little harder to compensate for subsequent stretch in the halyard. Then I bowse the tack down to the eye on the furler drum with a lashing. Since I have been doing this I have never had a wrap up top.
I reason that it should be okay to put a strop either above or below the sail - or even a short one at top and another below to set the sail to any height you may find your genoa car sheeting angle or lifeline height needs. The important point being the total length of sail plus any strops and lashings needs to be exactly the length between lower and upper eyes of the furler.
I hoist the sail with the tack unattached until the head will not go any higher and the wrap stop engages and then I pull a little harder to compensate for subsequent stretch in the halyard. Then I bowse the tack down to the eye on the furler drum with a lashing. Since I have been doing this I have never had a wrap up top.
I reason that it should be okay to put a strop either above or below the sail - or even a short one at top and another below to set the sail to any height you may find your genoa car sheeting angle or lifeline height needs. The important point being the total length of sail plus any strops and lashings needs to be exactly the length between lower and upper eyes of the furler.
You can put the pennant at the top
It's the swivel that needs to be near the exit sheave to avoid halyard wrap, not the head of the sail.
As the others have noted, putting the pennant on the bottom will raise the center of effort.
It's the swivel that needs to be near the exit sheave to avoid halyard wrap, not the head of the sail.
As the others have noted, putting the pennant on the bottom will raise the center of effort.
We do the same thing. We use small diameter high strength, low stretch line to connect the tack of the sail to the D ring at the furler drum. The line is a lot easier than trying to fit a wire pennant because it can be adjusted and released at the end of the day, taking the stretch out of the luff of the jib before furling it. I tried three or four wire pennants and finally switched to line, 12 years ago! A few "threads" through each, maybe three and it's easy to use and adjust.
You can attach the line at the top if you want to if your sail is short. But you must have a piece made for the line at the top that has luff tape on it to keep it from easily wrapping around. Something like a sleeve that the rope at the top goes through and then luff tape sewn onto it as well. More than one way to skin a cat.
Thank you all once again for your input. I called Profurl as Bad Obsession suggested who in turn recommended I call Mack Sails in Florida who are their experts in sails and Profurl installs. They were extremely helpful and receptive to my inquiry. They suggested that I split the difference and install a smaller pennant at both the head and tack which would mitigate the concerns stated in your responses as Donalex also stated.
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