I know there have been a lot of comments about home made PVC furling systems. I built one in February, during the cold winter, but I have been concerned and have not used it. I'd love to hear from sailors who have used them extensively. How reliable are they? How do they stand up in heavy weather? Who has had them fail and what happens when they do fail? The last thing I'd want is to be half way across Lake Michigan when it goes out. I look forward to all the pro's and con's. Thank you all. Jennifer
PVC furling system
- Thread starter jenquay
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The Rhodes 22 built by General Boats in Edenton NC has used this way of fabricating their roller furler for many years. You might want to check with them. Ask for Stan.
I actually have one of these. I have an older model Rhodes 22 that I'm restoring. If you need pics or specs, I can take some measurements for you.
I've always been intrigued by these.
Is there a way to take the sail off the fuller while the setup is on the forestay? Most of the designs I've seen seem to not allow for this. That's what I would be worried about. It seems the most likely time for it to jam would be in high winds; just when you want to get the sail in. Not having a way to pull it down could be problematic.
Is there a way to take the sail off the fuller while the setup is on the forestay? Most of the designs I've seen seem to not allow for this. That's what I would be worried about. It seems the most likely time for it to jam would be in high winds; just when you want to get the sail in. Not having a way to pull it down could be problematic.
I actually don't know the answer to that. I got the boat about 18 months ago and put the mast and rigging in a large shed that I have. Put the hull up on blocks and started repairing the hull. It was a badly damaged boat that had slammed into a pier. I've never opened the head sail to look at the furler. But I could look it over this weekend.
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That's my concern. I laid out the jib and cut lengths of 3/4" PVC tubing the exact distance between the sail hanks. Once couplings are glued in place, a notch is cut in the coupling large enough for the hank to pass through and connect to the forestay. Once it is up, the only way to take it down is to remove the forestay to slide it off. You can only remove the hanks as far up as you can reach. If I was 20' tall it would not be a problem. lol
There is no need to remove the sail at setup or teardown. As mentioned it just slides off the forestay after detaching the turn buckle or Johnson leaver. Just make sure you secure the mast with the halyard while youa re doing it. I usually attached the furling line as a messenger line to the forestay before pulling it out so that I could feed it back when reassembling.
I've had my 150 genoa in some winds to about 20kts and furled it in easily. As with most you have to pinch your heading and releave the sheets to take the pressure off before you can pull it in. I use the furler almost everytime I approach Catalina Island.
The PVC furler on the Mac 25 actually works more smoothly and with less efforth than the Hood furler on the C-27. Most of the actual stress is on the forestay as would be if you just had them hanked on. I kept the old brass hanks just in case and never needed them in 5 years. I did replace the 1/2" zip ties annually especially at the top where they are expose all of the time.
I've had my 150 genoa in some winds to about 20kts and furled it in easily. As with most you have to pinch your heading and releave the sheets to take the pressure off before you can pull it in. I use the furler almost everytime I approach Catalina Island.
The PVC furler on the Mac 25 actually works more smoothly and with less efforth than the Hood furler on the C-27. Most of the actual stress is on the forestay as would be if you just had them hanked on. I kept the old brass hanks just in case and never needed them in 5 years. I did replace the 1/2" zip ties annually especially at the top where they are expose all of the time.
Do you have pictures of yours? I glued it tonight and notched the couplers for the zip ties. I'd like to see how your line feeds onto the spool. Thanks, Jennifer
I had a block attached to the pulpit with an extention. You can make an extention using ss bar. I used this because it was onboard in my junk box. It is attached with a ss split rail clamp I picked up at Ebay.
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If you try to buy the "this" that caguy is referring too, it is called a shroud adjuster. Google it and you will find plenty of venders.
He should have a couple on board himself. Mine came from the spit back-stays when I consolidated them to a single back stay and attached the single stay to the sternrail with an ajustable block and tackle that attached to a split rail clamp (Another brilliant mod to the Mac 25, if I do say so myself).
We've used the PVC furler three times now. All three days winds were at least 10-15 knots and one day was up to 25. All together we sailed over 75 miles in the three trips. The furler worked great with only minor glitches. I used zip ties but could not use the 1/2" because the grommets on my jenny are only 3/16". The last trip gave us the strongest winds which pulled the top three zip ties down from the seat groove I ground into the couplers. So now, I've added a hose clamp to the top coupler. Also the first trip, the top of the spool broke loose. I re-glued and tied two turns around the spool with the 1/4" line before tying it through the top of the spool to prevent it spinning. I also added a hose clamp above and below the spool ends. The sail does not come in contact with any of the three clamps so no worry about tearing the sail. That also works great now. Thanks to all of you for your gr8 advice as usual. 
Jennifer
Jennifer- Status