in pursuit of the ultimate question. Do I replace my current Batton main with a furling system. My vessel is a '95 320 Catalina. My main is supported with a dutchman system. I would like to hear from anyone who has ventured this route and what are the pros & cons of making this change. We cruise on lake Ontario
Replacing current main with furling
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Furling mains are convenient, but because of the required vertically mounted battons in the leech of the mainsail they are not as efficient & will reduce some performance.
An in boom mounted furling system, such as "Leisure Furl" allows you to furl with a standard main sail. I believe that this would be cheaper than an in mast system, for obvious reasons of not requiring a mast replacement. Lazy Jacks would help to at least capture the standard mainsail when lowering it, & stack pack type covers allow U to zip over the mainsail, & appear to be a lot easier to deal with then a standard cover, & would be a lot cheaper then a furling system. Food for thought.
An in boom mounted furling system, such as "Leisure Furl" allows you to furl with a standard main sail. I believe that this would be cheaper than an in mast system, for obvious reasons of not requiring a mast replacement. Lazy Jacks would help to at least capture the standard mainsail when lowering it, & stack pack type covers allow U to zip over the mainsail, & appear to be a lot easier to deal with then a standard cover, & would be a lot cheaper then a furling system. Food for thought.
Thank you, I've looked into the lazy jacks and the stack pack. I just needed to hear it from others. I cruise most of the time and I'm not concerned about ultimate performance. My second in command has become I'll and therefore I need to simplify my approach with the main
When we first got the 320, we looked into going with a roller furling boom. It looked like a great modification to help with senior sailing issues. However, after pricing the boom, installation, and a new main, a bill of about $14K seemed excessive. The gentleman that had our boat prior now has in mast furling on his new boat. He is not totally satisfied and is concerned with the possibility that it may jam in heavy weather. Personally, I do not like the in mast solution, but others do....as it goes, YMMV. What is clear is that there are folks who make mast or boom furling work and some are sailing into their 80's.
Suggest you continue to research until you are satisfied with your choice. How is that for stating the obvious?
Our approach will be to continue to flake the main sail as it comes down. I move the boom to the port end of the traveler and drop the main between the dodger and the boom. After tying the first set of flakes in place from behind the dodger, I drop the main the rest of the way and move up to the cabin top to flake the remainder of the main. If it's not neat enough, I reflake when we are secure in the slip or at anchor. Hope I can make that system work into my 80's.
Interesting - this last weekend, we saw a boat with a set of tubes that pivoted out from the boom to form a V at the front, middle and rear of the boom to catch the sail like lazy jacks. Owner said they were off the shelf hardware that was available on the East coast about 15-20 years ago. First time I ever saw them. With a full batton main, the dodger kind of does the same thing with out the fuss - Interesting!
Pat, 801
I'm unclear what difficulties you are having, Dutchman on a full batten main work as well or better as other systems when properly adjusted. I prefer it for the lack of clutter on the boom and foot of the sail.
If it's a difficulty in raising after cleaning and lubing the sail track and slides, and insuring the halyard is running true on a functioning sheave, a battcar system may be worth considering or converting the winch to electric.
But I am unclear as to what you are trying to improve upon.
If it's a difficulty in raising after cleaning and lubing the sail track and slides, and insuring the halyard is running true on a functioning sheave, a battcar system may be worth considering or converting the winch to electric.
But I am unclear as to what you are trying to improve upon.
An electric winch does sound like it would help the aging sailor, but user beware: I read in Sail magazine this month about a wife who lost all of the fingers on one hand to the torque of an electric winch when her husband was stuck up the mast in a bosun's chair. The electric winch was used to haul him up. To make it even worse, someone came to the wife's assistance, & he wound up loosing some fingers to that damn winch as well. I would only use electric, if it has one of the new reverse mechanisms installed. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's had a turn around the winch overlap by a newby on your boat.
I recently bought a Beneteau with in-mast furling thinking that it would be much easier to deploy than a standard main. However, having had a standard full batten main with lazy jacks on my previous boat, I can tell you that the furler doesn't save much time or effort.
I assumed that the in mast main would furl much like a furling jib. With the furling jib, it takes very little effort to uncleat the furling line and then tug on the jib sheet. Usually it quickly unravels as the wind catches it.
But the furling main, I always have to use a winch to put it in and take it out. While furling or unfurling, I also have to put some tension on the outhaul or inhaul to prevent wrinkles. Everything has to be set just right for the furling to go right: halyard tension, vang, mainsheet eased, topping lift set to correct height. One time a friend adjusted the tipping lift which then caused the sail to get stuck when furling due to overlaps.
The other issue with in-mast furling is the bad sailshape due to lack of battens. The leach is usually floppy because it is unsupported. While you can try vertical battens, the sailmakers I've spoken to discourage them because they cause more wear on the sail and can jam.
I find it to be finicky and trouble-prone. Maybe I'm still getting used to it because I've only had the new boat for around two months now, but if I was to choose again, I'd go with the standard setup with lazy jacks and a track.
I assumed that the in mast main would furl much like a furling jib. With the furling jib, it takes very little effort to uncleat the furling line and then tug on the jib sheet. Usually it quickly unravels as the wind catches it.
But the furling main, I always have to use a winch to put it in and take it out. While furling or unfurling, I also have to put some tension on the outhaul or inhaul to prevent wrinkles. Everything has to be set just right for the furling to go right: halyard tension, vang, mainsheet eased, topping lift set to correct height. One time a friend adjusted the tipping lift which then caused the sail to get stuck when furling due to overlaps.
The other issue with in-mast furling is the bad sailshape due to lack of battens. The leach is usually floppy because it is unsupported. While you can try vertical battens, the sailmakers I've spoken to discourage them because they cause more wear on the sail and can jam.
I find it to be finicky and trouble-prone. Maybe I'm still getting used to it because I've only had the new boat for around two months now, but if I was to choose again, I'd go with the standard setup with lazy jacks and a track.
Thanks - that really is useful info. & confirms some of my suspicions about in mast furlers.
I think that they were criticized a lot initially in terms of sail shape performance, but they're so prevelant now that no one gives them a second thought.
I think that they were criticized a lot initially in terms of sail shape performance, but they're so prevelant now that no one gives them a second thought.
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