Roller Furling UV Strips

finding41 · Oct 31, 2013

I have some type of UV Dacron...? stuff on my head sail. It is white in colour and nice and light. I got the sail used so it could be anything.
To my untrained eye it seems to be doing its job.
I like to look of the white over another colour. The main sail cover is royal blue Sunbrella.
Visually (To my trained eye.) it looks more balanced even with the blue main cover.
I'd go with the new stuff in white. Make sure the price is for putting it on both sides of the sail.
Here is a picture of it not furled properly...:neutral:

justsomeguy · Oct 31, 2013

Finding, why both sides?

sailaway78 · Oct 31, 2013

You might want to ask

You might want to ask about the thread being used. A friend of mine had a sail basically come apart, because the thread used to sew it was not UV resistant. This was on a pretty new, very well known brand of boat.

Ted · Oct 31, 2013

You only need a UV cover on both sides of the sail if you never furl your sail properly. The photo above will show you why.

One side is the norm as long as you roll in the proper direction.

DougM · Nov 1, 2013

My jib had the light weight white Dacron UV panels and they lasted six seasons, and might have made it through another except for a couple of spots. The thread lasted longer than the fabric. I had the panels replaced last winter. It's not exactly cheap. I have thought about testing a protective sleeve such as I have seen recently on some boats. Just hoist it with the spinnaker halyard. It would probably prevent the sail from accidentally unfurling in a blow too.

Tejas · Nov 1, 2013

We have both UV Dacron and a sleeve and we discovered two additional considerations:

1. Seems obvious, but be sure to pull the sleeve high enough to cover the head.

2. The sleeve tends to twist in the wind and chafe the UV cover, which we mitigated by wrapping a spinnaker halyard around the cover.

Roadking Larry · Nov 1, 2013

I use a jib sock over the head sail on my Mac 26S. I have a CDI furler so the jib halyard only gets used to hoist the jib sock. I bought it off the store site here. I don't remember the actual cost but somewhere around $150+/- some. Tsock that was on it had a few holes from trailering and needed restitched but the zippper pretty well grenaded so I bought a new one.

thinwater · Nov 1, 2013

DougM said:
My jib had the light weight white Dacron UV panels, they lasted six seasons, and might have made it through another except for a couple of spots. The thread lasted longer than the fabric. I had the panels replaced last winter. It's not exactly cheap. I have thought about testing a protective sleeve such as I have seen recently on some boats. Just hoist it with the spinnaker halyard. It would probably prevent the sail from accidentally unfurling in a blow too.

Same. The genoa was still in fine shape but the strip was in tatters. ~ ~$600 for a Sunbrella replacement with some other repairs.

Go with a color; the UV had burnt some of the genoa right through the thin cover. IMHO white covers are a waste of time:

Cruiser--Sunbrella
Racer-- Sleave or better yet, lower

Ron20324 · Nov 1, 2013

DougM said:
... Just hoist it with the spinnaker halyard. It would probably prevent the sail from accidentally unfurling in a blow too.

A sleeve on a boat across the creek would whip around like cazy in a strong wind- until it self-destructed. Yeah, you'd want to wrap a spare halyard around the sleeve.

Jayster · Nov 1, 2013

Firehoser75,
I think the first question is, who makes the Odyssey UV cloth? I did a Google search and it is made by Challenge Sailcloth. http://www.challengesailcloth.com/canvas/odyssey.htm So I would image it is pretty legit. Challenge is one of the biggest providers of sailcloth to the industry.

The second question is, who is recommending it? Make sure to shop around and call many different lofts. Prices on UV covers vary. You should get 6 to 7 years out of your UV cover if it is not Sunbrella. If you took the sail off during the winter you should get more. I have been quoted $5.35 to $10.00 per foot US. I am having Doyle in Newport Beach, Ca. put a new UV cover on a jib for me and they charge $5.35 per foot. They recommended a coated dacron (same as, and probably is, Odyssey) for longevity and functionality. They are straight shooters so I went with it.

BTW - they wash sails for $100 per sail while most lofts charge $250. Like I say, be sure to shop around.

Good Luck.

DougM · Nov 1, 2013

Should not have to wrap a halyard around the sleeve. Most of the sleeves I have seen have built in heavy lacing. Besides, the spare halyard is being used to hoist the sleeve and if it's internal to the mast there would be nothing to wrap around the sleeve. If the sleeve is properly made, it should fit fairly close to the furled sail with very little excess to flop around. Logically, if a heavy blow is predicted, the sails should be off the boat if at all possible.

Joe · Nov 1, 2013

Is it common to leave the sail on the furler during the long periods of time the boat is not used? Do you leave the mainsails on during the winter or off season too? Honestly, if I were trying to protect my $3000 headsail from exposure I would consider taking it off and storing it inside the boat.

A follow up question is: how long does it take to hoist or drop your headsail?

Currently, I have hanked on sails... but I have experience with RF equipped boats.... and it takes very little time to drop the sail, fold it, bag it and stow below deck.

DougM · Nov 2, 2013

I never leave sails on the boat over the winter. It doesn't take much time at all to take them off. I always fold them so head ,tack, and clew are easily accessible. They are bagged and hung in a garage closet where no critters can get at them. Anyway, winter is a good time to take them to a sail loft if they need repair or cleaning. Putting everything back together in the spring only takes me about an hour. The jib slides easily up the groove in the roller furler. With the sheets attached beforehand, and the foot pulled back, it's a simple matter just to roll it up. With the main, I just put the battens back in their pockets, attach the clew, and the tack, clip the halyard to the headboard and feed the slugs Into the mast track one at a time, alternating folds as I go. I have a lazy bag so the sail doesn't have a chance to get away in the process.

One person I know left his sail on the boat during the winter, and a stray cat chose that as a place to have a litter. The smell was such that you could tell if his boat was upwind and relatively close for a long time after that.

Stu Jackson · Nov 2, 2013

Ron's right. I can barely suppress my wonderment at why anyone would want the simplicity and ease of use of roller furling and then ADD work by putting on a sleeve. Maybe that's just me. I've gotten 15 years out of two headsails that are 26 years old! One winter, one summer sail, so each of them is up for six months a year. Only had to have some stitching redone on one, and that was my fault for a rotten furl in heavy winds - I ripped the threads, they didn't go from age. Both are Leading Edge sails, and I believe they are still in business in San Mateo, California, south of San Francisco.

BTW, the sail furling direction is something YOU determine, based on which direction you run your furling line through the drum. It should never change from furl to furl.

DougM · Nov 3, 2013

The sleeve is a bit like a belt and suspenders approach. My assumption is that the sacrificial strips on the headsail could be eliminated altogether. That might help sail shape somewhat, as well as help it to perform slightly better in light air because of the reduced weight on the leech and foot. Additionally, a five to six hundred dollar repair cost could be eliminated, or perhaps a new sail would cost less. It could be cost effective assuming that a sunbrella sleeve of heavier weight material would last much longer.

Chief RA · Nov 3, 2013

Learning much with all this info! My new to me 250 came with a new 150 furling sail that runs right down to the deck. I have never had a furling fore sail before and several things about my sail concern me. There is no protective UV material on this sail plus it drags over my life lines. Any ideas? Chief

TLW · Nov 3, 2013

Chief - A deck-sweeper headsail will, of course, "drag" up and over your life-lines. I have used Forespar spinnaker pole discs (as inexpensive "wheels") on the life-lines to allow the sail to roll over them. You could also use Harken or Forespar spreader wheels for the same purpose, but more expensive.

Chief RA · Nov 3, 2013

Thanks TLW! What is your opinion on UV edging? I am in much sun while on Lake Oroville (3 months per yr) and not bad at Bodega Bay CA (4 months per yr). Chief

TLW · Nov 3, 2013

Chief - I've always preferred Dacron only because it is much lighter and that was of prime importance to me. Some sailmakers will sew the Dacron, really just a 2nd layer of sailcloth, to the leech. Others will use what we always called "sticky-back Dacron" which is really insignia cloth - used for sail numbers, insignias, spreader patches, and emergency sail repair. It is light-weight sailcloth with adhesive on one side and a peel-off backing.

Sunbrella, of course, can match your sail cover, dodger, winch covers, etc. to really "dress up" the boat.

Roller Furling UV Strips

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