I am interested in setting up a roller reef for my O'Day 23'.I prefer to be able to set the jib at different positions. I have a storm jib and 130 and 150 genoas besides my regular jib.If I'm set up with a roller reef system, how do I go about using the genoas?Also , does anybody have any recommendations on places to start looking for the roller reef system? Thanks, Rizz
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Any roller reefing system will limit your options at sail placement and changes. By "set the jib at different positions" I assume you mean vary its height from the deck. You can do this with any roller reefing system the same way as with hank-on sails: with the halyard. However, its way less convenient with roller reefing. You are always starting out with the sail unfurled and fully raised; in order to raise or lower the jib position, you will have to unfurl the sail, lower it enough to unfasten the tack, reposition the tack with a longer or shorter lead, and then rehoist the sail to its new position. You want to use multiple head sails? You can buy units with multiple grooves in the headsail foil, so you can raise one sail while lowering the other. These units seem to be used mostly by racers. You can always just change your head sail even with a furler, but you should know that raising or lowering a roller furling jib is not nearly as easy as a hank on sail. It is a real pain, and you can't just substitute one headsail for another. you will have to set up the furler for each sail, making sure that there are sufficient turns of line in the drum to fully furl and unfurl each sail every time you switch them(the bigger the sail, the more furling line it takes to in the drum). You will also need to modify each headsail to be used in the furler; this means adding the proper sized tape so it fits in the headsail foil groove, adding a foam insert to the foot to maintain sail shape when sailed in a reduced size, and adding some type of sun shield while furled. Imho, don't go to roller furling if you enjoy the flexibility of multiple headsails. Roller furling is great, but it involves compromises, and the first is flexibility. With a roller furling genny, you get one great sail (fully extended), one ok sail shape (reefed to 80%), and ease of operation. I installed it on my Oday 23 a few years ago and can't believe I did without it for all those years. Where to find it? All over the internet, starting right here at this site's chandlery. I bought mine from the sailmaker who modified my jib for the unit. He matched the internet price. Check the archives here for recommendations, but I think you will find that CDI is the choice of many (including me). A great value.
Any roller reefing system will limit your options at sail placement and changes. By "set the jib at different positions" I assume you mean vary its height from the deck. You can do this with any roller reefing system the same way as with hank-on sails: with the halyard. However, its way less convenient with roller reefing. You are always starting out with the sail unfurled and fully raised; in order to raise or lower the jib position, you will have to unfurl the sail, lower it enough to unfasten the tack, reposition the tack with a longer or shorter lead, and then rehoist the sail to its new position. You want to use multiple head sails? You can buy units with multiple grooves in the headsail foil, so you can raise one sail while lowering the other. These units seem to be used mostly by racers. You can always just change your head sail even with a furler, but you should know that raising or lowering a roller furling jib is not nearly as easy as a hank on sail. It is a real pain, and you can't just substitute one headsail for another. you will have to set up the furler for each sail, making sure that there are sufficient turns of line in the drum to fully furl and unfurl each sail every time you switch them(the bigger the sail, the more furling line it takes to in the drum). You will also need to modify each headsail to be used in the furler; this means adding the proper sized tape so it fits in the headsail foil groove, adding a foam insert to the foot to maintain sail shape when sailed in a reduced size, and adding some type of sun shield while furled. Imho, don't go to roller furling if you enjoy the flexibility of multiple headsails. Roller furling is great, but it involves compromises, and the first is flexibility. With a roller furling genny, you get one great sail (fully extended), one ok sail shape (reefed to 80%), and ease of operation. I installed it on my Oday 23 a few years ago and can't believe I did without it for all those years. Where to find it? All over the internet, starting right here at this site's chandlery. I bought mine from the sailmaker who modified my jib for the unit. He matched the internet price. Check the archives here for recommendations, but I think you will find that CDI is the choice of many (including me). A great value.
Roller Furler for an O'Day 23
I installed a CDI Roller Furler FF-2 on my O'Day 222 a couple of months ago. I bought it from Rudy at D & R Marine last year. I don't live too far from Rudy and I needed to have him work on my fore stay and check out a modification that I wanted to do on it before I installed the furler. I had only one Genoa which is still in good condition considering that it's about 14 years old. Rudy had advised me to get the CDI Furler without the ball bearings and I did. For this size boat, ball bearing aren't really needed and the drum can turn on the flat washer that is provided with the CDI. I pointed out that ball bearing have been known to fail. What you should do is pick out the Gennie sail that is in the best condition and have it converted over for the furler. Have them install a UV shield. The conversion will probably go about $300 or more with the shield. Make sure that your fore stay has a toggle on both ends. There is a lot of movement on this stay and you don't want it to break. I had "T" fittings on my stay and I had to add a Stainless Steel tang on my mast for my Fore Stay. I have mast slots for my stays. I had a friend of mine come down and help me install the furler which involves cutting the plastic luff to fit the stay to get the required 3 inch distance from the mast at the top of the furler. I've been using my furler quite a bit and I love the idea of being able to use it and put it away without having to go up forward anymore. As far as your other sails go, you won't need them anymore because once you install the Gennie it stays there all rolled up until it's needed and you can reef it or use the whole sail. Good luck! Joe
I installed a CDI Roller Furler FF-2 on my O'Day 222 a couple of months ago. I bought it from Rudy at D & R Marine last year. I don't live too far from Rudy and I needed to have him work on my fore stay and check out a modification that I wanted to do on it before I installed the furler. I had only one Genoa which is still in good condition considering that it's about 14 years old. Rudy had advised me to get the CDI Furler without the ball bearings and I did. For this size boat, ball bearing aren't really needed and the drum can turn on the flat washer that is provided with the CDI. I pointed out that ball bearing have been known to fail. What you should do is pick out the Gennie sail that is in the best condition and have it converted over for the furler. Have them install a UV shield. The conversion will probably go about $300 or more with the shield. Make sure that your fore stay has a toggle on both ends. There is a lot of movement on this stay and you don't want it to break. I had "T" fittings on my stay and I had to add a Stainless Steel tang on my mast for my Fore Stay. I have mast slots for my stays. I had a friend of mine come down and help me install the furler which involves cutting the plastic luff to fit the stay to get the required 3 inch distance from the mast at the top of the furler. I've been using my furler quite a bit and I love the idea of being able to use it and put it away without having to go up forward anymore. As far as your other sails go, you won't need them anymore because once you install the Gennie it stays there all rolled up until it's needed and you can reef it or use the whole sail. Good luck! Joe
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