[jbarros]

Hi,

I was talking with a friend about the usefulness of a roller furling headsail for singlehanding. The ease of "dropping" it, the potential to "reef" it, etc, and I was told a story about a pin breaking off inside the furler, and someone being stuck with their jib up. They managed to get it down and were fine, but it got me wondering, how often does this happen? Is it preventable with routine maintenance, seasonal rebuilds or something like that? I noticed that the boats I've been on with roller furling headsails, I've not noticed a jib halyard, and I'm a little curious about how one deals with or avoids something like this?

Thanks.

-- James