Roller furler problems

[VASailor10]

I am having problems with my roller furler. The sail just wont furl, I have to go topside and manually furl it around. When I install the sail should the line be all the way out or wrapped around the drum?

Thanks,
Spencer

[welshwind]

When the sail is out, most of the furling line should be wrapped around the drum. When the sail is furled, you'll have much more line coiled near the cockpit.

[sailingdog]

Generally, when you install the sail, the drum should be pre-loaded with a specific number of wraps of line. It would generally say in your boat's owner's manual.

It sounds like you hoisted the sail with a few too little wraps around the drum, so you've got extra sail left over.

Generally, I like adding a few extra wraps around the drum before putting the sail on the foil. That way, when the sail is completely furled, it will have a few wraps of the genoa sheets around it to help keep it furled tightly.

[VASailor10]

Thanks for the quick response...ill try that

-Spencer
___________________
Suprise
Catalina 22

[welshwind]

Another reason to put a few extra wraps around is because your furling line might stretch a bit over the course of the season. If it stretches too much, you won't have enough line to fully furl the sail. (I only had to learn that once!)

[tenuki]

btw, to further complicate things you have to pay attention to the direction of rolling/unrolling. Look at your sail to see what side the UV protection is on, also read the furler manual to make sure it doesn't require one direction or the other.

[sailingdog]

Tenuki-

With foil-based furlers the direction isn't generally all that important...what matters with them is which side the UV protective film/sacrificial UV cover is on. With a wire luff furler, like you will find on some asymetrical spinnakers, the direction does matter, since if you furl it the wrong way, you can unlay the wire luff...which is not so good for the sail.

[pccist]

When we changed to a single line furler from a loop system the manufacturer suggested removing the core of the line that would be wrapped in the furler's drum. That was to prevent jamming from too thick a bundle. It was not supposed to weaken the line beyond an acceptable strength for the purpose of furling. Best Wishes, Phil

[sailingdog]

Originally Posted by pccist

When we changed to a single line furler from a loop system the manufacturer suggested removing the core of the line that would be wrapped in the furler's drum. That was to prevent jamming from too thick a bundle. It was not supposed to weaken the line beyond an acceptable strength for the purpose of furling. Best Wishes, Phil

Some riggers do this to have the furling line lay on the furling drum more compactly. However, the core should remain in the line in the portions that will be handled. Line clutches and cleats don't work as well if the core is missing, and the line is often harder to handle without a core.