Bottom tackle for Roller Furling

[Flightsport]

I have a Sea Furl 705 LD furler on my 1976 Columbia 26T. The bottom of the drum was cut back a bit raising the entire furler up off the deck by about 6 inches. So now, the clasp (as pictured) will not work as the span is too far. (The picture is of the old arrangement, its a much farther span now, about 8"). Do they make a special piece that will hold the furler steady as its working or do I need to just buy a turnbuckle that will do the job? Thanks!

Mike

[knothead]

Originally Posted by Flightsport

I have a Sea Furl 705 LD furler on my 1976 Columbia 26T. The bottom of the drum was cut back a bit raising the entire furler up off the deck by about 6 inches. So now, the clasp (as pictured) will not work as the span is too far. Do they make a special piece that will hold the furler steady as its working or do I need to just buy a turnbuckle that will do the job? Thanks!

Mike

Mike, I'm not really following you. Are you saying that the bottom of the drum has been modified and the pictures are showing the drum as it used to be?
When you say the "clasp" are you talking about the shackle?

[Flightsport]

Yes it is pictured as it "used to be", a shorter span from grommet to deck, thanks again for setting me straight. In the picture you can see that shackle that was previously used, it turns 90 degrees from one end to the other. The distance that shackle must now span is about 8 inches. I wish I had a picture of the new arrangement. We modified the bottom of the furler last year so it sat higher off the deck and didn't grind down on the deck tackle so much. So, same arrangement, just larger distance to span between the bottom of the drum (where you see the grommet) and the deck hardware. Just wondering if there was something better than a turnbuckle to use. Thanks!

[knothead]

Originally Posted by Flightsport

Yes it is pictured as it "used to be", a shorter span from grommet to deck, thanks again for setting me straight. In the picture you can see that shackle that was previously used, it turns 90 degrees from one end to the other. The distance that shackle must now span is about 8 inches. I wish I had a picture of the new arrangement. We modified the bottom of the furler last year so it sat higher off the deck and didn't grind down on the deck tackle so much. So, same arrangement, just larger distance to span between the bottom of the drum (where you see the grommet) and the deck hardware. Just wondering if there was something better than a turnbuckle to use. Thanks!

You don't really want to use a turnbuckle. A turnbuckle might have a tendency to allow the drum to rotate.
What might be a better choice is a pair of link plates in combination with an eye-jaw toggle.





Even these will let the drum move a little but it shouldn't be a problem.

Some people will simply lash the grommet to the tack shackle and then tie the whole thing off to the pulpit on either side to immobilize it. That's the simplest, easiest and least expensive and it will work fine.

That shackle is called a twist shackle btw.

[Flightsport]

Thanks again for the tip! Looks like the link plate arrangement would work great. Like you stated, the goal is immobilizing the rotation of the bottom drum, I thought the turnbuckle could pull sufficient downhaul to reduce the rotational tendency, one of these:



Where do you get a linkplate anyway?

Mike

[knothead]

Originally Posted by Flightsport

Thanks again for the tip! Looks like the link plate arrangement would work great. Like you stated, the goal is immobilizing the rotation of the bottom drum, I thought the turnbuckle could pull sufficient downhaul to reduce the rotational tendency, one of these:



Where do you get a linkplate anyway?

Mike

Mike, When I think about it, there is no reason that the turnbuckle won't work. The way the furler is designed to work is that when the sail is hauled up and there is halyard tension applied, the entire system is lifted up off the centering clamp. At that point whatever is used to hold the system down comes into play. Obviously, the closer that grommet is to the deck, the less movement the drum will have. Moving it up eight inches will allow it to rotate a little if it's not lashed to the pulpit or something.
So if you already have the turnbuckle, go ahead and use it. It will work as well as the link plates and toggle.

The link plates that I showed were Schaefer. You might be able to order them from the Sailnet store.

Truthfully though, you will be just fine if you simply lash the drum down using some small high tech cord.
You should tie the grommet off to the pulpit on each side to immobilize the drum. Make sure that you've led the furling line right. (ninety degrees to the forestay and clear of the edge of the opening of the drum when the sail is out)

[Flightsport]

Thanks again! This furling system has been a bit of a pain. I had a new line put in and had it spliced to make a single line. Unfortunately, the splice was a little bit too bulky to fit through the drum cleet, so its always a matter of making sure the "lump" is at the farthest end of the loop, near the cockpit and usually there's enough line to get it furled or unfurled. Thanks again for the help!

[Flightsport]

Sea Trial report: Unfortunately the turnbuckle didn't hold the furler rigid enough to let the line pass through without a slight twist and consequential binding. Anyone else have any ideas? Mike