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Newbie question.
I have a (new to me) Mirage 24. Few afternoons of sailing her under my belt. Most of my experience sailing is from years back - summer sailing school as a kid, then some racing crew on keel boats.
My boat has a Furlex roller reefing system (s50) for the jib but I'm having a tough time getting it to furl even in light conditions. Can't imagine how I could reef in heavy weather.
Today I removed all the spare line from the drum so there is only what is required for the sail - but even with less line to tangle it is still resistant.
Pulling on the reefing line I feel like I'm going to break something. So far the only way I've been able to start the first few rolls is to twist the sail by hand. Once it's started then I can use a winch to roll in the rest. Only the last third can be hand pulled.
Any advice is appreciated. It's not that hard to twist by hand - So I'm wondering if I've got the sail rotation reversed or something?
Are you somehow getting "overwraps" on the drum? This happens when the drum somehow catches the line and wraps it the wrong way.
Every now and then, I check for this on my CDI furler by unfurling at the dock and then slowly furling again.
Check the rope as it leaves the drum. It has to lead fair to the first block as it runs back to the cockpit. If it does not it binds and makes it virtually impossible to furl your sail. You should not have to use a winch. If you do you can very easily break your system. Also how old is it and has it been in a salt environment. If it has not been cleaned periodicaly wear can occur and the bearings will wear flat on one side as they are bound and can't rotate like they should
Thx for quick replies.
My first thought was that the furling line was getting fouled (I had wrapped up way too much the first time). Stripped out a bunch - but maybe I need to keep more tension on the line as I reel out the sail. Given the drum spins easily by hand I think this is the most likely culprit.
Line is running clear to a block on the bow pulpit - so that shouldn't be the issue.
Boat is on salt water, definitely no servicing in last few yrs. Just bought some marine lube - I'll see if that helps.
I'll be sure to sort it out rather than just going with more force! Given the small line I couldn't see how it would have been designed to withstand winching.
I believe the top swivel is turning easily.
I can turn the sail by hand fairly easily and there is no twisting when it does furl.
But I'll check tomorrow - make sure
It's definitely crucial to keep some back tension on the furling line as you unfurl. If you let the wind freely roll the sail out you're almost guaranteed to get an override on the drum, possibly unawares until you try to refurl it.
There really shouldn't be any situation (with the possible exception of trying to furl in a real breeze out of the lee of the main - not a good idea in any event...) where you'll need a winch to get the sail to furl.
Unless it's really light air we tend to bear off, get the headsail luffing in the lee of the main sail, control the roll tension with the sheet, then come up to course if necessary.. easier on the hands, the crew and the gear.
Also, when you've got minimal line on the drum an overtight furl can mean you'll run out of line before the sail is fully furled, leaving some sail exposed which can complicate docking and mooring...
Glad to see another M24 owner out there!! I have a Harken MkIII furler. I was having similar issues with difficult furling. Found the Root Cause was that the Furling line was wound backwards on the drum. You will be able to furl the jib (with two hands). To correct the issue, i removed the jib. Pulled the furling line out of the drum and re-fed the line, counter-clockwise in my case. Feeding the line between my Big Toe and second toe to keep tension (I was by myself and needed a third hand ;-)). That got me proper tension on the drum. I then motored out into the wind (light breeze). Hoisted the jib. Fell off a bit to allow the jib to fill. Finally i was able to haul on the furling line with my right hand while holding the Port jib sheet with my left hand to keep tension for a nice tight furl. Just to let you know...there is a Mirage 24 users group on Yahoo where we share maint tips, pitures & stories(groups.yahoo.com/group/mirage24/). You'll love your Mirage!! She is very fast!!
You also might want to check the halyard tension (that was my problem). Experiment with it. Looser can cause the halyard to try and wrap, tighter can cause too much friction.
Ok. I'm out tonight so I'll check my halyard tension and I'll have a spare set if hands to keep a good tension on the line as I unfurl the sail.
I'm already a member of the M24 group on yahoo - I've had a few emails into that group to
address boat specific issues.
Loving the boat so far. Small enough to single hand (or manage with my kids) but big enough to feel like a real boat (as compared to my old dinghy racing days). PO left me with great sails which helps - but in modest winds I'm easily clearing 6kts into the wind. Haven't had a chance to run a windy beam reach to see how fast she will go.
I had a problem with my furler couple of years ago, found out that the swivel needs to be greased and I haven't done it. The swivel frozed and I had to buy a new one.
At the risk of asking the obvious, you are not trying to reef with the sail sheeted in and drawing, are you? If you head up or release the sheet such that the sail is almost luffing, you should be able to pull in the furling line by hand.
Good sail tonight.
Made a point of keeping some tension on the reefing line as I pulled out the jib.
Was able to hand furl the job at the end. Still stiffer than I'd like - but to bad.
I'll look into lubrication and halyard tension soon. Might make it that much easier.
Of course there are always new issues - tonight my trusty and recently serviced outboard decided to pack it in 500m off dock. Had to sail it in. Winds were light and perfectly angle for an easy docking on the outer rim - but not the challenge I was hoping for!
Thx for all the advice. Little more work I'll have that part sorted and ready to tackle the next.
Mark
Good job! It's always something isn't it? My OB did the same thing to me while transiting from the launching marina to my mooring this spring. I just recently heard that I should leave the main up until I moor just in case the iron wind dies. That makes sense, but to have it up for the hour plus transit up from the mouth of the river, flopping around and spoiling my view...
Is the reefing line big enough (dia) to fill the drum when sail is set? I found that the bigger torque helps start the furl. My gennie is pretty big (500 sq ft)and needs help and good timing.
As others have noted, the two biggest culprits are getting the halyard wrapped and not having enough tension on the forestay. The installation specs. as to angle of halyard line where it exits the block to the top swivel are quite precise. If there is a noticeable sag in the foil it will make turning the drum difficult to impossible. Drum binding seems to be somewhat unavoidable but tension must be maintained rolling in and out. I keep sheet in one hand, furler line in the other to maintain control.
Thanks for all the advice.
By keeping tension on my furling line as I pull out the jib I've been able to re-furl fairly easily.
Tension on backstay seems good and the furling line is running cleanly to the block.
I will make a point of dismantling and lubricating the furler in the fall.
Thx
Mark
take it apart walk away for a day
then review it again
check lines and how the run thru the blocks
check your lines for chafing particles caught iniside
i have been at this for 45 years now and the first thing I would ck is to make sure you have enough tension on the head shroud, any amount of curve in this shroud, will make reefing very tuff. even in light air. and rotating it by hand is easy but very tuff if it has any curve in it while reefing (straight foil curved shroud does not furl well. Next i would make sure that the furling line is at the proper angle out of the drum (90deg) and last I would ck to see if you have enough angle of the halyard out of the mast to top swivel, not enough angle will stop top swivel from turning. And last but not least make sure you tighten the halyard before trying to furl. May your sails always be full and the sun on yur back---SEABEE
when was the last time the system was maintained? Lubed? Cleaned?
FRICTION is your number one enemy
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