Re: Becalmed, Mayhem, and a Maintenance Warning
Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2015 1:41 pm
Thanks, Mark.
My set up has no separate forestay so I attach the furled sail to the top of the mast when rigging. Have the backstay slack, stand-up the mast and then attach the furled sail to the bow and use back-stay pressure to tighten when sailing.
My code zero uses the spinnaker halyard.
I have used the little dinghy furler for a standard headsail and it is useless in all but the most benign conditions. I have used the larger spool with more success, but it is not all that strong. I certainly would not trust it to half-furl the headsail. It has to be all the way in or all the way out. And sometimes a couple of straps of velcro around the lot improves my piece of mind.
Because I manage a code zero I have been giving some thought to a continuous furler; they aren't cheap but if there is too much pressure in the sail even the large spool furler won't get it all the way in.
I have also given some thought to using a continuous furler on my headsail. My thinking being it uses a decent sized line and it could be cleated off to allow for a partly furled sail. It also shouldn't be overcome by a strong breeze.
The two furlers would be expensive. I can definitely make a case for one to manage the code zero, but one for the headsail too. I wonder.
Could having a continuous furler helped Mark out in his situation?
My set up has no separate forestay so I attach the furled sail to the top of the mast when rigging. Have the backstay slack, stand-up the mast and then attach the furled sail to the bow and use back-stay pressure to tighten when sailing.
My code zero uses the spinnaker halyard.
I have used the little dinghy furler for a standard headsail and it is useless in all but the most benign conditions. I have used the larger spool with more success, but it is not all that strong. I certainly would not trust it to half-furl the headsail. It has to be all the way in or all the way out. And sometimes a couple of straps of velcro around the lot improves my piece of mind.
Because I manage a code zero I have been giving some thought to a continuous furler; they aren't cheap but if there is too much pressure in the sail even the large spool furler won't get it all the way in.
I have also given some thought to using a continuous furler on my headsail. My thinking being it uses a decent sized line and it could be cleated off to allow for a partly furled sail. It also shouldn't be overcome by a strong breeze.
The two furlers would be expensive. I can definitely make a case for one to manage the code zero, but one for the headsail too. I wonder.
Could having a continuous furler helped Mark out in his situation?