Any recomendations of good roller reefing systems

[Guest]

I am wanting to buy a headsail roller reefing system for my 26 ft Folksong sailing boat and would be appreciate any advice. I can not afford the real Rolls Royce systems , but what about the cheaper systems are they durable and substancial enough for extended cruising . I was recomened rotostay , does anyone have any experience of this system?

 

[Avocet]

I fitted a Rotostay on a Cutlass 27 (very similar to a Folkboat) about 4 seasons ago and have had no trouble yet!

 

[rex_seadog]

We also fitted a Rotastay (E04) to our Hunter Delta 25 four seasons ago and no complaints so far.
I'm sure that this does no apply to the Folksong but in the case of the Delta the bottom forestay attatchment is in the anchor locker well below deck level. There seemed to be no proprietary fitting available and for the first season we had to cobble up a rigid connection to the furling drum with a bottle scew and a Plastimo fitting (like two pieces of Mecano). To provide a more elegant solution we had made up a stainless steel rod (about 1" diam by 18" long) with flats machined at each end to fit into the toggles. Has anyone else had a similar problem or is the Delta unique in having the stem-head fitting in the locker? I also seem to remember having a hell of a job in locating a fork to fork toggle to provide articulation between the rod and the stem head. Eventually found a second hand one in Southampton for about £40!

 

[oldharry]

I had a 22 footer fitted with a rotostay which never gave any problems at all over 4 years, and it was clearly a fairly old one.

The next boat had a Plastimo type fitted, which jammed up fairly regularly, because of a poorly designed bearing at the top. It was also quite difficult to secure the bottle screw at the bottom properly, which nearly undid itself several times. (Fortunately other bits jammed up before it let go altogether!)

Latest boat also had Plastimo fitted which had seized the forestay wire and unravelled it - producing a very pretty birdcage effect! The local rigger told me replacing Plastimo rigged forestays provided quite a large chunk of his annual income!

My experience of Rotostay however has been 5 years of complete reliability.

 

[Guest]

fitted a pro-furl to my boat 2 years ago, and (despite its being french) i must admit the design and construction are excellent. Unhesitating recommendation and from my experience, if you approach them on their stand at the boat show you will get a very good deal.

easy to fit yourself, by the way.

 

[billmacfarlane]

I had a Rotostay for 11 years on my last boat. Only problem I had was with the plastic ball bearings which suffered from UV degradation. Rotostay replaced them with s/s ones. Apart from that it was an excellent piece of kit.

 

[Seapepper]

Decide which one you want...Plastimo (cheap), Goiot (dearer), Profurl (dearest) and go to France to buy one. They are about 2.3 the price they are in England.
Try www.accastillage-diffusion.com . It is a bit like tho now defunct Simpson Lawrence but better. They have branches all over France, both north coast and south coast. Very helpvul. I bought a Goiot. Beautifully made and works like silk for about the same price as I would have paid for a cheap Plastimo in England. Go spend some Euros.
John.