Genoa furling problem and tactics

[dunkelly]

I have a 140% Genoa on my Mac and my other half and I have real difficulties furling it safely in anything over about 12 knots . Whilst out with a stronger crew I tried a few different methods ie swapping to a winch etc but the most successful I found was to gybe downwind with main still up and blanket the Genny then furl it . Then back upwind to bring down the main . Anybody any thoughts on the method or better suggestions ?

 

[PhillM]

Which furler? I find the rope around my plastimo can foil itself while unfurling. The trick seems to be to let the sail out with the line under tension (aka a bit at a time) and then it runs more smoothly.

 

[[2574]]

I guess you’ve thought through any friction creators in the furling line? It’s surprising how multiple points of friction accumulate to hard work.

 

[penfold]

Care when unfurling to avoid lumpy turns and for furling I've never found anything better than going onto the foredeck and hauling the line hand over hand with someone collecting the slack in the cockpit; the pulleys/fairleads that take the line back to the cockpit aren't up to much.

 

[oldmanofthehills]

My furler is hard to pull in in anything above f4. It furls a 150% genoa (compared with origina sail) or 130% now rig shifted. I pull on furling line like a bowstring ie just before final pulley or use kedge winch

And yes if I let line go to slack on unfurling it can wrap round the the foil. No fun then recovering sail going downwind in F6 approaching harbour as we discovered. Wet foredeck work in big sea manually unravelling it. I usually snub it with a quarter turn on foil but I guess i got careless

 

[dunkelly]

Tried and checked most friction / load issues . Try to avoid being out in a 6 in our little boat but we can all get caught out . It's surprising how it can gust just when you don't want it to . Anyone ever used the downwind tactic as a norm ?

 

[sailaboutvic]

In strong winds it can be a problem furling by hand ,
I suggest first keep a little tenison on the line when your unfurling the sail so it don’t get wiped aeound the drum .
furling back in , unless it’s very light wind we use the winch , tack on the side without the furling line first .

 

[johnalison]

If it is too hard to furl it is good seamanship to turn downwind and furl the jib in the lee of the mainsail mainsail, in fact, this is what I routinely do except in the lightest conditions and it has kept my laminate jib in prime condition for many years. It may not be necessary to gybe. I normally just bear off until the weight is taken off the jib, then steering a little into the wind to keep enough weight in the sail to ensure a tight furl.

 

[PhillM]

When things go wrong I tend to unfurl abs start again. Seems to work, we so far anyway

 

[oldmanofthehills]

If it is too hard to furl it is good seamanship to turn downwind and furl the jib in the lee of the mainsail mainsail, in fact, this is what I routinely do except in the lightest conditions and it has kept my laminate jib in prime condition for many years. It may not be necessary to gybe. I normally just bear off until the weight is taken off the jib, then steering a little into the wind to keep enough weight in the sail to ensure a tight furl.

Running due downwind with dumped main or main severely reefed to limit gybe danger, that wont work.

I am not as worried about keeping my sails prime as I am about avoiding injury to myself, or insurance claims from unsuspecting fellow boater

 

[neil_s]

Maybe ease the luff tension? Will take some of the friction out of the furler bearings. I mostly sail single handed - I bought a 100% high cut jib and the genny hasn't been out of it's bag since. Less loads all round - easier to sheet in and easier to furl. Shorter furling line, quicker to set and furl, less of a lump on the forestay. Easier to see all around. Nearly as good to windward but you do lose out on the run. Got used to it now though!

 

[rib]

I all ways back genoa behind main. 41 ft boat 135% genoa. Heavy material.. Solo. All ways works by hand. No matter how much main is reefed.

 

[bitbaltic]

It is a hell of a lot easier to furl from the cockpit if the furling line comes directly over the cabin top to a clutch rather than going round the houses via stanchions. Changed to this setup a decade ago and never have any problems- also keep the drum and swivel serviced.

 

[dunkelly]

Thanks for all your thoughts ,nice to know I'm not the only one to experience difficulties as well .

 

[roaringgirl]

I have had trouble here in the past. Keep the whole thing well serviced. Depending on the design, you may need to regressed the bearings or rinse with fresh water. Work out how to limit friction in the furling line run, perhaps invest in some new fairleads?

 

[Misterbreeze]

Thanks for all your thoughts ,nice to know I'm not the only one to experience difficulties as well .

Been pondering this as well since getting in a flap (intentional pun) yesterday. Probably a 4 to 5 and because I didn't keep enough tension on the sheet when I started to furl both sheets ended up in one enormous knot. On my own, not easy to sort and had to use the winch to finish the job, which I never have before. Puts everything under a lot of strain and later found that one of the stanchion lead blocks had pulled apart which obviously didn't help - or maybe it did as it removed one friction point. So now looking at rerouting the line and/or getting a better block design.

 

[Poignard]

I have these on my stanchions. They are very low friction. Made by Schaeffer.

 

[johnalison]

Running due downwind with dumped main or main severely reefed to limit gybe danger, that wont work.

I am not as worried about keeping my sails prime as I am about avoiding injury to myself, or insurance claims from unsuspecting fellow boater

I didn't say running downwind - I wrote 'turn downwind'. I am not so incompetent that I can't control my boat on the broad reach needed enough to avoid a gybe, and can even manage to avoid disaster on a dead run, with or without the main reefed. If you are such a good friend of sailmakers that you are prepared to put a winch-handle to the job of furling your jib in say a F6 while it flogs itself to death, that is your business. The chance of damage to the furling gear is a far greater risk than the hypothetical chance of my losing my senses and gybing the boat during the procedure, something that has never been even close to happening.

 

[Daydream believer]

I found that over time the bearings within the furler became worn. The only way to make it possible to furl the sail was to ease the halyard. However, once I released it too much & it wrapped around the foil. Caused some problems, which I could no longer accept, being a SH sailor, so I changed to a new furler. It was not possible to flush with fresh water as advised by many. My one was not one that could be easily disassembled. Grease & WD40 etc are not to be recommended as they attract dirt.
For some time I have had a small pulley instead of a stanchion fairlead on the last leadout to the winch, or point from where I can pull. This allows me to pull at a variety of angles without excessive friction.

 

[oldmanofthehills]

I didn't say running downwind - I wrote 'turn downwind'. I am not so incompetent that I can't control my boat on the broad reach needed enough to avoid a gybe, and can even manage to avoid disaster on a dead run, with or without the main reefed. If you are such a good friend of sailmakers that you are prepared to put a winch-handle to the job of furling your jib in say a F6 while it flogs itself to death, that is your business. The chance of damage to the furling gear is a far greater risk than the hypothetical chance of my losing my senses and gybing the boat during the procedure, something that has never been even close to happening.

Perhaps you should not be so prickly? I specifically said I had been running downwind basically on genoa only when I had issues. Thus I had no way to stop boat without furling genoa or engine driving it into wind and have it flog dangerously anyway, (or of course crash into harbour or boats) so your solution did not always work.

I am pleased you have never had an accidental gybe - many of us are not so fortunate or skilled