Plastimo Jib Reefing

[m1taylor]

Hi,

I am considering fitting a Plastimo (406) jib reefing system to my elderly Silhouette to make single handed sailing a little easier. The cheapest price seems to be about £200 for the parts. I was wondering - is it worth it? Is this a reasonable system? Are there any advocates of sticking with the the traditional manual approach of clambering over the desk and hanking the sail on and off each time?

 

[Talbot]

hanked sails are mainly used by some older long distance cruisers. Racing crews used them for a long time after roller reefing became popular cause they were easier to use to swop sails, then foils became available without the roller reefing, and the majority of racing crews swapped to them.

Personally I would not be without my roller reefing especially when single handing, but the hanked on sails are the easiest system to change when the wind gets too much for the existing sail.

 

[Cloven]

I had the Plastimo 406 on a previous boat. It works fine but the low price reflets the fact that the main bearings are (or at least were) mild steel. Fine while the boat is in use as any water that gets into the roller drum drains out. However when the mast was dropped for winter layup water gathered in the drum and the bearings rusted solid. Replaced them and same thing happened next winter. Finally I had to strip the drum (not too difficult a job) and remove the bearings each winter. Maybe check to see if mild steel is still used. Seateach were very good at giving advice (and supplying replacement bearings!!)

Hope this helps

 

[halcyon]

New ones are being listed as a plastic material, forget which.


Brian

 

[kds]

I had excellent service from mine on a 26' , the bearings are plastic and wore well. It was reliable and easy to use.
I vital ingredient is the jib - it really must be well cut for the job. My latest one has foam strips and was made by Arun. Great !
Ken