Picking a New Roller Furling Unit

[b-rad]

So after a long day of trying to drop my jib (stuck haylard and seized sheave) ended up haviing to drop the forestay and cut the foil so im now looking for a new furler. Im considering a cdi ff6, but the maximam head stay for the ff6 is listed as 39 feet. My previous foil was about 20 inchs from the mast head. My forestay eye to eye measurement is 40 feet. Mmy boat is not a brand new blue water boat. It is a 30 year old weekend costal cruiser, I really dont need a 3000$ furler for it. Any advice or suggestions apreciated .

[noreault]

I installed an Alado on a previous boat. Extremely happy with both the installation and the operation. It is very well made, easy to install yourself without going up the mast, and very good operation. I highly recommend it.l

[Ziggy]

I recommend Profurl. It's a rugged unit that requires virtually no maintenance, reefs well, and I found it extremely reliable. I think model LC32 would fit your boat. Defender (Classic Cruising Furling System) sells it for $1724.99. Actually, NCI-32 ($1500) would also work for 40' forestay.

[b-rad]

Also considering the alado furler looks like a nice unit at a resoable price.

[knothead]

Originally Posted by b-rad

So after a long day of trying to drop my jib (stuck haylard and seized sheave) ended up haviing to drop the forestay and cut the foil so im now looking for a new furler. Im considering a cdi ff6, but the maximam head stay for the ff6 is listed as 39 feet. My previous foil was about 20 inchs from the mast head. My forestay eye to eye measurement is 40 feet. Mmy boat is not a brand new blue water boat. It is a 30 year old weekend costal cruiser, I really dont need a 3000$ furler for it. Any advice or suggestions apreciated .

It's not necessarily a good idea to buy the smallest unit that will work for your headstay or boat. Every furler has a recommended range of wire diameter and length it will be appropriate for. Better to go with one that's somewhere on the larger side of the range rather than the opposite. It will be easier to operate and hold up better. I really would suggest that you consult a rigger and at least get their advice.
Just my opinion.

[why me?]

In Australia there is a brand that fits the bill for you. Maybe a US equivalent? Or agent? Reef Furl I think it is. Made by a guy up in the whitsundays. It's not crash hot for a blue water boat (my opinion) but for what you describe it would seem perfect. Cheap, simple. It doesn't use a halyard to the mast but inside the sail luff like a hobie cat unless they changed it lately.

[b-rad]

Trying to decided bewteen the alado a2 and harken model 1 or cdi 7

[Carolina Cal]

Not the cheapest, but I've had a Schaefer system for 5 years now - never a hitch. Once broke my whisker pole on it (stupid) not even a scratch. The thing is, like, bulletproof.

[Tom Hildebrandt]

I had a Pro Furl and a hidden fitting broke, I replaced the Pro Furl with the Kiwi Reef Rite! Not to be confused with the Aussie Reef Furl which is not as substantial)(This is an excellent unit, no problems in five years of over 40,000 miles of ocean cruising!

When comparing prices, you need to consider the cost of the headstay as well. The Pro Furl and other units can go on over your existing rigging, but the Reef Rite is a complete unit, with a new headstay, so the up front cost may seem a bit higher than other quoted units, but if you compare the full costs, unit plus headstay, my Reef Rite, including shipment costs and installation was the same as a brand new Pro Furl plus the new head stay and fittings.

And while you may not need such a robust piece of equipment, this is one of those items that it is good to have a lot of confidence inthat it is going to work, and work well.

[clockwork orange]

I agree with the Alado recomendation,these units are very good value,they are inexpensive because they only sell them online direct. I installed one on a customers boat and was very impressed, you use the existing forestay with no changes,very easy to install on the boat in place as noreault said,they have the best foil system ive seen at any price,nice extrusions too and have there own halyard so no possibility of a halyard wrap bringing your rig down,my only complaint is that the castings could use a little more fettling,a minor detail, oh,when we ordered it it was delivered to northern minnesota in 3 days direct from Brazil,thats what i call service. I have installed Harken and Pro furl on customers boats and have Harken and Famet units on my own boats but im not impressed with any of them.
Steve

[Maggie-K]

I installed three ALADO furlers all worked great . Twisted the foil on an older model and the foils sections were replaced immediately under warranty free of charge. The new foils have an improved alloy . The company also responded well to my suggestions for improvements on the system.