Furling main on catamarans

[yeloya]

After Lagoon, FP also has started giving furling main sail as on option on their cats..
I hate furling main on mono's; one cannot trim properly, the sail becomes out of shape pretty soon and sooner or later get stacked in the mast. Nevertheless, mono's have generally larger head sails and if the wind is aft the beam , you can still manage to sail reasonably well even with the head sail alone.And even if the main get stacked in high winds, the boat can release excess of wind by heeling.
This is not the case for the cat and I find the furling main on the cats not only uneffective but also very dangereous.
Am I missing something ??

Cheers

Yeloya

[neilpride]

Originally Posted by yeloya

After Lagoon, FP also has started giving furling main sail as on option on their cats..
I hate furling main on mono's; one cannot trim properly, the sail becomes out of shape pretty soon and sooner or later get stacked in the mast. Nevertheless, mono's have generally larger head sails and if the wind is aft the beam , you can still manage to sail reasonably well even with the head sail alone.And even if the main get stacked in high winds, the boat can release excess of wind by heeling.
This is not the case for the cat and I find the furling main on the cats not only uneffective but also very dangereous.
Am I missing something ??

Cheers

Yeloya

Im really surprise you mention that, and i agree, uneffective , very dangerous is a bit tough, dangerous could be.

I dont get it, weight aloft, not good, killing the roach, not good, jams, not good, and most Factory catas out there come with a nice diamond pre bend in the rigs, not good for the inmast.

[UNCIVILIZED]

I too am curious to hear some, or any answers, with documented backup, which supports in spar mainsails. Including the so called convenience factor of their furling systems vs. say lazy jacks & battens.
Particularly as I caution most folks, typically on jibs, that... "At some point, usually not in ideal weather, you're going to have to handle that jib despite/without the furler". For nothing mechanical works 100% of the time.

As to the giant hit on weight aloft, & sail inefficiency, with in mast furling mains, don't get me started.

[thinwater]

I once asked the designer of a certain cat why they had only 2 winches, and why 9 jammers fed to one of those winches. Wouldn't this make certain operations in a breeze a real circus?

His answer was that "we are building this for a certain kind of sailor."

Interpret that however you like. He offered no clarification.

[captainjay]

Originally Posted by yeloya

After Lagoon, FP also has started giving furling main sail as on option on their cats..
I hate furling main on mono's; one cannot trim properly, the sail becomes out of shape pretty soon and sooner or later get stacked in the mast. Nevertheless, mono's have generally larger head sails and if the wind is aft the beam , you can still manage to sail reasonably well even with the head sail alone.And even if the main get stacked in high winds, the boat can release excess of wind by heeling.
This is not the case for the cat and I find the furling main on the cats not only uneffective but also very dangereous.
Am I missing something ??

Cheers

Yeloya

We have a Helia with a roller furling main Hull number 6, probably the first one ever built. I am personally not a fan of furling mains but they are popular among some sailors and lots of charter guests. Down here in the trade winds it preforms well enough and charter guests like the ease of use which is why the owner of this particular boat ordered it that way.

Here is a video of it coming in and out in less than 30 seconds.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v...type=3&theater

[Factor]

Furling main,

sure - cause like gravity (lazy jacks and sail bag) doesn't work any more

Seriously it has absolutely nothing going for it - nothing

[davecalvert]

I agree, always potential problems with these in mast furlers. But, I think the biggest drawback is the large reduction in sail area and efficiently.
With no battens, the main has to be cut with a hollow leech, this results in a major reduction in sail area over a modern large roach main. On top of this, the narrow pin head is much less efficient than the current wide head designs for given sail areas. A big step backwards on a multihull! Best to go with a electric winch and single line reefing.



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[2Hulls]

Originally Posted by yeloya

Am I missing something ??

No.

2 Hulls Dave

[rbrentp]

I have talked to three riggers and they all said the same. Look good on paper but in surprise weather trying to get them to furl leads a lot of people having to cut rope and let it flap. I was told a sail with curve will not roll flat and will tend to crease and bunch even with lots of tension. In a blow everything goes BSC. SImilar on a roller boom. They are a lot better than the bast but can always be dropped and tied off.
I have a small flat main that rolls around the boom. Real old school and it only works with small flat mains. Hope that helps.

[UNCIVILIZED]

I built lazy jacks for my 1st boat, a Ranger 33, & the main was old school. Partial length battens, & simple slugs in a groove in the mast. With that setup, I could, & did at times, simply let go of the halyard, & faster than you can spell B-e-e-r, the sail was neatly flaked on the boom.
Even adding in the time for throwing on it's cover, it was as quick to put to bed as was my furling jib. And throwing in a reef was a 60sec chore, if that. With double line reefing, & halyards at the mast.

[DavefromNZ]

By way of defense of furling mains - boom, not mast, please see my thread on Leisure Furl:

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...-a-132743.html

I think it is fantastic for ease of use meaning I will sail a lot more, and safety, quick reefing in stronger winds. The sail has full roach, good shape with seven battens providing draft and the shape can be flattened for upwind or in stronger winds.

Very quick up, down and slide cover. Removed 3 single reef lines that always tangled at the worst moment and lazy jacks that snagged the battens and stack pack that flapped about.





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[captainjay]

Would I want one on my boat, no. Does it work well for charter and some owners. Yes, that's why they make them both ways.

[DotDun]

Originally Posted by DavefromNZ

By way of defense of furling mains - boom, not mast, please see my thread on Leisure Furl:

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...-a-132743.html

I think it is fantastic for ease of use meaning I will sail a lot more, and safety, quick reefing in stronger winds. The sail has full roach, good shape with seven battens providing draft and the shape can be flattened for upwind or in stronger winds.

Very quick up, down and slide cover. Removed 3 single reef lines that always tangled at the worst moment and lazy jacks that snagged the battens and stack pack that flapped about.

Attachment 93595Attachment 93596Attachment 93597Attachment 93598



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

So it sounds like you corrected a poor implementation with a boom furled main?

I'll take my conventional slab reefed main and lazy jacks on a boom I can reach.

[Thumbs Up]

Prout has built many in mast mainsails on their cats, mostly cutter rigged. I think that the future of in mast mains for cats is high pressure inflatable battens. If it is beefy enough to reef on a run while overpowered without changing course, I am all for it

[davecalvert]

There are some good boom furlers on the market but, most recommend keeping the roach at 10% or less. Battens cannot be too large, or stiff, and the luff uses a small bolt rope, rather than heavy duty slides.