Dutchman Furling Lines Keep Wearing Out

[SvenG]

Our slip neighbor has a dutchman furling setup. He loves it when it works but the vertical furling lines keep wearing through at the top, where they exit the main. The lines last only six months or so which probably corresponds to ~30 hours of sailing.

I told him I thought that something must be wrong and that I'd ask here. Maybe too tight, wrong material, not aligned properly ... ?

Thanks for any insights I can pass along.



-Sven

[Minggat]

The best cure for that is a Stack Pack.

How could I resist?

Really, you'd pretty well have to look at what's going on when the main is up to answer that I think, unless like you say, it's wrong material.

[ozskipper]

I havent used the Dutchman system. But the word that comes to my mind everytime I consider it is "Chafe". Removeable lazy jacks are more attractive to me for that reason. But to each his own of course.

Cheers
Oz

[boden36]

Ours last for years. Should check alignment and also any sharp spots in the sail eyelets. Is he using sufficiently heavy nylon? I normally use whipper-snipper line (green). Also is he letting the topping lift off enough to take the load off then whilst sailing?
Regards, Richard.

[svcambria]

The Dutchman lines on my boat last for five or six years in the tropics. I use UV protected fishing line, about 2mm or 300 pound test. As boden36 suggests, he should look for instances of too much tension on the lines when the sail is up.

Michael

[cfarrar]

I use Dyneema furling lines. They will last longer than your mainsail if set up correctly. They're not transparent, but you can use a small diameter that's barely noticeable.

I wish I could remember the diameter of mine... maybe 1/8"?

Colin

[SvenG]

Thanks for the replies !

The comments about the topping lift make me wonder if that might be the issue. Our marina is just inside the so-called "Hurricane Gulch". We are all almost guaranteed to get 20-30 knots on the nose when we get back inside the breakwater and drop our sails. I wonder if the topping lift is held too high as the sails are dropped and if the sail whipping furiously in the wind at that point would be the cause ?

I like our stowable lazy jacks :-)



-Sven

[hugosalt]

Monofilament on my dutchman last around 6 years also, years
beyond recomended life, might your friends set up have the lines attached to far forward or aft on the topping lift causing
excessive chafe where mono exits plastic guide built into sail?
Have him contact dutchman at 203-838-0375, they are very
available and willing to spend time on the phone, spoke to
helpful, knowledgable fellow last year when replacing my mono
but don't remember name.

cfarrar/Colin...excellent suggestion on the Dyneema, will keep in mind next time I change.