Need Help with Hanked Sail Modification

[resilientg]

Hi there,

Firstly happy new year to you all,...

my sails are hanked on, and i would like to modify one to be able to use on a furler.

my question is is it normally possibly or should i just spend the cost of the modification and just buy a second hand sail thats already made for a furler?

my sail is brand new, and i have attached a picture of part of it that shows the bolt rope which is squiggly, and made me wonder how they make it work with a furler when the bolt ropes like that.

thanks in advance,

Matthew

[S/V Alchemy]

They cut out the bolt rope. It won't fit in the furler's foil.

You can convert a hank-on to a furler sail at the cost of the width of the hank on grommets. It's called a "tape luff" and your local sailmaker will be happy to take money for the job. I have several hank-on sails that were converted from tape luff (racing foil furlers) jibs given to me for free by club racers, and it cost me about $135-$150 per. The idea was that I could use a one-year old racing sail for four years on my boat until the wear and stretch became an issue even to me, a lowly cruiser. Repeat as necessary and pocket the savings from avoiding a $2,800 new genoa purchase in Dacron.

It's the same logic as buying a two-year old used car and selling it at four years old. Maximum savings in both directions. I can't see why you can't do the same, excepting that converting from hank-on to furling requires a bit more sail cutting and reinforcement at head and tack due to the requirements of the furler.

Good luck with it. If you have a deck-sweeping hank-on, there may be more sail area to sacrifice at the foot as well, as the height of the furler off the deck dictates where the foot goes. This may reduce sail area enough to make you reconsider the whole thing, which means you may want to learn about downhauls.

[Paul L]

Here is a video of how to do the conversion Luff Tape Conversion Kit Video Instructions

[resilientg]

Thanks for the replies guys,

I'm thinking that i will put up my furler first and then see what length that i get as as much as i would love to use my brand new old sails it might be easier to just buy a used one as you say.

As it is my Genoa wouldn't fit lengthwise (without some serious modification) if i used the furler so i have automatically lost that sail anyway if i want to furl.

That video was very helpful to understanding the process involved.

cool and thanks

Matthew