New Jib Halyard / Jib Furler Question

[fsuhansell]

I am currently fixing up a Columbia 8.3 and trying to get it in the water by the end of the summer. This is my first boat and I am having a blast and learning a great deal as I go. After examining the running rigging I decided I need to buy some new jib sheets and a jib halyard. I think I'm going to get 8mm Samson LS yacht braid, but my only problem is I'm not sure how long the halyard should be. I have a furler with an internal wire halyard so I'm thinking I would only need the rope halyard to be a little over the length of the mast. Would this be correct? Also it looks like the wire halyard in the furler is on the opposite side of the tape feed for the jib. I can't think of any logical reason why this would be which makes me think the furler may have been assembled incorrectly, if that's possible. Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[daddle]

Wire halyard in the furler? I don't understand that. Never seen such a thing. More info?

[MarkSF]

Originally Posted by fsuhansell

I am currently fixing up a Columbia 8.3 and trying to get it in the water by the end of the summer. This is my first boat and I am having a blast and learning a great deal as I go. After examining the running rigging I decided I need to buy some new jib sheets and a jib halyard. I think I'm going to get 8mm Samson LS yacht braid, but my only problem is I'm not sure how long the halyard should be. I have a furler with an internal wire halyard so I'm thinking I would only need the rope halyard to be a little over the length of the mast. Would this be correct? Also it looks like the wire halyard in the furler is on the opposite side of the tape feed for the jib. I can't think of any logical reason why this would be which makes me think the furler may have been assembled incorrectly, if that's possible. Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

You need the jib halyard to be long enough to pull down the jib with the halyard attached, and still have a few feet at the winch. How else will you hoist the jib again? So that's around double the length of the mast.

The normal design for a furler is that the forestay is inside the furler. The jib halyard connects to the drum at the top of the jib, which comes down with the jib when you drop it.

What model is your furler? A picture speaks a thousand words.

The best way to determine how long the new halyard needs to be is to measure the old one. Are you aware you'll have to go to the top of the mast to run the new halyard, unless you can attach the new to the old and use the old to pull the new through?

[fsuhansell]

Thanks for the responses. I took some pictures at the boat today, but I can't make out the model of furler. Hopefully these help clarify. On the one picture you can see the track used to raise the jib on one side of the furler and the tape feed on the opposite side. That doesn't make any sense to me.

[daddle]

You really think the halyard is inside the luff (foil) extrusion? I've never seen that. Other CF'ers: any idea?

Either way, the halyard needs to run from the deck, to the masthead, then down the mast, around the winch a few times and then a meter or two more. If the halyard is outside the foil, which I would think it is, then it's nice if the halyard can reach a meter inside the forward hatch (or the waterline) and still be cleated off at the mast. You'll learn the reasons why later...

[FrankZ]

CDI Flexible Furlers carry a halyard internal to the foil.

Call CDI and they can help you.

[MarkSF]

Originally Posted by daddle

You really think the halyard is inside the luff (foil) extrusion? I've never seen that. Other CF'ers: any idea?

Either way, the halyard needs to run from the deck, to the masthead, then down the mast, around the winch a few times and then a meter or two more. If the halyard is outside the foil, which I would think it is, then it's nice if the halyard can reach a meter inside the forward hatch (or the waterline) and still be cleated off at the mast. You'll learn the reasons why later...

I found these diagrams (click on FF1 or whatever).

CDI - Flexible Furlers

The jib halyard really does go into the foil, over a pulley at the top of the furler, then to the head of the jib.

Well I never.

Well it looks like you take down the jib, tie your new halyard to the top of the old one, and use the old one to pull the new one through the furler. Simple. Maybe!

[daddle]

FrankZ & MarkSF: Well, that's interesting. Good info. In that case I have no idea how long the halyard should be or how it is replaced or spliced to wire or anything. Out.

[MarkSF]

Just realised my boat used to have a CDI furler and I still have the original sales brochurel! Last owner replaced it with a Harken.

If I still had the CDI it sounds like I wouldn't have wrapped the jib halyard around the top of the furler 4 times last weekend, necessitating an expensive repair.

I quote from the brochure :

"The reefer has a self-contained halyard, led internally. By eliminating the connection between halyard and mast, the chief cause of failure in other systems is avoided"

[fsuhansell]

Thanks so much for the help guys. It all makes a lot more sense to me now. From what MarkFS posted I'm guessing I have the FF6 model (I'll measure today to be sure) and it looks like the internal wire halyard runs up the aft slot to the top of the furler and back down, still internal, the forward slot to a shackle on the drum. Interesting. In that case I may not need a new halyard at all. Thanks again!

[FrankZ]

When I had mine it was line not wire (FF4) but the overall length was slightly longer that the foil. When you lower the sail you attach a messenger line.

If I recall the FF6 has a slide on it that the FF4 doesn't.