Rigging an Asymmetric on a Beneteau

[Tony Button]

I've recently bought a very lightly used 2010 Beneteau First 35 and (like everyone else) would like to run a cruising asymmetric. The boat has a removable bow roller which extends about 60 cm forward of the forestay, but Beneteau advise that this is not suitable for attaching an asymmmetric as it can't support the upward vertical force. The plate which supports the forestay extends in a strip down the bow secured by 4 bolts and I wondered if I could replace the lowest bolt with a ringbolt and Dyneema strop from the bolt to the underside of the bow roller to reinforce it. I've seen this on other yachts, although not necessarily with removable bow rollers. Might this work or will I end up with a First 34.5 ? Thanks for any advice.

[Sailor279]

Tony,

I can’t comment on the seaworthiness of that setup, although it sounds reasonable to me, so long as you still secure the lower bolt— it’s there for a reason! That said, I wonder if you have enough clearance (fore-aft) between the tip of the roller and the pulpit to fly said Asail. Just something to consider.

[Fbfisher]

The First is Beneteau’s “racer/cruiser” line, it seems like they should have a solution to sell you. If not the company, I’d suggest a dealer, if you don’t have one you like locally, Charlie is the owner of Naos in Marina Del Rey, CA, he’s a Beneteau dealer and he is a transpacific racer, I’ve no doubt he could advise you. Barrett at South Coast Yachts may sell more Beneteau’s than any other dealer in the US, you may want to give him a call, very nice guy also.

If I were starting over, I’d be looking to have my asymmetrical on a top down furler. So much easier to manage alone, so much less drama on the foredeck.

Cheers!

[Tony Button]

Thanks for your replies. Sailor279, you're right, the pulpit is a long way forward, so I'll need to be aware of clearance whatever solution I choose. Fbfisher, thanks for the tips, I'll email Naos and check with Beneteau to see what they suggest. I'm in Hobart, Tasmania, 42' south, so lack of wind is seldom an issue; we recently had 45 knots in the marina. Down here, a poled-out genoa and a main with a preventer is all you need downwind but I want to take the boat to Queensland, where the breeze is a lot softer.