Roller furler keeps wrapping around forestay

[JC Reefer]

Any pictures of the sail out. As others have stated, it look off that there is a second forestay.

[glasshopper77]

I was able to get over to the boat just before dark. I was able to tighten the turnbuckle inside the drum. How tight is too tight as I see the furler just kind of still sagging up there? Give it a few more turns with a wrench after I get it hand tight? I'm thinking if I get it tighter there shouldn't be as much "flex" while furling.

No the second headstay was not touching the drum, that is, now it does since I tightened up the furler headstay...

And yes there is some dueling going on up at the mast as that is where my wrapping issue starts.

I will post more pictures in the morning when I get back out there.

Thanks everyone, today I learned a lot!

[Uncle Bob]

Originally Posted by glasshopper77

I was able to get over to the boat just before dark. I was able to tighten the turnbuckle inside the drum. How tight is too tight as I see the furler just kind of still sagging up there? Give it a few more turns with a wrench after I get it hand tight? I'm thinking if I get it tighter there shouldn't be as much "flex" while furling.

No the second headstay was not touching the drum, that is, now it does since I tightened up the furler headstay...

And yes there is some dueling going on up at the mast as that is where my wrapping issue starts.

I will post more pictures in the morning when I get back out there.

Thanks everyone, today I learned a lot!

Hi, the best thing to do in my opinion is get a rigger to inspect and advise, find a reputable local and it shouldn't cost much but will provide an education on how and what .

[glasshopper77]

A big thank you to everyone. I got it figured out. Now if the winds would just pick up a bit more I could tell you how it worked out.

[singlespeed]

By all means clean and lubricate both the upper and lower drum surfaces. Before you go tearing things apart, the Catalina factory website indicates you have a split backstay and adjuster. You are tightening the backstay prior to unfurling and furling the jib? The backstay needs to be kept tight sailing to weather and through broad reaching. If not, your pictures show sufficient slack in the curling assembly to cause exactly what you are experiencing. A slack internal headstay will cause the bottom drum to turn more easily than the upper drum. This will lead to the sail wrapping around any available hardware (outside forestay and main halyard) when sufficient tension finally makes it to the top of your jib.

[glasshopper77]

Very good. I will try to dial in the tensions a little more later today.
Thanks.

[Lancerbye]

If it was me, I would remove the sail, remove the furler from the stay, reattach the stay, disconnect the most forward stay and install the furler on that stay, tighten it very tight and also tighten the back stays. I think the furler was installed on the wrong stay.

[sondra elliott]

I have a 29' Paceship and have no separate headstay.

[jaylo264]

It seems to me that "HALYARD" maybe has a different meaning on this thread -- in UK at least [well, Scotland] a halyard is a rope/flexible attachment which hoists a sail OR furling assembly.
Here it seems the halyard can be SWAGED which I don't believe is possible with rope, not even with dyneema...

My Westerly used to have a Rotostay, which seems a bit similar to this flexible thingy [i e nightmare] and I replaced it with a Plastimo about ten years ago, never had a problem since [not even crossing fingers as boat is sold]

Mind you, I am fitting the old rotostay to my Westerly22 for retirement use, inshore-ish, and it will go on the new bowsprit about a metre fwd of the normal forestay. Anyone have a nice blue jib for sale?

[waterman46]

Those powerboat guys are clueless. As was the installer of your furler. The forestay wire needs to run inside the entire furling gear top to bottom. Its a very simple fix, a DIY no problem as long as the installer didn't throw away anything, just get the manual if you can, for that furler.

[Djarraluda]

Even that forestry needs attention, the attachment at the base is just a shackle in lieu of a toggle. And nothing looks moused or locked. Find a fellow sailor locally who can look with you, but whatever you do, it is needed. I would be concerned at the stability of the rig, it needs inspection. Roger

[Rhwins]

The halyard and the forestay have to be not parallel. I think a 5 degree difference is all that is necessary to keep them from wrapping around each other. The halyard should run below where the forestay attaches; this can be done with a little extra hardware for the halyard. By all means, do not rely on the furler without a forestay.

[Stu Jackson]

I sent the OP a pm and he replied including the important fact that HE was the one who put the second forestay on the boat. There already was a forestay inside the furling gear.


I recommended that he immediately TELL all of you this important fact.


His silence speaks volumes.

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Easy... your upper furler bearings are dry, filled with dirt and need to be cleaned and lubricated, which is why your upper furling drum won’t turn. WD40 works good to clean them, then you’ll need a spray lithium grease to lubricate. Simply lower your jib, detatch the sail, then spray the cleaner into the bearings as you spin the drum. Hold a rag under the drum to catch the dirt as it comes out, then repeat with lubricant.

This routine maintenance should ne done once or twice a year.

THIS is a very common problem. That and too tight halyard are 95% of furler problems. Lube, lube, lube. Thanks Keno for the advise. Even if OPs problem is something else, lube anyway. Being lazy this spring I skipped this step while installing the head sail...so I got to do it twice.

[jspla1]

Installing a halyard restrainer on the mast will change the angle of the halyard and prevent this from happening. This is a $150-200 fix

I did a temporary fix on my Sense 50 by simple raising the tack of my Genoa about 4" using multiple shackles. The change in angle of the halyard at the mast sheave sufficiently changed to prevent the halyard from wrapping on the furler