Jury rigging a hank-on over a broken roller furled jib

[barnakiel]

If you are caught unaware, then you simply proceed under mainsail alone. What is the problem?


If you prepared a bit, you have a spectra halyard and one jib with spectra luff (no stretch, older sails used wire too).


You can hoist a jib on a halyard alone, the halyard sheaves and turning points must be man enough to handle the load. No need for an extra fore-stay then.


Many racing boats hoist fore sails without stays and hanks of any sort. Total load supported by the luff.



b.

[RichardPresley]

I've an Alberg 30 (hull #432, 1970, Whitby Boatworks, Ontario, Canada), Shadowfax, hailing from Brandywine, Maryland; or rather, she's got me! Moved aboard May 11 this year from Greenwich Village, NYC, social-distancing, self-isolation; working to restore her dignity, virtue, integrity and functionality; knowing that if worthy of her she will never fail me.

sailplandata shows her original rig, with fractional (3/4) inner forestay: this could have been an option at time of purchase, but Shadowfax was plain jane, w/ only 2 cockpit-winches instead of four as well. no detailed rigging plans available, how best to secure a chainplate to stem and fwd. bulkhead aft of chain-locker; attachment points for running backstays and halyard and stay seems like custom tang and sophisticated engineering--anyone know riggers who are knowledgeable and skilled enough to design and fabricate this fitting on a red-white-and-blue-shoestring budget, not a champagne budget?

Sailors gotta be able to sew: it's so good to be working this thread together, lofty work!

[stormalong]

Getting a roller furling jib down in any wind is a problem. The wind force on the unfurled sail adds a lot of friction the the system and pulling down as hard as you can won't work.

My story, many years ago on a Sabre 34. Wanted to take Genoa down for some reason that is long forgotten. Boat on mooring. Wind about 10-15. Unfurled sail and could not pull it down. Thought there was a jam at masthead. Went up the mast and everything looked good. Came back a couple of days later in calm conditions and the sail came down smooth as silk. It was just the wind.

So if you are in a blow don't even try to get roller furling sail down. I have seen some advertising for straps to go around the roller furled jib to raise a storm jib but I think they would bind. You would need straps with large beads on them - like you would have on the gaff of a gaff rigged sloop.

[trimarannaga]

After huricane maria damaged the furling unit i put grommets into the luff of the jib and made rope shackles to hank on the sail over the grooved extrusions. We sailed from bvi's to grenada that way.
If the furling is broken why leave the sail on it? Take it down and the headstay is now just fatter. Grommets and some rope is a good fix till u get the furler fixed.

[trimarannaga]

The sail that goes over a furled genoa has a pocket that gets clipped or zipped shut as it is hoisted, this system is used for storm jibs. Works fine but you should practice putting it on before the shtf.

[Cheechako]

If I wanted to do that I would make strops to use around the furler with the hanks. I see no issue with that done well.
A better solution would be a second stay, just inside the furler.

[Secondshift]

I'd cast my vote for 2 low stretch halyards. We've used a removable
premade solent for the storm jib on our 26' and it's kind of a pita to set up in the weather when you need it.

Sailwarehouse.com makes a storm jib that is designed to fit over the furled sail with a sleeve and reguires only one free halyard. Perhaps you could adapt your current sails.

Of course if you're jammed wide open you need to take action as directed first.

As the father of an Eagle Scout. I like the way you think!

Very Best Regards

[barnakiel]

Positive. A jammed furler is not end it all. Simply furl up or unfurl / drop.


If you unfurl / drop you can hoist another sail as if you used tufluf.


b.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Positive. A jammed furler is not end it all. Simply furl up or unfurl / drop.


If you unfurl / drop you can hoist another sail as if you used tufluf.


b.

Uh... if it's jammed you aren't doing either of those things. If you can do that... it's not jammed.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Uh... if it's jammed you aren't doing either of those things. If you can do that... it's not jammed.

Oh, yes, you do!


A jammed furler is not the end of it all.



You simply sail the boat in circles until the sail is either fully unfurled or fully furled.


If you have unfurled it, you can drop it.

barnakiel

[Pete7]

I think this review of storm sails warrants some study, particularly the comments about the difficulties of raising a storm jib up over a furled genoa.

https://www.pbo.co.uk/gear/7-storm-jibs-on-test-26029

We have a spare halyard and Dyneema forestay to enable a hanked on storm jib to be hoisted separately from the furling genoa. This assumes the genoa is rolled away, or we really have problems.

We also carry a spare 90% jib that could replace the genoa if it is damaged and we can get it down. A second hand purchase but really good condition. I had the local sail maker add the bolt rope which extends to the same height of the genoa so the furling widget at the top remains in the correct position and the halyard doesn't rap around the furler.

[Mike Banks]

Never rig a storm sail on your genoa furler. The storm sail needs to be much further aft.

My storm sail had a wire cable built into it so all I needed to do was to shackle the cable it to the deck and hoist the top of the sail to the mast using a halyard, leading to a block mounted about half way up the mast in the way of the baby stays.

That left the storm sail loose-footed and controlled through snatch blocks clipped into ring bolts on the cabin top, but on a monohull they would have been on deck ring bolts on the toe rail or edge of the scuppers.

Later I removed the wire cable and its eyes from the storm sail and replaced it with Spectra. Lighter, safer and easier to handle and store.

There is no point putting a storm sail on the genoa furler because it will simply overpower your rudder, making it almost impossible to control your vessel unless going down wind, which is never a good idea in a severe storm.

On a rocky lee shore with wind abeam, with a dead engine, you NEED that rudder and SOME forward momentum. You do not want the wind turning your bow towards the shore, and even a furled genoa has a lot of useless windage in such conditions. Putting a stormsail too far forward has the same turning effect.

What you REALLY need in such a condition is a smaller, stronger but a balanced rig, such as a well reefed main sail and a storm sail close to the mast but leading it.

One of the advantages to old sailors in a storm is a divided rig.

This is why cutter-ketches and schooners were chosen for most small coastal trading, and square-sails together with bowsprit and jibs and aft boom and mizzen sails for ocean going vessels.

In the absence of engines, the big terror was a lee shore. Using the sails in such a circumstance involved furling and/or reefing some, and and careful trimming of the rest--and a GOOD RUDDER.

[barnakiel]

Yep. A halyard wrap is the cream on the cake. I wonder what is the average number of times people who have sailed many years have had a bad wrap?


We had it only once, but in a most uncomfortable moment, and it cost us a new forestay.


b.

[Secondshift]

I should expound. The removable solent used on OUR 26' is less practical in comparison to using a deeply furled foam luff genny. The shape is less than optimal but it saves foredeck work in adverse conditions on an ultralight displacement boat. Local conditions change fast and sometimes often.

If as mentioned previously your year model was available with a seperate stay attachment point as an upgrade. If the boat would readily accept it a well thought out removable solent stay would be a very nice addition.

However on a "not champagne budget" I'd opt for two low stretch halyards.
You could also slowly upgrade your way to it. Two low stretch halyards then maybe the deck fitting. Then perhaps the mast fitting and some dyneema.

Best Regards

[Secondshift]

Lots of good info from Mike Banks. Perhaps useful for our 33'

However before I made our solent rig for the 26' I had raised our storm jib without on a couple occasions and it was a very unpleasant experience.

Our little 26' will go to weather with a double reef and no jib. Once when flying the storm jib without solent conditions worsened and it needed to come down. Not pretty. With the solent just a drop on the deck.

KNOW THY BOAT! Or know someone who does. I found a link to the Alberg 30 association. Bet there's a lot of model specific info there.

The Alberg 30 Site

Very Best Regards