Roller Furling Main

[JimN]

I'm still in the process of learning about my new Ariel. I just realized (under the heading of "duhh, that's why there were no reef points on the sail") that she has a roller furling mainsail. Is this standard on Ariels, or a later addition? Do any of you folks have such a thing, and how has it worked for you? I fear such new-fangled contraptions, and the traditionalist in me shuns roller anything, but if folks have had good luck with it I'll keep it.

I'm not so old a dog that I can't learn a new furling trick.

Jim

[Mike Goodwin]

It was roller reefing and it wasn't nearly as good as a tied in reef .
A roller furling main rolls up vertical behind or into the mast and costs more than a fully found Ariel on average .

[JimN]

Right you are. Roller reefing, not roller furling. I suppose one potential advantage with the roller reefing is that you can fine-tune how much sail you want to take in, but I still suspect you are right that a tied reef is better. That mechanical stuff works great until you really need it.

[commanderpete]

Some boats had these. Might have been optional equiptment.

I've used one of these on an old boat (not an Ariel). This one had a special handle that turned a worm gear. The attachments for the topping lift and mainsheet need to swivel as the boom rolls.

It helped to keep some tension on the main halyard while easing it to get a tight roll.

The problem was that the sail still had a belly and you want a nice flat sail in strong winds.

A sailmaker might charge around $150 for one set of reef points for regular slab reefing.

I would probably experiment with the thing until I was ready for a new mainsail

[Bill]

All off the early Ariels had a form of roller reefing. Top of the line was the geared model. Otherwise, you pulled the boom away from the mast and twisted it :eek: If you look at the "arrow" portion of the gooseneck assembly, you will find a heavy spring inside the boom. That's what holds the boom tight against the toggle while allowing it to turn. The fitting for the topping lift on the aft end of the boom allowed the boom to roll.

[Hull376]

I have the geared model roller reefing on 376. I also have the handle that goes with it! But I haven't used it in many years. My new main and control lines are set up for slab reefing. Roller reefing works, kinda. But you have to sit on the cabin top, spin the handle in the worm gear with one hand, while you lower the main halyard and help the slides off the track with the other. And if you aren't diligent, you get an awful sail shape. And guess what, you don't have a hand free to hold onto the boat while you are doing this, so legs around the mast is sometimes necessary. Roller reefing sounds good, looks good on a drawing, but is not so great in execution.

[Bill]

Most SF Bay skippers use "jiffy" or "slab" reefing and just ignore the "roller" gear. On Maika'i (and many others), reefing is done from the cockpit.

[JimN]

My boat, #290, has the more sophisticated worm gear in the goose neck, and I, too, have the special handle that goes with it. I'll have to give it a try to see how it works, but will certainly see about having gen-u-ine reef points put in the sail. New-fangled nonsense.