Furling Drum Rotation Direction?

[John Stone]

I have installed the Harken Mk IV Ocean Series Furler on the Far Reach. The sail maker is asking me which way the drum rotates when furling and unfurling the jib. Never had a furler. Nothing in Harken manual I read provides info on that topic.

I plan for the furling line to come down the port side of the boat. What do I need to know and what are the general rules or considerations for furler rotation direction?

Thanks much.

[Jerry Hammernik]

Not back at the boat til Monday, but I believe you can furl either direction. The sailmaker wants to know which side to put the Sunbrella on.

From a Harken manual "Tip: Sun cover to starboard—turn clockwise to charge. Sun cover to port—turn counter clockwise. Tension line while charging."

Hope that helps.


I was a hank on snob for years. I went to roller furling last year and have been kicking myself ever since for not doing it sooner.

[LSD87]

I ended up calling Harken support directly with a long list of questions I had. They were terrific and took as much time as needed without making me feel awkward, since I’m a new sailor. So I can recommend calling them. I think the main number on their website gets you started.

[Jim Walsh]

The CD31 has only one boarding gate so my furling lines run on the port side to stay clear of the gate. Since both my staysail and yankee have roller furling I have three lines running down the port side, a yankee and staysail furling line and a staysail clew outhaul. I use Schaefer furling lead blocks (stacked) to keep the lines outside my lifeline stanchions which keeps the midship cleat clear for use and don’t impinge on my side decks.

[keneasley]

Not back at the boat til Monday, but I believe you can furl either direction. The sailmaker wants to know which side to put the Sunbrella on.

From a Harken manual "Tip: Sun cover to starboard—turn clockwise to charge. Sun cover to port—turn counter clockwise. Tension line while charging."

Hope that helps.


I was a hank on snob for years. I went to roller furling last year and have been kicking myself ever since for not doing it sooner.

I never had a furler until I acquired Felicity four years ago. There were some things to learn for sure.

Would you read "charging" to mean when the furler drum is taking in line - when letting the sail out?

If so then the Harken manual makes sense to me. My genoa has the sun cover on starboard side of sail and my furler charges clockwise and furls counterclockwise. My furler line runs on the port side.

I've always furled the sail when on a port tack because that puts the sail in line to furl.
Wonder if that is necessary and what others do.

One thing that I learned the hard way -
The genoa was cut such that the top of the furler did not reach the top of the mast. So there was a gap of just over 12 inches between where the jib halyard pulley at the top of the mast and the top swivel of the furler. This caused halyard wrap on some occassions (sometimes at the worst possible times) and then I had to manually lower the jib and stow it. The remedy was to have a 12 inch wire pennant made up and this solved the problem. I put the pennant at the bottom of the genoa for better visibility but it would probably be better performance wise to put it at the top.
Here's a picture of the wire pennant.

jib_pennant-wire.JPG

[John Ring]

I've installed a few roller furling systems over the years, and also just bought a new Harken Mk IV Ocean for my CD36 Tiara.
On roller furling systems, all the excitement is actually at the top, not the bottom. While the drum does the work, it's at the top of the headstay where things can go terribly wrong.
It's imperative to get a little angle between the halyard and the headstay, about 7 degrees. Without this angle, we risk wrapping the halyard around the headstay. With enough force applied to the roller's conrol line, we can actually untwist the top of the headstay at the compresion/swage fitting. This is called a "birdcage", and compromises the headstay considerably.
Where the halyard exits the mast top very close to the upper attachment of the headstay on most Cape Dorys, the angle is close to zero, putting us at high risk of birdcaging the top of the headstay.
I recommend adding a Harken halyard restrainer to the top front of the mast, to provide a little angle that keeps the halyard from wrapping around the headstay, as the restrainer is designed to do. Also, be sure your headsails are cut to go as high up the headstay as possible, as a low top decreases the angle up top. If your headsails are short, add a pennant to the bottom to lift the sail a little.
Hope this helps,
John Ring
CD36 Tiara
PS: yes, we birdcaged the headstay on Tiara while racing couple years ago & had to replace the headstay & add a Harken halyard restrainer (size Large).

[John Stone]

Thanks everyone. We're in pretty good shape I think. The furler is installed though the drum is very close to the bronze tang. The rigger I consulted with thinks we are good. I will have to file the tang a little more.

I have to figure out how to attach the first lead. That's going to require some thinking. I don't want to drill any holes into the varnished bow sprit. I have some ideas.

For John Ring. We have a diverter at the top of the mast. Some of you may recall I installed it in Sint Maarten in 2016 when we had halyard chafe. I'll attach a photo though it's with the old 7x7 headstay. The sail will be full hoist or have a pendant at the top.

I hated to remove that stay. It served us so reliably. I'm smarting a little as I lament some of the complications I have induced to what was once a beautifully simple boat. But I acknowledge these are minor in the scheme of life and there is no doubting the benefits. I'll figure it out.

So let me ask this. Do I understand this correctly? If the sail furls up clockwise (looking down from the top) the UV guard is on the port side?

[mgphl52]

So let me ask this. Do I understand this correctly? If the sail furls up clockwise (looking down from the top) the UV guard is on the port side?

Yes, that would be correct. However, with the furling line coming along the port side, the sac cloth is typically on the starboard side and the sail rolls up counter-clockwise (from above).
As for the furling line lead, could you attach it this (I don't know the term...)?:

stone.jpeg

The furling line needs to perpendicular the the head stay and align to the center of the spool.

[John Stone]

So let me ask this. Do I understand this correctly? If the sail furls up clockwise (looking down from the top) the UV guard is on the port side?

Yes, that would be correct. However, with the furling line coming along the port side, the sac cloth is typically on the starboard side and the sail rolls up counter-clockwise (from above).
As for the furling line lead, could you attach it this (I don't know the term...)?:

stone.jpeg

The furling line needs to perpendicular the the head stay and align to the center of the spool.

Thanks. That's called a sprit'shroud. I have looked at that approach. Because of the way my jib sheet, vang and, preventer are attached to the bulwark the line needs to be routed aft along the inside the stanchions. It will all work out one way or another. If I don't rush the solution it will usually reveal itself to me.

[Jim Walsh]

So let me ask this. Do I understand this correctly? If the sail furls up clockwise (looking down from the top) the UV guard is on the port side?

Yes. My sun cover is on the port side of my sails, clockwise rotation to furl, counterclockwise to unfurl.

[John Stone]

Thanks Jim. Really nice setup you have in Orion. Well thought out and well executed.

[Paul D.]

Hello John,

Glad you went with the Harken. I have been through Dante's fifth circle weather with my MkIII and we are truly brothers. A great piece of kit.

Looking at your photo I believe you should set your furler first lead block for the furling line somehow off the bowsprit, not one of the sprit stays. You really want that line to come off the drum exactly as specified and the block should be firmly mounted so it doesn't float around and tweak the line going in and out of the drum.

One Idea: Maybe a tightly wound clove hitch spectra line shackle mount doubled around the sprit with the block on it, with a whipped base would serve for your application? The whipped base would play the role of a metal spring holding the block in place. I'll try to draw one up and post if you like the idea.

[John Stone]

Hello John,

Glad you went with the Harken. I have been through Dante's fifth circle weather with my MkIII and we are truly brothers. A great piece of kit.

Looking at your photo I believe you should set your furler first lead block for the furling line somehow off the bowsprit, not one of the sprit stays. You really want that line to come off the drum exactly as specified and the block should be firmly mounted so it doesn't float around and tweak the line going in and out of the drum.

One Idea: Maybe a tightly wound clove hitch spectra line shackle mount doubled around the sprit with the block on it, with a whipped base would serve for your application? The whipped base would play the role of a metal spring holding the block in place. I'll try to draw one up and post if you like the idea.

I like the idea Paul. Sure, send along any ideas you have. It's one of the options a rigger friend and I discussed. But I also want to protect the sprit varnish from chafe. Anything I screw into the varnished sprit will compromise the varnish. Another option I am considering is making a pattern for a two part bronze clamp that fits around the sprit (kinda like a mini two part kranze iron) I recess into the sprit aft of the drum. On it I would include an eye for a furling block and a tack ring for the big drifter which I can't use now because the furler is in the way. So, there is more than one thing to figure out. I'll whip these brass 3/4" ID sailmaker thimbles to the inside face of the stanchion bases and run the furling line aft through them to the harken carbo ratchet block (which I will cover in a leather chafe guard) secured to the base of the aft stanchion to give me a 180° turn to a cleat. That will keep the look traditional. I like Jim Walsh's blocks but I need to stay inside I think due to the bulwark and the way I secure sheet lead blocks with a strop around the bulwarks.

[wikakaru]

One thing I haven't heard mentioned is that some furling manufacturers recommend decreasing halyard tension before furling the sail, and then increasing halyard tension again to its normal setting when the sail is unrolled and flying. I think very few sailors actually do this. Back when I had boats with roller furling I found that this tip meant the difference between being able to furl the sail easily by hand and having to use a winch on the furling line (which some manufacturers tell you not to do). I don't know if things have changed in this regard with newer systems, but it's worth trying once you get everything installed.

Smooth sailing,

Jim

[John Stone]

That's a good comment Jim. My Harken manual that came with the furler advises not to over-tension the jib halyard. Just snug. Says lighter tension required since the sail is supported along the entire luff.