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So my boat came fitted with a roller furler and having only really sailed on 12-13' Sunfish boats before, I have no idea how to use it. The roller is made by Plastimo.

Here's my dilemma - this is the only way I can get it to attach and I do not have any other forestay - this is it.

Does anyone know if I am missing a part or something? Any idea where I might be able to find a manual or where to look on it for a model number? I also could use a tutorial in how to properly rig the sail on this thing. I've got an idea but just want to make sure that I am doing it right

I appreciate any thoughts! thanks!

Ahoy NavySailor,

On most roller furlers the turnbucukle is hidden inside the drum. You can do that if you re-pin things the way I show in your photo. Your turnbuckle is fully extended and you may have to tighten it right up. The first thing to do is take a halyard from the mast and tie it off to your pulpit to support the mast when you un-pin your forestay. This will give you the option to slide your furler and drum up the forestay to reveal the turnbuckle so you can adjust it with the mast up. If you have any concerns get some help from an experienced trailer sailor to avoid dropping your mast.

It is my humble opinion(easily over ruled) that you need to pin A(turnbuckle) to A(furler tang) and B (furler tang) to point B (bow chain plate) as I've shown in your photo which I edited.



This will require an additional pin...you have a lot more adjustment than most of us since you can pin the turnbuckle almost anywhere on those long tangs except the bottom hole which pins the forestay and furler to the chainplate. I count the adjustment in the turnbuckle plus an additional seven holes to pin it to get your mast rake exactly where you want it.

Maybe this is clearer:



If something doesn't seem right or make sense to you by all means get help or other opinions since dropping a mast while on the trailer or worse while at sea is a nasty thing.

Willy

Willy - thanks very much for the info. That helps a lot. I'm getting more experienced and raising and lowering the mast. I think I've done it about 20 times now.

Whipsyjac wrote:It is my humble opinion(easily over ruled) that you need to pin A(turnbuckle) to A(furler tang) and B (furler tang) to point B (bow chain plate) as I've shown in your photo which I edited.
Willy

My question about this is how do I go about getting the tunbuckle and tangs attached? In order to attached the turnbuckle as in my photo, I had to lean down against the roller drum to get it to connect to the bow plate. It seems that my tangs are too short or my 235 lbs. isn't capable of forcing the drum and thus the tangs closer to the deck. I'd say they're about 6-8" off. Any ideas on that one?

I'll give what you suggest a shot and let you know how it goes.

thanks again!

do you have an adjustable backstay?
you can also try to detach the backstay and just check if the tangs could go that far.

The plastismo requires a forestay with an eye at the end. The forestay in your picture has a stud on the end, threaded into a turnbuckle. The furler is installed wrong. It's catywumpus. I'm guessing that the person who installed that furler didn't want to pay for a new forestay, so they used the old one.

(and, I noticed immediately that there are no cotter pins in that turnbuckle!! the turnbuckle could come undone and the mast could fall.)

With the platismo, you don't need/want a turnbuckle on the forestay. You adjust forestay length by moving the wire eye up or down to different holes in the chainplate, Here's a drawing of the way it's supposed to be done:



Notice that there are clevis pins with cotter pins used to attach the bottom of the furler to the bow stem. For a trailerable boat, I recommend using a retainer ring, and put rigging tape over it to prevent accidentally pulling it out.

Here's a link to the Platismo installation manual
http://www.judybsails.com/v/vspfiles/kn ... eefing.pdf

Hope this clarifies,
Judy B

Wow Judy B that is some very useful info! It never ceases to amaze me that you have so much knowledge at your disposal (most from experience I'm sure) and that you have time to run a business and be on this forum at the most opportune times. You are a very valuable member! Thanks

Thanks very much for the info! I'll take a closer look at it this week and see what I can figure out. Been working on my deck, and the new windows for the boat and getting my stupid o/b running again.