New Mac 26 Roller Furling for Main

[Russ]

I was curious if it was just a prototype or if they actually sold them.

I'm sure the performance takes a hit but I'm not racing my Mac. I want to stay off the deck and it looks nice.

Where did you buy it from and how much was it, if you don't mind me asking?

[Jimmyt]

I did not buy the furler separately. I bought my boat, 2 years old, from the first owner. Furler was installed when new. According to the price sheet from Boating Atlanta, main furling was a $2,990 option. Yikes... Looks like less than $1,500 worth of add-ons to the stock boom, including fab labor. Could do it for a lot less if you have stainless fab skills.

Honestly, I wouldn't have one if I had to pay 3 boat bucks for it.

Have you checked with BWYachts? Don't know if they have any, but they would be my first stop.

[BOAT]

I sailed the black boat from the factory with Mike Inmon from Rogers dock - that boat had the furling main on the boom.

It was a device that Mike was selling exclusively through his dealership. Mike was the Mac dealer for Southern California.

The device actually does what it's supposed to do but you need to pull on this line and that and carefully monitor the takeup spool - pretty much just like the Genoa furler. It works pretty much that fast too. It's a great device IF:

You do not trailer your boat much.
Your sailing grounds have really irregular winds.
Your okay with the loss of speed and the cost of a special cut sail. (That's where all the cost is).

Aside from that the device makes reefing super easy - the boom will reef the main even under load in high winds and the reefing positions are endless.
I understand where Mike was going with the device but for me it was just a huge big ugly thing I did not want on my boat. I was too accustomed to old fashioned ways. mastreb got one with his boat and eventually tossed it. I think he sold it to another MAC owner on this site.

Seahouse, mastreb, and myself all tried to make goosenecks for the MAC that would spin so you could roll up the main directly onto a rotating boom but mastrebs results were somewhat bumpy even with help for Seahouse fabricating skills and my attempt ended in absolut failure and disaster (you can read about in one of my first posts on this site.)

My dad fabricated a rolling boom reefing boom for his Aquarius 23 that worked GREAT - but his design required a backstay. I really miss my dad - he knew how to solve a lot of these problems.

[Highlander]

There was a factory Mac 25 or 21 I think produced with a direct rotating boom I should have pic,s somewhere I saved way back in 2004 I found either on this original mac site or somewhere else on the net !

http://shop.bwyachts.com/product-p/3410-1v0.htm

J

[Maraquita]

I had the set-up that Blue Water is showing on my old 25. It was a miserable thing. The "crank" at the mast did not have enough leverage to roll the sail well and the pivot at the rear of the boom tangled the main sheet. I eventually installed reef cringles and slab reefing in my main and moved the main sheet to a mid boom position where it was easier to reach. I bet a lot of those V-25s are sailing around with conventional reef systems and owners who wonder what the odd gooseneck fitting was all about.

[Russ]

You do not trailer your boat much.
Your sailing grounds have really irregular winds.
Your okay with the loss of speed and the cost of a special cut sail. (That's where all the cost is).

I don't trailer much
Winds are very irregular
Speed? It's a Mac, not a J boat.

I still have the OEM main and it probably needs replacement. So if I'm doing that, maybe go with something like this.

It is butt ugly and I'm sure performance sucks. Much to think about.

In the old days, roller reefing was the norm. The M main sheet is not attached to the end of the boom, so roller reefing would require a major change there.

[BOAT]

You do not trailer your boat much.
Your sailing grounds have really irregular winds.
Your okay with the loss of speed and the cost of a special cut sail. (That's where all the cost is).

I don't trailer much
Winds are very irregular
Speed? It's a Mac, not a J boat.

I still have the OEM main and it probably needs replacement. So if I'm doing that, maybe go with something like this.

It is butt ugly and I'm sure performance sucks. Much to think about.

In the old days, roller reefing was the norm. The M main sheet is not attached to the end of the boom, so roller reefing would require a major change there.

Yeah Russ - I think this device just might be a good idea in your case - that's why I wanted to give you an honest evaluation.

As far as performance - the main thing the M boat has over the X and even over a lot of other sailboats is acceleration. I had been sailing conventional ballasted boats or boats with ballasted swing keels and I still remember what I said the first time I sailed an M boat - "Wow, this thing really accelerates to best speed fast!" (Best speed is whatever the boat will do in the existing wind) I was used to raising the sails and waiting for the boat to catch up - but the MAC was so light and displaced so little water that the boat got to best speed faster than what I was accustomed to.

That was still the case on the black boat with the furling boom - the acceleration was not affected at all. The only hit on performance from what mastreb told me was the top speed - the recut sail did not make hull speed so you lost about a half knot - add bottom paint to that and your really nailing the top speed - so mastreb dumped the furler when he got bottom paint.

Top speed is a really big deal to me - it makes a big difference if your sailing over long distances so I did not want it and I did not want bottom paint.

But my reasons are stupid - if you sail in winds that are crazy and your not storing the boat on a trailer most of the time my reason for dumping the furler are stupid - like who cares what it looks like?

I still would like something that rolls up the main because I like a bolt rope on my main - it's faster yet. In the best world there would be a boom furler that could handle the stock bolted rope main - that's sail is the fastest one. (I don't like the slugs) But how do you roll up a mainsail that has battens in it?? That's the first thing you lose when you furl a mainsail - a PROPER set of battens.

I dunno the answer

[Jimmyt]

I have found that for trailering, the furling boom is as fast or faster for setup/tear down than a conventional boom and sail. I keep the boom on deck, about 3 ft from where it attaches to the mast. I raise the mast, attach the topping lift to the back of the boom, lift the front of the boom to the gooseneck and put the pin in. Attach the halyard to the sail, and clip the main sheet to the traveler and move to next item. Sail is stowed on the furler except when sailing.

Not meaning to be argumentative, but I actually find it to be more convenient for trailering. Most of the other observations agree with my experience. It is a bit finicky furling, as BOAT points out. Hoisting is slick and fast. It looks cheap and clunky. I don't notice that there is a big speed penalty, but I'm not fit to carry BOAT's shoes where sailing is concerned, so don't want to argue the speed issue.

I like the concept, but not the aesthetic. If I ever get some spare time, I'd like to redesign the furling boom to be a bit better looking.

Working on a Genoa furler support right now so I can lose the crutch and cut a few more minutes off my setup time....

[Russ]

But how do you roll up a mainsail that has battens in it?? That's the first thing you lose when you furl a mainsail - a PROPER set of battens.

I lost a few battens by being stupid and not inserting them properly. (Swooosh..plopt)
It really made a difference in performance with them gone.

I'll have to give this some thought. I need to replace the main soon.

[BOAT]

Based on Jimmy's remarks above it appears the modified cut sail works okay on the boom furler that Mike invented. I can attest that it had no effect on acceleration at all - but even in 14 knots of wind we were unable to achieve hull speed which I can do very easily on 'boat' in less than 13 knots of wind but at the time I was sailing a boat that was strange to me - now I know how to trim my M boat but back then I had never even sailed one!

We spent a LOT of time sailing that day because I insisted we sail the boat all the way out into the ocean and if you familiar with Newport you know that's a long long way. Most folks just sail back and forth inside the middle of the bay and that's only half way out of the harbor. Mike kept saying "Are you SURE you want to go all the way out?" An I kept saying "Yup, I wanna see this thing in a swell and I want to see it under full throttle". When we got out of the harbor it was 3 foot and Mike dropped the motor and we ran the boat out and he did a bunch of donuts too.

I had already decided to buy one but never told Mike until we got back to his office. That's probably why he indulged me on the water that day.

My experience is that the furler works very well, and is probably the best your gonna find for the situation. You do need to learn the ropes on operating it. (Mike was rather impatient with me barking orders to release the halyard and pull the furling line! as I looked a little confused - I did not know where all the lines were and I kept trying to go up to the mast - he did not like that. I was not accustomed to a boat that you could sail completely from the cockpit - never done that before. Mike made me learn really fast but I still did not like that furler - something about it bugged me. I think Mike was mad I did not like it. (I did not know it was his invention at that time! or I would have kept my mouth shut!!)

[Highlander]

I really think it,s a waste of time on our boat,s I seen a mainsheet sytem that consisted off lines & blocks from the boom end that led down to the cleats on the gunnels so that would take care of that issue but I would not give up the performance of my rigid vang for it , now their was a guy on this site with a 25 I believe & he designed & fabricated his own boom furler & I believe the boom rotated & worked pretty good as I remember & he posted a vid or two of it !

J
PS I do have slugs sewn into my main so r my battens & also have three reef points on it

[BOAT]

I heard a rumor that Mike Inmon once posted some pictures of the BWY single line reefing rigup where he improved it by adding pullys and repositioning stuff - I wish I could see those pictures - I wonder if Russ has an archive??

I have single line reef equipment all set up on the boom but I do not always string it up with line - I only put the line in it if I think I am going to run into a gale that day. I must admit if it worked better I might use it more.

Anyone know about pullys and corrections that would make it work better? (Mine just sort of mushes up the sail onto the boom. )

[kurz]

Yes your right BOAT, this single reefing system I never started to love. In heavy winds you have to fiddle around at the end of the boom. Having the boom in front of your nose...
I installed a block at the mast near where the boom is. So this block turns when mast is rotating. Then you can pull the line ontop the same manner where the halyards lead aft kit.

Well complicating to explain, easy to understand with a photo. I can take a photo if you like next time on the boat.
Well it seem to work so far. But still you have these very long lines in the main. And most: I just hat two times tu check it out. So I need some practise. Maybe I take out all the lines and will do it the old school way: moove your a$$ over the cabin... ...

[Jimmyt]

BOAT: Gooseneck assembly from my furling boom. Let me know if you need any others.



By the way, I was wrong. Option was $2,990...

[BOAT]

How the hull does the sail get into the mast? What keeps the bolt rope from jamming?