[Public-List] Roller Furler Luff Rope and Dacron Twisting

[jreadams6]

So wait! I got confused if I am standing with my thumb on my nose and my
fingers clenched do I have to be hopping on one foot or another or is that
not material?

But seriously, it sounds to me as if there was something up with the luff
rope. How old is the sail? Do you know the material of the last line? Is it
three strand or some sort of braided line? It sounds as if it is 3 strand -
which might make it an older sail as I cannot believe they still use three
strands in a luff line of a jib.

On Wed, May 23, 2018, 5:25 AM Jonathan Bresler via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

> Thank you all for your ideas and comments.
>
> The top and the bottom swivels (items 3 and 12 in the diagram  on page 3 of
> http://www.seldenmast.com/files/1426855959/595-104-E.pdf) move easily.
> They were lubricated this spring during recommissioning with Lewmar Winch
> Grease.    The snap shackles don't move as freely, but they don't have the
> ball bearings of the swivels.  I can check the top swivel, perhaps
> something has happened or some foreign matter has become trapped in the
> swivel restricting its motion in a way that I have not noticed.
>
> The luff tape appears to be similar to
> https://www.sailmakerssupply.com/product/dacron-luff-tape/luff-tape , but
> not so nice. In the photos at sailmaker's supply, the dacron is tight
> against the material that forms the "luff rope" which goes inside the
> groove of the furler.  On Constance, the dacron is not so tightly formed
> around the "luff rope".  Its this dacron that twists.  Does not need much
> twist to start binding, 30 degrees, perhaps less, is enough to introduce a
> third layer of dacron into the groove.
>
> I'll check the swivel and get some photos for everyone.
>
> Jonathan
>
> On Tue, May 22, 2018 at 11:18 PM, <mike.nikolich550 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Jonathan,
> >
> > I’m struggling to picture what is actually getting twisted. Just the
> > Dacron? What you describe seems like a loose bolt rope of a sleeved luff,
> > not the typical luff tape designed for a furler foil. The “bead” at the
> > forward end of the luff tape should be tightly stitched in, the Dacron
> > should not be free to rotate around it. Can you send me some pictures
> > off-list?
> >
> > My initial thought is that even if your luff has a problem the root cause
> > will be elsewhere; I think Don is on the right track suspecting a swivel,
> > but I don’t know your setup.
> >
> > Mike N.
> >
> > On May 22, 2018, at 7:37 PM, Jonathan Bresler via Public-List <
> > public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:
> >
> > Folks,
> >
> > Constance is my first experience with a roller furler.   Hoisting the
> genoa
> > can be a bit of a pain.  The dacron enclosing the luff rope/wire, the
> part
> > that goes into the groove of the foil which surrounds the headstay,
> > twists.  Once it starts to twist, the dacron drags and seems to twist
> more,
> > trying to force three layers of dacron into the slot of the foil, in
> place
> > of the two layers of dacron for which it was designed.   The twist is
> > clockwise viewed from above, in the same direction as the sail turns when
> > it furls.  The UV protection cloth is on the port side of the sail, so
> the
> > sail must furl clockwise in order to leave the UV cloth on the outside.
> To
> > visualize this hold your right hand with your thumb pointing at your
> nose,
> > fingers together and naturally curving toward the palm of your right
> hand.
> > Your thumb is the foil.  Your thumbnail is the swivel on the foil to
> which
> > the jib halyard attaches.  Your fingertips are the leech of the genoa.
> > (its a small sail, chord length is one finger long ;)
> >
> > The way I have been handling this, is to straIghten the "luff rope" and
> the
> > two layers of dacron by giving them a bit of "pre-twist"
> > counter-clockwise.  Hoist some sail till it starts to bind due to the
> > twist, lower a bit, pre-twist a couple feet of luff, hoist, repeat.
> > Clearly, this does not make for quick sail changes.  Any idea of quickly
> > raising a second sail in other unused groove is laughable....at least the
> > "quickly" part is laughable.
> >
> > So what's up?  Worn out luff rope and dacron in the sail?   Dacron around
> > the luff rope has bagged over the years?  I need lessons?  Anyone else
> > having a similar issue?  How did you fix it?
> >
> > Jonathan
> >
> > --
> > Jonathan M Bresler
> > S/V Constance Alberg 30 #262
> > Annapolis/Eastport MD
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>
>
>
> --
> Jonathan M Bresler
> S/V Constance Alberg 30 #262
> Annapolis/Eastport MD
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