Jib Roller Arrangement

Comment by Roger on November 28, 2013 at 11:12am

Hi Ian,

This setup is quite common on many cats and smaller keel boats. Bigger boats have full roller furling which is still vulnerable in the same way. IMHO not much you can do except make sure that it is sized for the boat and sail area (i.e. not off a small beach cat), and that all of the components, fittings and wires are in good condition.

Comment by Ian Bamsey on November 28, 2013 at 11:43am

Thanks again Roger, that's good to know. 

Comment by Robert Hughes on November 29, 2013 at 10:06am

Hi Ian,This is just my opinion, others will differ so please feel free to ignore what I say (!)

I'd be uncomfortable having the forestay load being held by carried by swivels, as I think they are in this setup, especially if you've not had it from new and don't know if anything's ever been bent.  It's fine on a dinghy where the boat "gives" more than a cruising cat does.  At the very least I'd suggest you have a very careful look over all the components and satisfy yourself they're in good condition.  You only need one bit to break and the whole lot comes tumbling down.

My preference would be to change to a normal wire forestay with something like a Plastimo 406S roller reefing system.  The Plastimo gear is under £300 new, and well made.  The downside is you might need to get the sail luff changed to fit, I think it needs a 6.5mm diameter luff rope.  The reefing gear fits around the forestay and doesn't need to hold the mast up.

Where in the UK are you Ian? I'm near Portsmouth.

Regards,  Rob

Comment by Ian Bamsey on November 29, 2013 at 10:10am

Thanks for the advice Rob. Really helpful as I'm new to this stuff. 

I'm away down the coast from you on the river Exe. The boat was at Topsham until I bought it. I'll be at Starcross as soon as it warms up again.

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