Roller Furling

The overwhelming choice of roller furler for the Macgregors is the CDI model FF2. This model has a plastic extrusion for the stay that withstands the abuse of frequent mast raising and lowering. The extrusion is flexible enough that it can be shipped rolled up.

In order to use it your sails must be re cut. This is because the luff needs to be shorter to leave space for the drum at the bottom. In addition, a sail used on a roller furler is better if it has a higher clew because when the sail is reefed the trim point on the deck moves forward less.

It is also necessary to make a new stay. The lower end of the stay can not have a thimble. The stay must pass through the extrusion and drum and the eye in the original stay is to big to do this.

One of the disadvantages of the roller furler is that a furled sail does not perform as well as a sail that was made small to start with. As the sail is reefed it gets fuller (baggier) and this is detrimental to performance, particularly windward performance. Another disadvantage is that when raising the mast it is heavier and it is harder to install the pin for the fore stay.

I think some sail maker recommend a little smaller genoa than a 150 if it is for a furler.

On the other hand, the ease of rolling the sail out and putting it away is amazing for someone who is used to hanking on a jib. This is particularly so for a single hander.

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