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PostPosted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 7:30 am 
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Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:09 am
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We have a '11 Oasis and are new to sailing kayaks. I rigged up a furler out of PVC modeling it roughly of a few I have seen here. The line however would not always stay on the furler. The line would wrap around the mast and get very hard to work. Then after a couple furl and un-furls the mast fell over. What had happened was the mast bound against the hull insert it sits in and the action of pulling the line to furl was also unscrewing the insert from the hull. After it had backed out and inch of so the bottom of the insert came free from where it mates to the bottom of the hull and the whole mast canted over about 45 degrees. If that was not exciting enough we managed to flip the boat a minute later. So there I am with a inverted boat, buggered mast which is stuck in the sandy bottom plus a wife and 2 year old floating in the water. That was real exciting. The part where I had to hold the boat in the air while treading water so my wife could pull our daughter out from under it was especially entertaining. Fortunately we were not far from shore.

Anyone using a homemade furler needs to be sure it is not effecting the mast insert.

Also fortuntatly the boat and mast were not damaged and no gear was lost. I love this boat and all the handy places to strap stuff down. I was able to straighten the mast mount insert and screw it back into the lower hull. Now I just have to find a way to improve my furler design.


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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 3:46 am 
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Location: Hahndorf, South Australia
I made the same sail furler from pvc, and had the same problem of the rope winding around the mast and jambing.
I made a second one to the exact measurement of the base of the sail to the top of the mast tube, so that none of the mast is showing, works perfectly.
took it out in strong, gusty wind, only half furled the sail & felt very safe.


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 7:03 am 
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That is exactly what I came up with on my third (or was it fourth) round of modifications to the furler. It goes nearly to the hull and also has a 1 inch projection at the bottom made from a disk of 1/4 plywood. The furling lines goes straight to the side to a pulley. Because it never has to go 'up' from the pulley the furler it does not drop down below any more. This final model worked perfectly on Saturday for a couple hours of sailing with many furls.

I also discovered that no matter what I did the furler still sometimes binds to the mast and rotates it along with the sail. This makes it VERY important that you wind the furler the correct way. When pulling to furl the rotation has to be clockwise. That way any binding effect only servers to tighten the mast mount insert. If you wind things the other way you run a chance of unscrewing the mast mount insert from the hull.

I will try to post some pictures later. I did not find nearly enough of those when I was looking for ideas.


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PostPosted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 6:20 pm 
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Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:09 pm
Posts: 187
Location: Sayville, NY
You're posts saved me some issues I'm sure, thanks. Looking forward to the pics!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_stDzQJ ... ion_293026

I built the pvc furling system you and others described, works great, very simple! I had some 3/4" bearings from the kids old roller blades, sprayed them with corrosion x and dropped one in mast hole, it seems to help speed up furling a bit and reduces any friction between mast end and mast tube. Plus it stays in place in mast tube in case mast needs to be removed on water.

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Bob
Proud member Kayak Fishing Association of New York


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 11, 2011 6:29 am 
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Joined: Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:53 pm
Posts: 395
Location: S.E. Florida
I added this post a while back and may offer some resolutions to your furling issues. This system works exceptionally easy and the twists in the sail bungee stop the mast flex when pulling on the furling line. I found when the sail is simply hooked to a clip or not hooked at all the sail does not wrap tightly on the mast and the mast flexes and/or bends adding pressure to the side wall of the mast tube with the added effort you need to put on the furling line to wrap the sail.
Putting 2 to 3 twists in the sail bungee before you put the sail on the mast and sliding the mast through the loops then clip it off makes the sail very tight to the mast. The amount of effort to furl is minimized and it works far more smoothly.
You get a tight wrap and you just have to lock off the main sheet and the furling line to keep it all snug. I am adding a cleat to the left side of center hatch since I control my main sheet with my right I will be able to just reach down with my left to furl/unfurl without reaching across my lap.
my previous post:
viewtopic.php?f=32&t=34749

hope it helps
Revo

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I would rather be kayaking and think about work than to be at work thinking about kayaking.
A Thrill Ride is being dragged around in your kayak for 40 minutes by an extremely large fish.


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PostPosted: Mon Feb 06, 2012 4:22 pm 
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Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:09 am
Posts: 31
I ran my furling line through a block on the top of the port side of the hull, almost directly abeam the most (just a little aft)... ok now I have to stop typing this becuase I used up all my nautical jargon :lol:
I also have a cleat along the edge of the hull just above the mesh storage area. This makes my rig very easy to access and nicely out of the way. The bock also helps and cleat also keep the furling line from going slack and wrapping around the mast under my furler. I guess I never did post pictures. I should. It is a nice rig.


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