by GreenLake » Tue Jul 11, 2017 3:13 am
You can easily build your own furler from PVC pipe and a few other re-purposed parts. There was some mention of how this can be done here, but the bulk would be found in places like boat-building forums.
Worth looking into. (Unlike bigger boats, the loads are small enough to get away with home-built techniques).
That said, I'm not a fan of furlers. I have one on one of my boats (not the DS) and it's managed both to not unfurl when needed and not furl when needed (these are different failure modes).
On my DS, what saves me the most time is to leave the jib sheets rigged. I use a soft shackle (tied into a Prusik loop around the single, continuous sheet) to connect the sheet to the clew. That means, the sheet stays on the boat (even when I trailer) and doesn't have to be rove through all the blocks and (in my case) inhauls. (In all the years, the Prusik loop has not slipped on the sheet, even though it's not really held in place when not loaded).
Tim Webb used a smaller diameter soft shackle that he threaded through the jib sheet. However you do it, it means attaching the jib sheet is as simple as closing a soft shackle through the clew. In my view, on a DS, raising the jib (once attached) is not that much more difficult than furling it, unlike raising a main.
And you get to put away your jib in the cuddy, where it is out of the harmful UV.
PS: did I mention that I know of at least two boats where the furled jib came undone during a blow and shredded the jib - both on the same bay.
~ green ~ lake ~ ~