Roller Furling sails & headsails, genoas or jibs

There are many reasons to put roller furling systems for jibs, Genoas, or headsails on your boat. Sometimes referred to as a jib reefing system. Convenience is the big one, to be able to set the sail and get rid of it quickly and without having to leave the cockpit. Storage is another, you do not have to put the sail in a locker, saving space.

Whatever your reason for wanting a roller furler this article attempts to help your decision, by presenting each furler and their features.

We take a look at some of the most popular manufacturers of reefing systems and roller furling equipment, such as Harken, ProFurl, Schaefer, Reckmann etc.

We looked around and there is not much in the way of Roller Furler reviews, so we have attempt to give you an idea of how each one is different, what you should look for when choosing a furler and a price comparison.

Apart from issues in deciding which furler unit you need, we also discuss other aspects. Roller furlers are like any piece of mechanical equipment, they do come with issues that should be addressed. Then you know that its going to work, and not jam up when you least need it to. Also when using roller furling there are some considerations for your sail to get the best shape and life out of it.

Pic; Caliber 40 "Windom" sailing comfortably in breeze under roller furled jib and main.

Things to look for when choosing a Headsail Furler system

Find out what type what arrangement and how many bearings there are with a system. Torlon is preferred Schaefer, Hood, and Harken use Torlon bearings.

Furlex Rondal and Reckmann use stainless steel bearings. Profurl uses carbon steel bearings which are housed in a lip seal. The issue here is if the seal gets worn through or damaged corrosion will occur.

There are various shapes of extrusion round or airfoil. Round is better for furling as it rolls the sail evenly. Airfoil best for racing.

Airfoils sections are usually lighter with thin wall. Round sections like Schaefer are very thick walled and heavy. You also have twin groove for racing.

Some are plastic lined, others use screws or rivets. Its important that the extrusions do not come apart, as furlers are subjected to years of rattling which can undo even well seated screws. Screwed systems need to use Locktite to stop them coming out.

Harken MkIV, Schaefer and Profurl use your existing headstay so you can use them with a turnbuckle or not. Harken MKIII uses a turnbuckle body built into the furler drum and so some modification is necessary. With Furlex you get a new headstay w choice of (turnbuckle) rigging screw or not.

A fully rotating tack swivel allows the sail to Furl from the middle first, which results in taking shape out of the sail. Furled sails tend to be quite baggy and so flattening helps. See also the section on sail shapes below.

Furlex has what they call turn free. This means the tack swivel turns almost 1 turn and then stops. The reason for this is the Hood Patent on the fully swiveling tack.

larger drum diameters mean more leverage which reduces the load on the furling line. Harken MKIV has a better drum diameter to foil size than the MKIII which is one of its improvements.

Materials used include, injection molded plastic, cast aluminum, machined aluminum, investment cast Stainless Steel. Machined aluminum is best say for the halyard swivel.

Its very important to have toggles at top and bottom end of extrusion to allow for the sag of the headstay.

Roller furler Manufacturers Quality/cost

Comparing all furlers and cost is difficult if not impossible because there are so many contributing factors. We decided to pick a size of boat, headstay size and pin diameter for our comparison. This way we compare apples to apples, however even with this approach we get into size overlaps. For example we could have chosen the Schaefer 3100 or the 2100, for the 40 ft yacht size we picked. We chose the 2100 but this means we need an extension kit to get the 55ft headstay length we need for our imaginary 40 footer.

For this Quality/Cost comparison we chose a typical 40 ft modern cruising sailboat with 55 ft (17m) by 3/8 inch wire head stay and 5/8inch pin. This way we can compare apples to apples. Pick another size of boat you will get a different result as each has its own market.

Prices shown are retail for comparison only and you can get substantial discounts on these figures.

Check to see in each package what comes with the furler as you may have to get toggles or extrusion extension kits if the standard length is not long enough, for your headstay.

There are many more furler types that we have not covered here however we included the most popular brands.

Harken Roller Furling / Jib Reefing Systems

Description
The new MkIV Harken roller furler comes in two separate systems one for cruising and one for racing.

The MKIV furler is available in four sizes: Unit 0 (for boats 22-30 ft, 6.5-9.1m), Unit 1 (28-36 ft, 8.3-11m), Unit 2 (35-46 ft, 10.6-14.2m) and Unit 3 (45-60 ft, 13.7-18.3m). The aerodynamic foil’s double grooves and stainless steel feeder allow fast hoists, douses, and sail changes. A split drum and line guard comes off easily for use with full-hoist sails, making it ideal for club racing.

MKIV furlers feature multiple rows of free-rolling Torlon® ball bearings in high-load areas, computer-designed stacked bearing races and large-diameter drums for smooth reefing and furling. A free-spinning, high-strength halyard swivel reduces weight aloft to minimize pitching and heeling. Independent head and tack swivels shape the sail when partially furled. The aluminum line guard, torque tube and swivels are deep-saturation Hardkote-anodized for strength and durability, with a black additive for no-fade UV-stabilization and corrosion protection

The Cruising furler has a single-groove, rounded foil, with an integral headsail feeder. The furler is available in two sizes: Unit 1 for boats 28-36ft (8.3-1m) and Unit 2 for boats 35-46ft (10.6-14.2m).

Foils                                 Aluminum round and airfoil shapes

Pros                                 100% tack swivel, which allows sail to furl in the middle first taking shape out of the sail

Cons                                The new MKIV is a good furler cleverly designed, however it uses less material that the previous Harken furlers. This does make it lighter, but longevity may be an issue.

Warranty:                       Seven (7) years from date of purchase. This warranty covers defects in materials or workmanship.

Comments

The new Harken Mark IV system allows the furler to utilize the existing head stay. The turnbuckle is independent of the furler unlike the previous model, which makes adjustment easier. The new furler has 3 rows of bearings an increase of 1 row on the previous model. This makes for the less friction for furling and with the slightly larger cage diameter you have a bit more purchase.

Schaefer Roller Furler

System SnapFurl for Boats 16' to 24' (4.9 - 8.5m)
System SnapFurl CF-700 for Boats 24' to 28' (7.3-8.5m)
System 750 for Boats 20' to 28' (6.1 - 8.5m)
System 1100 for Boats 27' to 31' (8.2 - 9.5m)
System 2100 for Boats 30' to 42' (9.1 - 12.8m)
System 3100 for Boats 41' to 55' (12.5 - 16.8m)
System 4100 for Boats 54' to 65' (16.5 - 19.8m)

Bearing Design: Open For Life
Schaefer's Torlon bearings cannot corrode and ride in open, easily accessible races that don't require lubrication. These proven, high compression strength bearings provide low friction, and need only periodic flushing with water.

Headstay Adjustment: No Compromises
Schaefer Systems utilize your existing headstay and turnbuckle for reduced cost, full turnbuckle adjustability, and optimum performance.

Heavy-duty base toggle/link articulates to absorb side loads that might otherwise cause turnbuckle fatigue. Turnbuckle is attached to the base toggle/link and is housed by the system, easily accessible.

Drum Design: Powerful, Open, Metal
Our powerful, large diameter drum provides you with the mechanical advantage you need for high sailing loads. Standard split drum plates allow for easy conversion to a full length headsail.*

Attractive, stainless cage is open to give easy access to the furling line.

Schaefer's CNC machined metal construction resists ultraviolet rays and abuse from anchor chains and poles mounted near the stem head fitting.

Foils Aluminum round

Pros Beefy Heavy sections, robust construction

Cons No tack swivel

Warranty; Schaefer Marine, Inc. warrants its standard catalog products to be free from factory defects in material and workmanship for a period of five (5) years from the date of purchase, unless otherwise stated in any Schaefer Marine catalog.

Schaefer has many bearing races, this and the round foil makes it easier to start furling. The foils are connected via rivets which cannot back out, and Schaefer invites you to put the furler line on a winch if needed.