Hank on furling for foresails, pros and cons

[GILow]

OK, read that again carefully. That's not hank on VS furling, it's a question about the furling system(s) that does not use a foil but uses hank on sails instead.

The new boat has one of each sort, hank on and foil. Both are seized, the foil is fixable, the hank on furler is toast.

But I really like the idea of the hank on furling as the boat has a tabernacle and the foil will make things difficult.

New sails are going to be purchased at some stage so I'm keen to consider the pros and cons of hank on furling before I start talking to my favourite sailmaker.

Thoughts?

Matt

[psk125]

What does your favorite sailmaker think? There do not seem to be many hank-on furlers. Hank-on sails might be better for changing headsails, since the luff is held to the stay by the hanks, and the sail won't be blown off the deck. How often do you plan to change headsails, though, instead of simply furling the one that's up? If you do drop the headsail to change it, you or crew still have to go forward to secure it and hoist the new one. That can be dangerous. If you plan far enough ahead you can drop a foil-mounted sail and change it too. Perhaps your sailmaker could sew grommets along the luff and you could rig a downhaul through them. Pulling on that would keep it on deck after dropping, just like the hanked sail. Lots of options to decide on.

[Don C L]

My boat came with hank-on furler, an old one, and it did not work well for me. It seemed to be the worst of all worlds BUT if I was really careful with it it would work. I took it off not long after buying the boat and gave it away and switched to hank-on.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Don C L

My boat came with hank-on furler, an old one, and it did not work well for me. It seemed to be the worst of all worlds BUT if I was really careful with it it would work. I took it off not long after buying the boat and gave it away and switched to hank-on.

Thanks Don, I'm sorry I missed your response.

Your comments tally with my impression of the system, I shall do as you did and get rid of it.

[Bill O]

Matt,
Is this the type of system you have and is separate from the forestay? Barton Marine - Tech Info - Jib Furling with Sail Hanks - Fitting

Edit: a slightly different version from a German manufacturer https://reefing.systems/furling-hank-on-sails/overview

[boatman61]

Don't know about hank on furler, however I have in the past converted hank on sails for use on a furler by removing the hanks and replacing them with slides to fit the furler groove.. worked really well.
A budget sailors money saver..

[AKA-None]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Don't know about hank on furler, however I have in the past converted hank on sails for use on a furler by removing the hanks and replacing them with slides to fit the furler groove.. worked really well.
A budget sailors money saver..

How well did that work
I was considering how to reuse a small storm sail but had no clear path to connecting it

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by AKA-None

How well did that work
I was considering how to reuse a small storm sail but had no clear path to connecting it

It worked really well for my Genoa..
The bullet slides were what I used.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Bill O

Matt,
Is this the type of system you have and is separate from the forestay? Barton Marine - Tech Info - Jib Furling with Sail Hanks - Fitting

Edit: a slightly different version from a German manufacturer https://reefing.systems/furling-hank-on-sails/overview

Doesn’t appear to be any of those systems, but it has a bit in common with a few of them. The biggest concern for me is that it requires the stay itself to spin so there are two bearings incorporated into the stay. Not great for something that keeps the mast standing.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Don't know about hank on furler, however I have in the past converted hank on sails for use on a furler by removing the hanks and replacing them with slides to fit the furler groove.. worked really well.
A budget sailors money saver..

Talking my language there.

[Don C L]

Maybe the old fart in me but I love seeing my sailbags. You get to know each sail well, its condition, its weight of cloth, who built it and when, and anticipate when is just the right conditions to pull out each one. The sight of those colorful bags with neatly flaked sails just soothes my soul…. Ok that may be a little over the top.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Don C L

... Ok that may be a little over the top.

But in a good way.