Plastimo Jib Furler

[wgregor]

Hi all,

I have recently purchased a Nicholson 36 and noticed that the furler doesn't look quite right. These spars are misaligned and there was a lot of duck tape holding it all together.

Does anyone know these Plastimo furlers, and is this a common issue? I can get a new spar set for cheap but am kind of unsure what has happened here.

Any help much appreciated.

[wingssail]

This type of foil will have a spacer or sleeve between each section and there will be one or two screws above and below the join going through the extrusion into the spacer. You can see these screws in your photo, but they do not look tight and in fact might not even be the correct screws.

It appears that the two sections are not aligned which they would be if the spacer is in place, undamaged, and the screws are tight. So I presume that the spacer is not correct or for some reason unable to properly secure the two sections. I also see indications of corrosion on the foil near the joint, another indication of a problem inside the joint.

The spacers must pass the torsion applied at the drum up the foil to the next section, and so on. A loose spacer or joint may not do that, particularly in heavy wind conditions. Further the upper swivel must slide past the joint, and the loose screws and mis-alignment will probably prevent that.

You need to disassemble this joint and inspect the spacer and screw holes in it. It may be possible to re-assemble it and tighten it, or possibly replace the screws with one size larger (after tapping the holes in the spacer). However, if the foil sections are damaged or the spacer missing you are probably going to need some new parts.

[wgregor]

Wow this is fantastic, thank you. This will give me a huge head start. I'm sailing her down to Spain soon and need to get everything in order.

Obviously the forestay will need to come off the chainplate and drum will need removing in order to inspect I imagine?

I have had a look at a spare base foil and it isn't too expensive, neither is the spacer thankfully.