"Mika" wrote in message
...

Have not considered changing from jib to genoa and vice versa too much
hard work in our small 27ft boat. No problems with furling systems and
one can always take the sail down real fast if needed.

Now we plan to upgrade to 30-35 ft boat because our family has grown.
Notice that 99% of secondhand boats have furling system installed and
seriously consider getting rid of it or finding a boat without. Am I
very old fashioned conservative or just crazy? Like to keep things
simple and not have onboard systems I cannot fix...

Would like to hear comments from those who have had both systems.

Mike


My first boat had a twin foil and it was quite difficult to get the foresail
up by myself. Those pre-feeders only help a little. Careful flaking of the
sail at the base of the forestay was necessary. Moral of this story is that
I would stay with hanks if I was not going to have a furler.

My present boat has a Harken furler and it has worked well but I did have
the halyard wrap around the forestay this year. Don't really know why.
Possibly the halyard was inadvertently loosened at some point. Had to go up
the mast to correct the problem but it was simple to fix. Don't think the
furlers themselves break too often as they are fairly simple units. This
assumes they are sized correctly for the boat and installed correctly.
Wrestling down a 130% genoa on a 35 footer in rising wind/pitching deck is
probably not part of the enjoyment of sailing. I would go with furling but
have a knowledgeable person check the installation and overall condition.