Tips on handling your full-battened furling main sail

Follow Karl Otto Book from Elvstrøm Sails on his visit to the Distant Shores III, with Sheryl and Paul Shard - when they discuss how to handle the full-battened furling main sail.

[@eduardocortes-dv4lo]

Tusen takk Karl Otto, konge briller. Hvilken modell er de? Takk for seile tips!

[@emreesen1468]

I m little confused; as far as I know when you are reefing and main sail puttin you need to release the back stay inorder to avoid crincle on sails. Am I wrong or it is different on full batten furling main

[@johnmayer3433]

U are right.

[@elvstromsailsofficial]

When furling or unfurling an in-mast furling mainsail, a straight mast will always be the best option. If you have an adjustable backstay, of course easing this off while furling in or out is highly recommended.
However, full battens are your best friend for “not perfect” handling. The battens will stretch the cloth for each 70-100 cm and make sure there are no possibilities that the sail will fold double, and for this reason the furling will be “safer”. So, with the full battens, the furling will work also with some mast bend.

[@emreesen1468]

@@elvstromsailsofficial I thought so 😀

[@BRuas9080]

I understood that this vertical battens makes the furling operation easier and less prone to jamming, right? But on the other hand this vertical battens makes lowering the sail an almost impossible operation in an emergency at sea, right? Don´t you think this is too big a risk? What do you suggest doing if such a sail needs to be lowered on an emergency?

[@Mars21681]

you're failing to understand how the system works... the sail doesn't lower, it physically does not lower, it doesn't go up and down.. in an emergency, if your electrical system goes out you simply pull it in by hand/winch (and if you reefing last minute you doing something wrong imo, outside of an unpredictable situation)... the sail goes in and out, not up and down. it's a mast furling system, not a boom furling nor a 'traditional' halyard run atop the mast solution. mast furling solutions are more akin to forward sail furling systems if that's easier for you to comprehend/envision. hope that explanation helps you. -so that's why vertical battens make sense in the first place, they are actually a safer and superior improvement for mast furling solutions, due to the way the entire system operates.

[@BRuas9080]

@@Mars21681 I understand how the system works, what I meant is that in an emergency, if the sail cannot be furled due to jamming, for example, the situation can deteriorate quickly, especially if sea and wind conditions are critical. If the sail did not have vertical battens, it could be pulled out and dropped over the boom.

[@Mars21681]

@@BRuas9080you're not understanding how that system works unfortunately. It will come down to you actually looking into the system more thoroughly without any preconceived notions. you have the internet at your disposal presumably and the experiences of others, you can also experience yourself and check things out possibly in person.

[@BRuas9080]

@@Mars21681 do you have a system like that on your boat?

[@Mars21681]

@@BRuas9080 it works quite well and it can be made to manually release. In mast furling has come a long way. And Selden SMF is the way forward for me. The vertical batten Sail elvstrom is offering is what I'm considering and possibly going to their shop in Denmark in the next week.