# Mariner Roller Furling



## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

Wondering if anybody out there has experience with Mariner Roller Furling. They are a pretty old furling system that takes hanked-on sails but the forstay rotates. I have the opportunity to buy this systems used, looks interesting, don''t know if folks have +/- experience with it.

thanks, J


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

*Mariner roller furling*

I don't believe the forstay rotates, rather, the sail rotates around the forstay. I could be wrong!

I have one in my backyard. Just got it with a boat I bought. You can Google Mariner roller furling and print out the pdf file showing how it connects, etc.

It looks like a simple system to maintain.....and use.

David


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## TSander (Sep 6, 2010)

I have a 40' Yorktown with a Mariner furler on the jib. The jib is hanked onto the forstay. That's a problem. In a calm wind works great. With a 10-15 knot breeze the bottom half of the jib rolls and knots up and the top half flakes out into the breeze with the whole mess then being in a big knot if you pull hard enough on roller line. I have lived with the mess for last time! Just got back from San Fransico bay. Going to replace the system asap.


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## JamesReuber (Apr 6, 2011)

*Mariner Roller furling*

Have been using Mariner roller furling since 2000 on my Santana 27.....good but must keep furling line a bit taut or it falls off and gets caught under the spool. Also upper cam needs regular maintenance or dries and sail won't unfurl. Have a bit of a corrosion problem on the alloy part on the top part of the spool. Would realy like to find a replacement Mariner unit or at least the alloy part on the top of the spool.

Thanks
Jim


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## Waiehu (Nov 12, 2011)

*Mariner Furler Parts?*

Aloha Jim,

Just read your post on the Mariner furler you have been using on your Santana. I bought one some time back and was looking at finally installling it but I am misssing the halyard swivel. Have you found any source for parts on these? Tried to send you a personal note but since I just joined, guess I need to post

mahalo,

Steve


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## jcboyce (Dec 7, 2011)

The head stay rotats if it is working correctly, the lower bearings in mine were bad, I pulled it apart and got the bearings from a company that moved to Irvine that sold Air Craft Bearings, They may no list them as a Mariner Part.
I have not hat to replace the upper bearing but the top of the rolling cable is splined and the eye for the halyard locks on it so when it rotates,
If the cable is the wrong size I have not tried to get the sweged on cable ends for one but that would be the pivit point for me.
I could have bought the drum & top bearing but both were frozen so as of yet I'm still waiting.
Also the top swedge makes the usable head stay shorter by about 10 " in my case. A new drifter came with my boat but it no longer fits.
Boyce


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## Waiehu (Nov 12, 2011)

Aloha Boyce,
not clear on your post, are you using the mariner furler? I have the bottom drum and upper bearing, but am missing the middle splined part with the eye. looking either to buy what I am missing or sell what I have. Any interest in buyng or selling?

cheers,

Waiehu


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## jamesnewsome (Jul 30, 2000)

There is a Mariner Roller Furler listed on Ebay if you're interested.

eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices

Also, found this photo on the web.

http://www.longpassages.org/Documents/Mariner Installation Brochure.pdf

Not sure how well this thing will work. Probably more practical on a smaller boat. I believe someone said that it tends to roll up the bottom half of the sail fairly well, but the top half not so well.

I guess if you can buy it cheap enough it's worth a try.


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## SaltyHog (Sep 7, 2010)

I have 2 Mariner furling units on my Bayfield 32 (cutter). They work well if maintained. Everything can be dissembled, cleaned, and lubricated. I just use boat trailer wheel bearing grease. I can see where they might have a problem on a long luff, but on my 32, no problems. A nice system that allows easy sail changes *and* furling (but not reefing). 
Steve Dashew had (and still has) good things to say about them. Hope it helps.


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## Oroluk (Aug 30, 2012)

I have mariner roller furling on both the headstay and forestay of my cutter. The stays do rotate and the sail furls around the stay. The sails have 3" webbing strops that go around the hank and velcro back to the sail to protect the cloth from the hanks. This is the furling system that Steve Dashew had and recommended on his first cruising sailboat, Intermezzo a 50 foot Tripp designed Columbia. My boat is a 40-footer and I have cruised over 25,000 miles of blue water in the South and West Pacific. It is true that you don't get quite the same consistent furl as with a foil and in strong winds the foot and head will star to furl a little earlier than the middle of the luff but this never presented any problems. The Mariner system has some nice advantages. First, all the parts are very simple to make in any machine shop with the exception of the bearings which are standard aircraft bearings and available at any bearing shop. Second, since the sails are hanked on, if you have to take them down in heavy conditions, the sail stays under control as it comes down and can't get away from you like a taped luff sail can. If I were to buy a boat with a Mariner furler on it I would not chuck it for something else.


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## jcboyce (Dec 7, 2011)

My posting on the Mariner roller furing was in responce to the posting one above my origenal posting concerning the instalation of an stored unit.

It was an attempt to express that they are rebuildable with the possible exception of the male spline mounted on the cable, at the top of the head stay. When the cable is replaced to avoid the enevitable cable breakage due to use in salt water sepage into the swedge sleave rusting out the cable, that leads to the mast either falling in the cockpit of coming close because the standing rigging kept it from falling. (Bases on one I watched in Ceritos channel in LA harbor where after the head stay gave way the opperators sat looking at the mast now 15' above their heads.

I'm sorry if you had difficulty under standing what I ment it was intended for the person who posted the original question. when you have been working on boats since you were 4 and in 40 years have ended up 5 docks from where you were then. look back at the developments, you may look back and find the method of comunicating has changed. 
JC Boyce


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## Kokani (Feb 7, 2013)

Oroluk said:


> I have mariner roller furling on both the headstay and forestay of my cutter. The stays do rotate and the sail furls around the stay. The sails have 3" webbing strops that go around the hank and velcro back to the sail to protect the cloth from the hanks. This is the furling system that Steve Dashew had and recommended on his first cruising sailboat, Intermezzo a 50 foot Tripp designed Columbia. My boat is a 40-footer and I have cruised over 25,000 miles of blue water in the South and West Pacific. It is true that you don't get quite the same consistent furl as with a foil and in strong winds the foot and head will star to furl a little earlier than the middle of the luff but this never presented any problems. The Mariner system has some nice advantages. First, all the parts are very simple to make in any machine shop with the exception of the bearings which are standard aircraft bearings and available at any bearing shop. Second, since the sails are hanked on, if you have to take them down in heavy conditions, the sail stays under control as it comes down and can't get away from you like a taped luff sail can. If I were to buy a boat with a Mariner furler on it I would not chuck it for something else.


Hi i discovered that the roller i have on my boat is a mariner and also discovered its discontinued, i have used with no mayor problems applying wd 40 to the hex bearing but would like to have some info to make a major service for the complete system, since it has 20 years on the boat. the good thing is that it still works.

I saw the posts on the subject explainig that its fully serviceable and spare parts may be still available but if you have any information on how to do regular service and lubbing it will be very helpfull, I have the advantage that since its a small Macgregor 26 Classic I can lower the mast with ease to service parts.

My first concern is the upper bearing for the stay.

Best Regards


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## jcboyce (Dec 7, 2011)

I rebuilt the lower hub, replacing the bearings, which I got from Irvine Bearing. I think it was classified as a permenantly lubricated bearing off of an air craft. There should be a bearing number on it.
The upper bearing I have not done, but assume it to be the same store.
The hard part will be finding the top swedge for the Cable, which is slined to line up the shackles of the jib.

JCBoyce



Kokani said:


> Hi i discovered that the roller i have on my boat is a mariner and also discovered its discontinued, i have used with no mayor problems applying wd 40 to the hex bearing but would like to have some info to make a major service for the complete system, since it has 20 years on the boat. the good thing is that it still works.
> 
> I saw the posts on the subject explainig that its fully serviceable and spare parts may be still available but if you have any information on how to do regular service and lubbing it will be very helpfull, I have the advantage that since its a small Macgregor 26 Classic I can lower the mast with ease to service parts.
> 
> ...


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