Mounting the Screacher

[Mark G]

I checked yesterday and I found I have a Schaefer furler, model 650 (needless to say, you need to check your own gear). The lead for that is the Schaefer 650-16 fairlead arm. You can Google it and find it at various stores. There is also a 650-17 which also includes a cam cleat (which you don't want.)

[Mark G]

I just got off the phone with David Bierig. I asked if the tack of the screecher needed to go to a shackle rather than directly to the pin on the furler drum. He said no. However, the die for cutting the mounting hole in the original sails was too small and they needed to add the shackle to get the tack mounting. He changed the tooling and at some point the hole was enlarged. Check your specific sail and, if the mounting hole is large enough, the shackle can be removed and the tack mounted directly to the pin on the top of the furler.

[Dan]

Just FYI, the screacher I have requires shackles at both the top and bottom. The hole in the screacher wire is only 5/16" and the pin in the furling drum is 3/8".

[Mark]

I bought the line feed for the furler but found that on my sail it does not work because of the direction of twist in the wire. that is, on my sail the control line leaves the furler on the right side. The bracket is set up for line leaving on the port side. There is a large thread on the old site about this. I'd be happy to let you have mine at a very reduced price if you want it.

Also, IMO it is close to impossible to use the sail without a jammer of some kind on the mast.

[Ron]

I found my copy of the Bierig memo about the twist in the Chinese wire. It was not twisted the wrong way - it was taking a permanent twist. He said that the strands of the wire were not laid up as tightly as they might be and tightened with use. His instructions were to unlash the tack of the sail to the wire, unfurl the head of the sail completely (you may have to turn the drum), and then re-lash the tack to the wire. I would add that you may have to pre-load the wire with a few turns at that point - it depends on how well the Chinese wire will hold that twist.

Makes sense. The wire was not manufactured with it's final and "permament" twist set. Rolling up the screecher would get the wire to twist more after time, and the head of the sail then couldn't roll back in.

You probably won't need clutches or jammers on the mast if you have a 500 pound Gorilla on board. The rest of us need something to hold the main halyard when we use the mast mounted starboard winch to tension the screecher halyard. Several of us have used the same clutches that PCI uses for the ama and trampoline lines (Lewmar Superlock D2). Only ones that can be safely released under pressure. They work great there.

[Mark]

Mark G

On your picture of the screecher furler, the drum seems to lack the vertical plates that mine has. Presumably they are to prevent the line jumping off the drum - did you remove them or is this a new or old design? It is these plates that prevent the feeder from working when the line exits on the starboard side (the line rubs).

Mark

[Mark G]

No, it is a trick of the photograph. My Drum has the vertical plates as well.

On my boat, the genny and the main halyards exit the stbd side of the mast. The screecher halyard is the only one exiting from the port side of the mast. Since the Genny is furled, I installed a clutch on the mast for the genny halyard and I tension it before I leave the berth, remove the halyard from the winch and cleat it down. Then I use the stbd side winch for the main. When I am done sailing, I remove the genny from the cleat and trip the clutch to remove the tension.