I am installing a small electric anchor winch to hoist and reef my boom furling main, which has a large roach. I would like to have a halyard brake or other device to maintain light, constant tension on the halyard as I haul the sail down to reef or stow completely. If tension varies, the roll loosens and risks jamming against the front of the boom. Who makes such devices, or can one find a rope clutch that has a variable setting that could be used? I don’t care what it is called, only that it does the job I require…Thanks….Lowell
Hi Lowell: I have not seen such a brake before. However, I would check with the guys who make the inboom furling systems as they might have developed something like this. Regards – Steve
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999)
July 16th, 2012 at 11:24 pm
I’m only thirteen years too late, but Profurl do now make a range of halyard brakes for boom furling mains.
Rather hard to find info on the www on these, though.
All I found was this:
when hoisting the sail , the halyard runs free on the two shaves which reduce the friction and chafe on the halyard. When furling or dropping the sail, the halyard is braked automatically by the system. The fitting of the brake is easy as it can be fitted on any aluminium mast and placed at the exit of the current halyard. Before using the system for the first time, the amount of the braking can be adjusted with a simple adjustment screw according to the rope diameter. 3 models are available: H800 for a 8 mm halyard diameter – H1012: halyard diameter between 10 and 12 mm – H1416: halyard diameter between 14 and 16 mm.