. My big problem is the Z spar furling gear. The top rope guide is broken, which I knew about, but the rigger has caused some damage taking it apart as he claims (I wait to see) that the drum had rotted to ,I'm not sure what, and is damaged. Z spars have no spares at all and he is suggesting a new Plastimo furler. (My experience of Plastimo is not good but user reviews of the furling gear are good.) I will get my local engineering workshop to have a look at it and see what can be done as they have done marine quality alum welding for me in the past. When was the last 235 built? If it was in 2007/8/9 then Z Spars have a legal obligation to maintain a stock of spares. There is no doubt the plastic rope guides, top and bottom and, were of very poor quality and not fit for purpose as I know of several cases where they have broken.

Any suggestions that might help me would be appreciated.

Robin Cooter.

I'm surprised that Z Spars don't have spares - they've always had what I needed!

I had a replacement Z400 furling system for my 21 in 2009 - not sure if that's what's on a 235 as well. It looks like this:

Do you mean the halyard diverter attached to the mast below the forestay attachment? That's SeaSure part number 03-48, available here  (and you can buy just the sheave).

Many Thanks Geoff,

My furling gear is with the rigger and he is 150 miles away but I think, from memory, it may be the smaller version.

The rigger sent me this a couple of days ago.

"We have had the following message from Z spars this morning.

Regrettably we no longer have this size of furling drum in stock. This has been discontinued and we are awaiting our new systems to become available later this year.

I have had a good look in old stock pile for the old plastic discs but have had no joy.

Sorry we cannot be of more help on this occasion."

So if you own a 235, and probably a 21 as well, and your furling gear fails in any way you've got an expensive problem!

Regards,

Robin.

I have a spare drum from the Z spars furling gear of my 335 if that's any help

Howard Payne

Baby Beluga

P335/51

Howard, that's very generous of you but research indicates that it is quite a lot larger than the original.

I met up with the rigger when I worked on the boat at the weekend and he showed me the old drum. The problem seems to lie in the use of disimilar metals and rot. I have reluctantly come to the realisation that even if I managed to get it repaired its a disaster waiting to happen. The rigger was not really impressed with the design or the "rather casual" responce to his request for parts/information. He does not think that they are producing any furling gear at the moment. Incidently the 235 parked next to me in Morgans East yard, Brightlingsea, has a replacement furling gear, not Z Spars. (If the owner happens to read this please contact me, I'm your new neighbour.)

Decision is to bite the bullet and have a new Plastimo furler. I've not been that impressed with Plastimo equipment in the past but all the reviews I can find are very possitive about their furling gear.

Thanks again Howard for your very kind offer.

Robin.

My 235 #29 furler looks like the one in Geof Turner's post

Jim Hamilton (Sandy Lady)

Did Parkers downgrade the furler?

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Hi All having issues with Jib furlers.

I have recently had the bearings in Blue Moon's furler renewed by Z spars. There was no corrosion to speak of in either the top or bottom assemblies and as a bonus they both can be removed from the forestay whilst keeping the forestay intact. It runs much better now but I do wish they had used a larger diameter drum to reduce the effort required to start the sail furling in a blow. I have now changed the furling line, length and diameter to make sure the drum is full when the sail is unfurled. I will see how that goes this year before committing to replacing the whole system.

I note Cascade 325/17 does have an earlier Z-spars furler with a larger diameter drum.

Jan

325/32

Blue Moon

Hi All, I've only just seen this post. Our 235, sail number 48 and built in 2006, has a Facnor furling system ( I think an LS model) fitted from new despite the handbook describing a "Z Spars furling drum with chainplate plus Toggle". Would this make be better replacment for the Plastimo?. On the subject of Plastimo - I installed one of the small Plastimo furlers on a previous boat (Jaguar 25)and it was still going well over 20 years later when I sold the boat! Admittedly, that doesn't say that the latest Plastimos will last as long.

Chris Cobb 235/48 Tarakihi

If you decide to go for a French built Facnor furler, consider ordering it from Mauri Pro in the US, I did this a few years back and it worked out a lot cheaper than buying it in UK or from France. Even after paying shipping and duty, I saved 25%. Ridiculous but true. I have bought quite a few items from them over the years and always saved money by doing so, I know the pound is weak against the dollar at the moment but it's still worth checking out.

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Thank you to all who posted on this topic.

The result is that I have had a Plastimo furler fitted. I got afloat and tested it last week, (I've been abroad for a total of 4 months this year and suffered an eye problem, now resolved, which has kept me ashore) and it seem to work very well. Only adjustment that I had to make was to drop the final lead block - attached to the pulpit - as in its original position it was causing overides and jambing. Robin and Maggie Cooter 235/11 Ossie