Frequent Asked Questions
Of course changing from a conventional boom to a furling boom might raise some questions. We collected the most common questions for you with corresponding answers. If you need more background information on below questions and answers or when you cannot find your question below, please contact your local dealer or our service team.
Purchasing
Q: Why do I need a furling boom?
A: A furling boom helps you to furl safely and easily while sailing with a small crew and without the need to leave the cockpit.
Q: How to buy a Made Furling boom?
A: The most convenient way to buy a Made fruling boom is to use the configurator on the Made website. Choose the dealer you want to use. The dealer will contact you and check your preferences. The dealer will confirm your purchase and communicate with Made Engineered. The completed boom will be send either to the dealer or to your harbour.
Q: What is the delivery time for a Made furling boom?
A: typically the delivery time for a Type C furling boom is around 6 weeks from purchase. For a Type S furling boom this is around 12 weeks.
Q: What are the advantages of a furling boom compared to a furling mast?
A: There are quite a few major advantages but three stand out:
1. The centre of gravity of a furling boom is much lower than a furling mast.
2. When the sail gets stuck during furling you can always get the sail down very quickly, when a sail gets stuck in a furling mast you might have a big problem.
3. With a furling boom you will have a much better main sail than you will have with a furling mast. The sail of a furling boom is fully horizontal battened and has a much better curvature.
Q: Open front end vs closed front end. Which is better?
A: Let us be clear about it. An open front end on a furling boom is much better. The sail sits closer to the mast so it has a much smaller gap between the luff and the mast. As a result the luff will slide much easier through the track because it doesn’t need to cope with a curved lower track part. The ramp between the mast and the track is relatively small and can be a rigid ramp. This means that the battenend will push against a rigid structure instead of the soft ‘ramps’ that some competitors use.
Q: Is a furling boom heavier than a normal boom?
A: Yes, it is. There are more components required for the drive and furling mandrel. Also the front end of the boom is open. As a result of this a heavier construction is required to compensate the loss off stiffness. However the centre of gravity is low.
Q: Is an aluminum furling boom heavier than a carbon fibre furling boom? And how do they compare pricewise?
A: Yes an aluminum furling boom is heavier than a carbon furling boom. Generally speaking it will be 25-30% heavier. However from experience we know that bigger carbon fibre booms are not that much lighter than the aluminum booms because most of them are oversized and overengineered. Pricewise a carbon fibre furling boom will cost 2-3 times more than an aluminum furling boom.
Q: Do I need a different boom vang?
A: Yes. A furling boom is slighty heavier so your current boom vang probably will not be strong enough. When you are furling you don’t want the boom to ‘dance’ up and down. The result of this dancing is that the angle of the boom will vary and this affects the furling quite badly.
Q: I have no boom vang and there is no space for it either, can I still have a furling boom?
A: Yes you can. It is better to have a boom vang but when there is no space for a boom vang you can use the topping lift to get the boom in the correct position. The only downside it that the furling can only be done when the boom is midships. With a boom vang you can furl also when the boom is out. However it is always better to follow good practise and furl when the sail is not under power.
Q: Is worldwide shipping possible?
A: Yes. The furling booms come in a fully enclosed crate which can be shipped worldwide. However be aware that the crates are at least 80cm longer than the E size of the boom and 60cm wide and 60cm high. Most convenient is to contact a local Made dealer.
Installation
Q: Do I need a rigger to install my Made furling boom?
A: It is possible to install a Made furling boom by yourself. The Made Type C is much easier to install but is for yachts up to 42ft only. The Made Type S requires a professional rigger. When a electric or hydraulic drive is selected it is strongly advised to use a professional with understanding of electrics and/or hydraulics.
Q: How much time will it take to install a Made furling boom?
A: A trained rigger must be able to install a Made furling boom within 2-3 days.
Q: Is it required to take the mast down?
A: For the Type C track it is normally not necessary to take the mast down. The track can be installed with slugs in the existing groove. The Type S track is either riveted or screwed on, depending on the chosen track. It is much easier to install this with the mast down. For safety reasons Made strongly recommends to avoid working at heights.
Sail
Q: Will the P size or E size change when I install a furling boom?
A: A furling boom is taller than a normal boom. So the gooseneck will be installled lower than the original one. However this can only be done when there is enough space to do so. In some cases the original boom is set very low to the deck or the boom is almost touching a high sprayhood. In these cases the gooseneck and thus the boom must be installed a bit higher. The P size can change a bit but the E size stays the same. For sailors who don’t to loose any sail area an option can be to enlarge the sail area in the top. However this must be discussed with the sailmaker.
Q: Do I need a new sail?
A: Yes and no. We strongly recommend to buy a new sail to to guarantee a proper working of the system. However it is possible to adjust you current sail too. But when asked what the best moment should be to buy a furling boom we will answer that it will be the moment when you have to replace your main sail anyway.
Q: Is my sail maker able to make a proper furling sail?
A: Yes, as long as your sail maker follows the instructions supplied by Made. For every project Made provides a dedicated and customized sail makers instruction in digital form. This ensures that the sail is adapted to the Made furling boom equipement. When a furling system is not working from the go it normally is caused by a faulty made main sail.
Q: Can I still have a main sail outhaul?
A: There is an outhaul functionality in our furling boom system but it is built into the sail. Our sails have 6 battens instead of the normal 5 battens on most regular sails. The lowest batten is very close to the sail foot. If you want to flatten your sail you have to furl just a tiny bit and the sail will be flattened. The lower batten makes it possible to do this.
Operating
Q: Can I furl with head wind only?
A: No. Not necessarily. But common sense prevails here. It is possible to furl when other courses are sailed, however less force on the sail means less stress on the system.
Q: What is the right strategy when I want to furl with a Made furling boom?
A: First of all you need to adjust the boom to the correct angle, (87 degrees) see below. Main goal is roll the sail around the mandrel with about the same force on the luff as well as on the leech. The force on the luff is controlled by the halyard and the force on the leech is determined by the angle of the boom. When there is relatively more force on the luff the sail will move forward towards the mast. With a bigger angle than 87 degrees the sail will move backwards. Best result is achieved when the sail builds up around the mandrel with a slight forward direction so that the sail luff tape line won’t stack up on each other.
Q: What is the correct angle of the furling boom when furling?
A: The correct position for furling is an angle between the boom and the mast of 87 degrees. The reason for this is that the battens are also placed under this angle. As a result they need to be parallel to the mandrel when the furling is in progress. When this is not the case the battens will not align with the mandrel and therefore will not lie flat against the madrel. This takes up to much space. As a result the sail will not fit into the boom.
Maintenance
Q: Is a Made furling system maintenance free?
A: A Made furling boom is pretty much maintenance free but as with every equipment in salty conditions it needs a regular rinse with freh water. This ensures that dirt and salt won’t wear out the moving parts or cause corrosion. When play occurs in the moving parts it is wise to replace them to prevent excessive wear of the whole system.
Q: I have a (Romar) Leisure Furl boom. Can I get parts for it?
A: Yes. We can supply most of the parts that have been used the past 15 years for building Leisure Furl and Romar Leisure furl booms. Click here for spare parts
Made furling booms Type C and Type S
Q: I still can’t work out the difference between the two types, can you help me?
A: yes we can! See below schedule:
| Comparison chart Made Furling Booms | ||
| Type C | Type S | |
| Dimensions | ||
| Allowable P size | 12-20 mtr | 17-40 mtr |
| Allowable E size | 4-6,5 mtr | 5-12,5 mtr |
| Boom body | ||
| Boom body material | Aluminum alloy 6063 | Aluminum alloy 5083 |
| Base material form | Extrusion profile | Sheet bended |
| Body construction | Welded | Epoxy bonded, cured |
| Front/aft construction | CNC milled welded head/aft | CNC milled welded head/aft |
| Standard surface finish | Anodized | Painted Awl Grip |
| Optional surface finish | Painted 2k paint | None |
| Weld treatment | Exposed | Filler applied and sanded |
| Drive | ||
| Standard drive | Manual endless drive | Manual drum with retrieval line |
| Position of drive | Aft of mast | Front of mast |
| Through mast axle | None | dia. 20-30 mm |
| Electric drive | Bamar BFBM 12/24V | Bamar BFBM 12/24V |
| Hydraulic drive | Not available | Made HydroDrive |
| Mandrel | Aluminum extrusion | Carbon Fibre pultrusion |
| Covers | ||
| Integrated sailcover | Yes | Yes |
| Integrated track for sun awing | Yes | No |
| Options | ||
| Lights | MadeLed on battery | Led Lopolight 12/24V |
| Gybe preventer eye | Yes | Yes |
| German sheeting | Yes | Yes |
| Internal sheeting | Not available | Yes |
Can’t find your question and answer?
You have more or other questions about our furling boom? Please contact your local dealer or contact us directly.