Low Cost Barton Furler

Click here to go to the installation drawings page



As a river sailer who enjoys "potting" about on the Potomac, I have always felt that the CDI furlers are a bit of over kill for an 18 foot boat like the Potter.  My midwestern Lutheran upbringing just won't allow me to spend that much money on such a frivolous gadget.  Before I bought the GraceII I had a Siren which had a small plastic roller furler that worked very well and didn't require significant sail modifications aside from having to bind the sail to the wire luff.  Somebody on the Potter list pointed out the Barton furler in the Defender catalog and I finally decided to buy one to play with.  I received the parts yesterday and decided to post this temporary web page in case anybody might be interested in the details.

I have seen these furlers on a number of small boats, typically Flying Scotts (which carry as much, if more sail that the Potter) and lots of Cats and other daysailers.  It is probably not the best unit for white water sailing, but most of us Potter folks are more into messing about in boats on Sunday afternoons with the family than making  heavw weather Atlantic crossings.    The barton furler certainly isn't in the class of the CDI units, but it's a whole bunch cheaper....

The Barton Furler has, in my very limited opinion, a number of advantages.


The photos below show the Barton Furler and swivel/rotary.



The only catalog that I have seen that carries the Barton Furler is Defender, but the US distributor David Brady  DAVID@imtra.com has pointed me to a number of US outlets.  I ultimately bought mine by mail from Layline in Raleigh NC (800-542-5463) and had the hardware four days after my phone/mastercard order..  Barton UK has a limited web page at  http://www.tecc.co.uk/marine/barton/index.html


               
                                                           From Page 326 of the 99 Defender Catalog         Dwyer Chainplate

The Barton unit is similar to the low cost Harkin units that are available in most of the major catalogs like Boats US (p 258).  The Harkin units (below) are a bit more expensive, but probably also a bit more rugged.  The Harkin  drum is about $90 and the Swivel/rotary about $57.

Click here to go to the installation drawings page


"There is nothing - absolutely nothing -  half so much worth doing as  simply messing about in boats. In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of it. Whether you get  away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your destination or  whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never get anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in particular; and  when you've done it there's always something else to do, and you can   do it if you like, but you'd much better not."

                       Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932), Wind in the Willows



Disclaimer:  I have no financial connection to Barton or their US distributor.  I just think this is a neat item.