Raising and trimming the sails on your cruiser without a winch can tax your strength and patience to the limit. A winch provides mechanical advantage, magnifying “people power” and making light work of a difficult task.

Harken’s most popular cruising winches are self-tailing. They are easy to operate and hold the line at all times so one person can easily adjust sail trim and halyard tension. They come in many sizes and finishes to suit taste and sailing style.

Harken’s low-friction winch handles have ball bearing grips that efficiently transmit your power into the winch. A 10 inch (254 mm) winch handle is the most comfortable length for most cruising sailors.

Harken Radial® winches are designed for minimal maintenance. Frequent hosing with clean water, and lubricating gears at the end of the season is all it takes. Radials® are super easy to take apart. The top lifts off as a unit and the roller bearings are captive and won’t get lost overboard, making reassembly quick and mistake-free.

 

If you sail under jib alone because the main is too hard to hoist, tame that main and put safety and fun back into your cruising. Harken Battcar systems let you easily raise, lower, or reef your sail at any wind angle. The full-length battens eliminate flogging during maneuvers, making handling easier and dramatically increasing the life of your sail. A Harken Lazy Jack system neatly contains the main on the boom during reefs and drops.

A Harken Battcar system is simpler to install than in-mast or in-boom furling and offers better performance at a drastically lower cost. You don’t have to cut down your sail into a less efficient shape, or in the case of in-mast furling, replace the mast, boom, rigging, and mainsail.

Switch T-Track Battcar systems cut stack height in half by flaking the sail alternately to port and starboard of the boom. Larger headboard cars articulate, allowing the cars to pass through the switch. This reduces stack height even further and simplifies sail handling, not to mention putting on a sail cover. The switch system makes it easy to remove the cars and mainsail together for storage. These systems fit boats from approximately 37 ft (11.3 m) to 145 ft (44 m).

 

 

 

 

 

If you don’t have a mainsheet traveler, or your existing system is full of friction and a trial to adjust, a Harken ball bearing traveler system transforms mainsail control. To power up, bring the traveler to weather. To spill wind and reduce heel, ease the traveler to leeward—all from the security of the cockpit.

Harken travelers feature car-mounted control blocks that come preassembled for 1:1 to 4:1 purchases. If you need more purchase, Harken offers control block kits for cars and end controls so you can make the change yourself!

Systems can be tailored for end-boom or mid-boom configurations, mounted on the bridge deck, or used with track risers and high-profile track to get the traveler out of the cockpit. Free-rolling ball bearings are captive and won’t escape when you take the car off the track.
 

If you cruise with a hanked-on jib, or your furler is hard to operate or provides a poor sail shape, a free-running furling system makes all the difference in headsail control. This is especially important when sailing shorthanded or with inexperienced crew. The installation of outboard lead blocks (we offer a kit with everything you need) allows the furling line to travel outboard of the stanchions, keeping sidedecks clear.

Harken furling systems let you trim safely from the cockpit when it blows and unfurl instead of motoring when it’s light. When entering a crowded harbor, a furling headsail makes it easy to reduce speed and gain visibility off the bow. As an added bonus, your sail stores on the headstay so you’re not filling up the cabin with extra sail bags.
 

After trimming the headsail or reefing with a roller furler, it’s important to adjust the genoa lead car to maximize your sail’s efficiency. Harken CB (captive ball) adjustable genoa traveler cars come preassembled with components for 1:1 to 4:1 purchases. This gives you the flexibility to chose or change the purchase yourself with a Midrange or Big Boat upgrade kit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bigger boats have many advantages, but also hold greater challenges. It’s easy to tell your crew that raising and trimming sails is good exercise, but powered systems let you do this by simply pushing a button. Your crew can kick back in the cockpit and enjoy the ride—and so can you.

Powered Reefing & Furling
Harken powered reefing and furling systems let you quickly and comfortably reef, furl and set sails from the cockpit with the push of a button. Available in electric or hydraulic.

Electric Furling: Electric furling installation and upgrades are straightforward, with the wiring on most boats already in place. Harken electric furling units use a small, efficient motor that gives off very little heat, preventing moisture build-up from causing electrical shorts. The motor mounts vertically into pulpits, clearing anchor tackle and providing low windage. When reefed, sails will not unfurl under load.

To upgrade from your manual system, a Harken Upgrade Kit easily converts a Unit 2 Cruising or MKIV Unit 3 to electric operation.

Hydraulic Furling: Designed for cruisers and performance racers from 18-34 m (60-110 ft), these compact systems are built of Hardkote-anodized aluminum for long-term wear and are UV stabilized to withstand the effects of salt water and sun.

Electric Winches
Electric winches allow crew to trim any size sail. With the push of a button, crew members can sheet the jib in high winds and perform other heavily loaded tasks. Jobs such as trimming the mainsail are effortless.

Standard: Standard electric winches have two speeds: low-power first gear for fast trimming and high-power second gear for tuning.

UniPower™: The electric UniPower™ Radial® is a single speed winch designed for sailors that want more headroom belowdeck. The motor of UniPower is partially embedded inside the drum so only 105 mm (4 1/8 in) projects under the winch—an important feature for smaller boats where cabin headroom is limited.

Rewind™: The Rewind™ Radial® electric winch will trim and ease sails in both directions without taking the line out of the self-tailer. The Rewind operates like a standard Harken electric two-speed winch—fast trimming in first gear and more power in second. BUT! Turn the red knob at the base of the winch and you activate the patented rewind function. Using push buttons operated remotely, the winch will now ease the sheet without manually releasing the line.

Hydraulics
Hydraulic powered systems are becoming more and more popular on midsize cruising boats. With hydraulic power, you can run winches, furlers, anchor windlasses, bow thrusters—basically any function on the boat. Harken offers:
• Cylinders
• Vangs
• Valves, Manifolds & Panels
• Pumps & Reservoirs
• Power Systems
• Accessories