At rest, just the clew patch of the mainsail on this Hunter 460 peeks out of its home within the mast's cavity. We furled and unfurled this sail several times and the system worked flawlessly. The cost of this convenience is about 30% more in price and 12% less in sail area compared to conventional masts.

The most valuable advances in sailing hardware are those that achieve the dual goals of improving performance while also enhancing convenience. Think of the rigid vang, the ratchet block, and even some roller-furling units. Juxtaposed with the systems that predated them, these devices represent solid advances in equipment engineering.

However, some approaches to engineered convenience fall short of delivering improved performance, and that has long been the knock on in-mast furling systems. Three specific criticisms are most often heard: these systems add unwanted weight aloft due to the increased size of the spar section and its furling components; performance is compromised because the sails used in these systems are necessarily smaller…