Tim, Phil hit it on the head. I've run into this on a half-dozen "big-boat" furling systems, and the top swivel has ALWAYS been the culprit. when the top swivel sticks, it causes the pigtail to twist a bit, which then recoils at the end of the furling/unfurling operation.
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<br>however, my experience has been that lubrication will only serve as a very short-term fix. You'll probably wind up replacing the swivel. <br><br>