Rails javascript only works after reload

Solution 1:

For turbolinks 5.0 you must use the turbolinks:load event, which is called the first time on page load and every time on a turbolink visit. More info: https://github.com/turbolinks/turbolinks#running-javascript-when-a-page-loads

CoffeeScript code:

$(document).on 'turbolinks:load', ->
  my_func()

JavaScript code:

document.addEventListener("turbolinks:load", function() {
  my_func();
})

Solution 2:

This was a turbolinks problem. Thanks to @zwippie for leading me in the right direction! The solution was to wrap my coffeescript in this:

ready = ->
// functions

$(document).ready(ready)
$(document).on('page:load', ready)