How to tie off reefing lines

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bertiebasset

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Hi all, having taken my sails off for the winter I have now read the reefing lines should have been secured to the boom. I collected Sarum Star with the help of a Yachtmaster who tied the lines to the reefing cringles and as we only needed to use one reef this did not pose a problem. (I am making a new stackpack and increasing the zip size for the reefing lines as the previous owner had a new sail with 3 reefs in so put a cringle in the original stackpack to allow the reef line through). Now, do the reefing lines need to go round the boom and be tied off ?? going through the rings underneath to avoid slipping ?? or can they just be put through the rings and a stop knot used ??

Sure someone will advise :)

thanx Robert
 
bertiebasset said:
Hi all, having taken my sails off for the winter I have now read the reefing lines should have been secured to the boom. I collected Sarum Star with the help of a Yachtmaster who tied the lines to the reefing cringles and as we only needed to use one reef this did not pose a problem. (I am making a new stackpack and increasing the zip size for the reefing lines as the previous owner had a new sail with 3 reefs in so put a cringle in the original stackpack to allow the reef line through). Now, do the reefing lines need to go round the boom and be tied off ?? going through the rings underneath to avoid slipping ?? or can they just be put through the rings and a stop knot used ??

Sure someone will advise :)

thanx Robert
Click to expand...
Line through cringle, down round boom, through sail round standing part and bowline back onto itself.

http://www.seldenmast.co.uk/pdfs/tech_guide/595-488-E.pdf
 
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Err, doesn't this require a hole in the foot of the sail?

I have eyes under the boom and run the line to these and fix with a bowline.
 
Mine are fastened to a pin on the cheek block, down around the boom, up through the leech cringle, down to the sheave in the same cheek block and forward to a cleat,

When I made the stackpack I put welted slits in the fabric, on either side, for the reefing lines to pass through. Will do the same on my 'new' boat.
 
Dazedkipper said:
Err, doesn't this require a hole in the foot of the sail?

I have eyes under the boom and run the line to these and fix with a bowline.
Click to expand...

Err forgot to state, loose footed sail and new bag will be attached with slugs so plenty of room underneath :)

Thanks for all the replies, now know: from mast end boom stopper, thru boom, over end sheave, up thru cringle, down thru stackpack, zip and then round boom thru ring then secured with bowline,
Thanks all
 
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bertiebasset said:
Err forgot to state, loose footed sail and new bag will be attached with slugs so plenty of room underneath :)

Thanks for all the replies, now know: from mast end boom stopper, thru boom, over end sheave, up thru cringle, down thru stackpack, zip and then round boom thru ring then secured with bowline,
Thanks all
Click to expand...

Correct, except you might find an alternative to a bowline. It's difficult to tie them suitably short, and if anything ever jams up they're very difficult to undo under load. When the riggers reeved the reefing lines on my boat they used a knot I'd not been aware of before. No idea of its name but it's not dissimilar to a round turn and a funny half hitch. The sail's now off, so no doubt I'll have fun trying to re-create it when I put it back on.
 
Twister_Ken said:
Having looked at the thread SB refers to above, I'm pretty sure my rigger used a buntline hitch in place of a bowline. If not, a very close relative.
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Nothing wrong with that, per se, but you mentioned avoiding a bowline in order to be able to untie it. A buntline hitch is not easy to undo, especially if it has been under load. When we changed a topsail on Stavros we naturally had to unfasten the buntlines from the bottom of the old one - the Bosun said "make sure you take a knife with you, you won't be able to undo the buntline hitches".

Pete
 
prv said:
Nothing wrong with that, per se, but you mentioned avoiding a bowline in order to be able to untie it. A buntline hitch is not easy to undo, especially if it has been under load. When we changed a topsail on Stavros we naturally had to unfasten the buntlines from the bottom of the old one - the Bosun said "make sure you take a knife with you, you won't be able to undo the buntline hitches".

Pete
Click to expand...

OK, then it's not that, but something that looks quite like it. Next time I'm at Hamble Point I'll find the riggers and ask what it is they use. Might just be a round turn and a locking hitch, that looks different because it's seen upside down.
 
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A good knot for this purpose is the timber hitch - it's specifically for securing to a circular spar. I don't have a picture but Google is your friend.

On Adriana I used a rolling hitch to tie off to her circular varnished wooden boom and it worked well.
 
Salty John said:
On Adriana I used a rolling hitch to tie off to her circular varnished wooden boom and it worked well.
Click to expand...

Google is my friend...

"The Timber Hitch is described by (Ashley ABOK #1665, p 290) as much used for handling cargo "... for which it is very convenient, as it practically falls apart when pull ceases."

Don't like the sound of that.
 
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