Lazy Jacks

[JasB]

I am tempted to 'craft' lazy jacks for the mainsail on a Snapdragon 24.
Any suggestions for the type of material to use/ dimensions/ web sites?

 

[claymore]

2 blocks - one on each spreader
2 cleats - one each side of the mast
2 blocks one for each side of the main
4 bullseyes - 2 each side of the boom
String - nothing fancy - run it up the mast to the spreader and down through the blocks. Tie a bowline with a block in the bight.
Run another length of string up from the forward bullseye on the boom, through the block in the bight and back down to the aft bullseye
Repeat for the other side.
Should be ample for a Snapdragon main.
Should get change out of 30 quid.

 

[Vara]

A disreputable person would trawl through the sites of sail makers and lazy jack makers,blag the basic proportions off their line drawings and then make their own.Apparently "lazy jacks" in google will produce some help in this matter.

Or alternatively follow Claymore's post.

(must speed up my keyboard skills)

 

[bilbobaggins]

Here's slightly simpler/cheaper, and works well. As Claymore's, except:

No cleats on mast, therefore upper cords dropping from spreader roots P & S are fixed, with small blocks ( or nylon seized eyes ) attached at their lower ends. Two bullseyes, fixed under the boom at appropriate distances.

Lower cord(s) P & S passes 'middled' through outer bullseye; then up to - and through - the blocks attached to the upper cords; then down to and through the forward bullseye; then forward - each side - to the gooseneck.

At the gooseneck, using an existing moulded 'ring' intended for tack attachment or a new attached snaplink, pass the end of each cord through and secure back on itself using a rolling hitch. Adjust length to suit.

This permits tightening/slackening of the lazyjacks using one hand, while at the mast, either side, and has the merit of keeping the clutter of cord on the mast wall minimised, no new holes in the mast, less cord overall. Has worked 4 years on Rival 34 - the only problem was teaching the owner how to make a reliable rolling hitch.

If change out of £15, buy me a beer!

 

[Stemar]

Here's what I did on my Snapdragon 24. Total cost: several pints short of £15.

Materials:
Two 15m hanks of 6mm polyprop at a couple of quid each
half a dozen plastic snaphooks (hooks with a little plastic tongue to keep then from unhooking) at about 70p each.

Method:
Work out a convenient way of hoisting the lazyjacks. I used a light halyard that went about 10' up the mast; I've no idea what its real function was. I think over the spreaders would be better, but you need to be able to raise them enough to be fairly tight with the topping lift pulled up to its "sail down" position, and lower them enough to be able to tuck everything into the sail cover.

Hoist a loop of line up the mast so both end are within reach. Attach a hook to one end (call it Hook A), but leave the other end long for now. I'll call this Line 1

Run a line along the bottom of the boom, in such a way that it doesn't turn when you roller reef the main. Put small loops in this in three positions along the boom, where you want the jacks to come down. This line needs to be quite tight or it'll tangle with the sail as you reef it. I used a hook one end and tied it off at the other to allow for easy adjustment and tensioning. This is Line 2

Now attach a line (line 3) to the aft loop on Line 2. It needs to make two sides of a trangle so that the aft part is in a straight line towards where the lazyjacks will meet the mast then goes down vertically to the centre loop of line 2. Make fast. Do the other side the same.

Put a hook (Hook B) on one end of the next piece of line (Line 4) Hook B over the aft bit you've just done and hoist the line up with Hook A so it looks shipshape and attach the other end to the forward loop under the boom. Repeat on the other side.

I reckon the longest (aft) length of lazy jack should be more or less a straight line.

Now you can see the length you need for line 1 cut it and add the other hook. Now tie off into loops the tops of the lines where the hooks go. This will help to prevent tangles when the lines are slack.

I tried to do a diagram but the @*&:%$\@# forum software takes out extra spaces, so it made no sense. Anyway, in case this isn't clear, I'll sum up:

Line 1 holds Line 4 up with Hook A
Line 2 goes under the boom and holds everything in place
Line 3 goes from the aft loop in 2 to the middle loop in 2 and is held up by Hook B on the end of Line 4
Line 4 goes from the forward loop of line 2 and holds up Line 3 with Hook B. In turn, it is held up by Hook A on the end of Line 1

Don't make anything too permanent to start with. It took me a couple of weeks and several adjustments to get it about right.

BTW, I have a double length of bungey cord whipped together by the loops in Line 2 and a hook in each section. I pull the bits of bungey up either side of the mast over the top of the sail and hook them together between each bit of the lazyjacks. No sail ties to come loose or go over the side. It takes seconds to do.

 

[KRG]

A thought on lazyjacks, I've been using them for 3 seasons now and they are great for control when dropping the main but they can be a real pain when hoisting in anything except head to wind because the batten ends get caught up. I've been hooking the lines around a couple of spare mast cleats which pulls all the lines down before hoisting to prevent the snagging. Just something you might want to consider when setting up ya system.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Good point. you also need to be careful that the battens aren't caught in the lazy jacks when reefing, especially if using a winch on the pennant.

 

[macd]

Agreed - and particularly crucial when hoisting sails at night, since you can't see the damn snags

 

[mhouse]

Another thing to watch out for if they are too loose is that thay can catch the leeward shroud. It makes gybing interesting.

 

[Guest]

Measure up following :

Boom length.
Height from boom to spreaders

Now with 4 - 6mm light braided line .... you make up :

single length to run under boom. With sufficient spare to allow making fast at ends.
2 lengths to do "hypotenuse" from 65% boom length line to over spreaders and back down to small cleats at mast base.(Best is actually a single length halved ...)
2 vertical drops from that hypotenuse to the boom line, clove hitched and then back up to other hypotenuse line. Making 2 "slings" for sail to drop into.

The above can all be made at home ready for taking to boat and rigging.

All knots should be hitches suitable to be slid along for fine adjustment if necessary. Vertical drops should have a reasonable slack to them to allow sail to work. There is no need for blocks or fancy bits .... the lines can pass up and over spreaders untill all is proven and then small blocks itted to take the lines.

Total cost .... couple of hours labour, probably fivers worth of line and a suitable throwing item to get lines up and over spreaders + a couple of small plastic cleats ....

 

[Roberto]

Likewise, I found the snagging very annoying, sometimes two persons were needed to hoist the sail, so I fitted two cleats near the boom gooseneck, before hoisting all the lazyjack lines are brought out of the way, parallel to the boom

they stay there until the main must be lowered again, so there is even less chafe

 

[claymore]

Are you talking full-length battens or standard ones?
My full length ones used to snag sometimes but I honed my technique a little so that I get the sail hoisted to just short of the point where the batten might snag then wait for the moment when the leech is right in the middle of the lazy jack slot - then give it a real good hoik so that it gets past the snag point clearly. Same again higher up - it only adds a few seconds to the sail hoist which I've never found a problem.

 

[KRG]

Kemp power main, long battens but not full.

I have done it the way you suggest with some success but sometimes I want to raise without coming into wind and without letting the main flog which excites the boom end if loose. Taking up the slack in the mainsheet calms things down but also allows the leech to curve which leads to snagging. It isn't much trouble to hook the lines away as they aren't needed until time to drop.