Mainsail reefing

sparta

New member
Joined
29 Dec 2004
Messages
18
Visit site
Having just ordered a new mainsail for my 22' yacht I am trying to come up with a DIY (i.e. cheap) mainsail reefing system. A lot of my sailing is single handed and therefore a cockpit based system is best.

My gooseneck arrangement is similar to that in a dinghy - the boom does not lock onto the gooseneck and therefore slips on and of at the drop of a hat. On the few occasions when I have attempted to reef at sea this has almost invariably resulted in the boom coming of the gooseneck and falling to the coachroof.

The gooseneck is not fitted with a reefing hook. I was thinking of rigging some kind of downhall from the reefing cringle in the luff running through a block in either the forward end of the boom or the mast and back to the cockpit. I personally think that a block on the mast would be best. It would keep the tack closer to the mast and would also help to prevent the boom coming of the gooseneck but I'm not sure if I have considered everything. Has anyone else gone through this process?
 

Mirelle

N/A
Joined
30 Nov 2002
Messages
4,531
Visit site
Are you sure that you want the reefing system led back to the cockpit?

Such a system adds a lot of friction, which can be reduced, but not eliminated, by a suitably vast expenditure on the most expensive sort of blocks, but which will still involve a winch.

Suppose you reef at the mast; you don't need a hook at the gooseneck because you can just pass a lanyard through the tack cringle and round the boom a couple of times, whilst you can use a tackle under the boom, old style, for the clew cringle. I think this is better than a hook because there is no rish of the cringle slipping off. If you have the tackle set up permanently on the close reef pendant, and just bring the other reef pendant(s) along the boom to a cleat on the boom, you need never shift the tackle. Easy.

Try this for a weekend - the expenditure, assuming you have a couple of blocks lying around, is negligible.

This worked well on my old 18 footer. But I confess that I now use old fashioned round the boom roller reefing on the 37 footer!

Leading everything back to the cockpit seems logical, but you will still need both hands to reef, which means "0" hands on the tiller, and you will need just as much time, if not rather longer, to reef in the cockpit because of the sheer inconvenience of not standing up to get at the job, so you cannot use much of your strength. You need to:

Set up the topping lift

Ease the halyard

Pull down the tack

Pull down the clew

Set up the halyard

Ease the topping lift

Six operations involving four different lines, each led aft.

I think it may be quicker to heave to and get along the deck to the mast. At least, it was for me.
 

jamesjermain

Active member
Joined
16 May 2001
Messages
2,723
Location
Cargreen, Cornwall
Visit site
What you suggest would work, but you must also think of the leech line.

On a main the size of yours, a simple, single-line system would not generate too much rope nor too much friction. Simply run a line from the leech cringle through a turning block near the after end of the boom, forward to a block at the forward end of the boom, up to the luff cringle, and down to the deck either directly or via an eye on the mast or forward end of the boom. From the deck it can easily be lead back to the cockpit.

But such a system would always carry a risk that the boom will come off the mast at the wrong moment during reefing. I would therefore suggest you invest in a new boom (or there are plenty of second-hand booms lying around rigging shops) and fixed gooseneck fitting with the capability for two or three internal reefing pennants/clew outhaul.
 

fireball

New member
Joined
15 Nov 2004
Messages
19,453
Visit site
A new boom? Why?! To keep the boom on the gooseneck all you need is a strap around the mast ... a bit of bungee is probably best.

The issue you might get is that as you drop the halyard to pull in the reefing lines (no matter where they are tailed to) you will have to tension the topping lift so you don't get clonked on the head!

We've just done a single line reefing system - to be trialed when the boat is launched ...
As for friction - the simplicity of a block is not going to increase the friction that much ...
 

robbieg

Active member
Joined
25 Sep 2003
Messages
934
Location
Brixham/Midlands
Visit site
Interesting. I'm thinking of going the other way! On my 34ft I find reefing a pain with a single line system because of the friction. Whilst you can put the reefs in ok with a winch shaking them out is a real pain & you end up with line everywhere. I prefer going to the mast & having a simple slab reefing set up-the more sailing I do the more I keep coming back to the KISS principle whether it be sail handling, electronics or whatever.
 

janie

New member
Joined
16 May 2001
Messages
175
Location
Devon
Visit site
[ QUOTE ]
I prefer going to the mast & having a simple slab reefing set up-the more sailing I do the more I keep coming back to the KISS principle whether it be sail handling, electronics or whatever.

[/ QUOTE ]Couldn't agree more!
 

sparta

New member
Joined
29 Dec 2004
Messages
18
Visit site
Thank you all for your advice. Since I'll be sailing singlehanded, I'm still inclined towards a cockpit based system for reasons of safety. I suppose the best thing to do is try it and see how it works.
 

graham

Well-known member
Joined
16 May 2001
Messages
8,105
Visit site
What you are planning is perfectly feasible unless your mainsail is exceptionally large. My 22 footer has a simple slab reefing system you can operate from the cockpit. It doesnt need winching provided you spill the wind by slacking the mainsheet as you haul in the clew /leech reefing line.

The line that reefs the after end ie clew/leech is fastened to an eye on the port side of the boom up and through the leech reefing cringle in the sail,down to a block on the starboard side of the boom then forward to a cleat about 2 feet back from the mast on the boom.

A line also goes up from a cleat on the mast level with ther gooseneck through the sail luff reefing cringle then down to a cleat on the otherside of the mast. This line could be run back to the cockpit but as it can be reached stood in the main hatch I havent bothered.

I will take some photos and post again in a couple of days to clarify everything.

Allways reef the luff end first then re tension the halyard then tighten the leech reefing line. This keeps it tidy and prevents undue stain on anything.Finally retension the kicker.
 
Top