My Reefing Woes

I like KISS.

Pyrojames is dead right about getting the angles of the reefing pennant right and scandalising the sail. I don't even try to reef downwind, in fact I usually heave to and get it done in a leisurly fashion. D rings on a short bit of webbing through the luff cringles is a good idea and I also let the sliders out of the track up to the cringle. My pennants run outside the boom through thin plastic pipe, which keeps them tidy, to a couple of clam cleats on the boom. I have put proper reefing ties on the sail to tidy up along the boom. They also help keep the sail flat along the boom.

The new boat has internal reefing lines to clutches at the goosneck, so I've no idea how I'll fare with that!
 
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The new boat has internal reefing lines to clutches at the goosneck, so I've no idea how I'll fare with that!

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My boat was made like that but the lines have now been brought back to the cockpit. I just have to go to the mast to hook on the cringle and have fitted a "gate" on the hooks using a cable tie so they don't drop off again by the time I get back to the cockpit.

As I have a stackpack the crunched up bit of sail is out of sight.
 
/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Only part of the rigging I didn't take a picture of last season when we derigged was where the forstay went and anything to do with the boom.

Live and learn /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Good point.
If anyone does have a picture of thier boom, showing the kicker, topping lift etc. I would love to see it. Think I've got mine worked out but who knows
 
Yes, I too have replaced the usual rams horn hooks which are a real struggle to use, with a pair of 'spectacles' attached to the gooseneck, through which the tack pennants pass on their way down to turning blocks and then back to the cockpit. Simplifies matters greatly.

I also have a couple of 'D' rings either side of the Cunningham cringle and connected through that cringle by a webbing strop, to which I attach the Cunningham downhaul.
 
ECB: If my grey/muddy coloured cells serve me correctly, you recently added your topping lift to yours? I seem to recall a discussion on the forum about.

As search did not give me anything could I ask you to give details as to what you did.

Either that or my grey/muddy cells have failed yet again /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif but then that wouldn't be the last time.
Thx.
 
Your grey/muddy brain cells definitely need a stir.

When I bought the boat, it already had a topping lift, but it was knackered, so I replaced it with a new one. So it was just a case of attaching the new line to the old and feeding it through the mast, so nothing complicated.

If you are adding a topping lift where none existed before, you will have to use your main halyard to tow a new line through which is a bit trickier because you have to connect the new line to the main halyard in such a way as you can still retrieve the main halyard once you have the topping lift through the mast.

The topping lift attaches to the boom end - you can simply shackle it to the boom end or to the shackle on the end of the outhaul. Then up to the top of the mast, down the mast and fed back to a rope clutch and the winch.

Is that what you meant?
 
So your topping lift enters the mast at the same place as you mainsail halyard.?

This could prove technical as I am sure that there is a least one twist around either the spinnaker or pole up halyards for my main halyard.
 
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Your spinnaker halyard and pole uphaul should be coming out of the front of the mast. The main halyard and topping lift come out at the aft end.

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I think the twist is in the mast hence not know how many twists. The main halyard takes the sail up easier if I let some slack in the spin and uphaul.
 
berniesboom.jpg

Here is an enlargement of Bernie's boom.
Not sure what the bits of string hanging lose under the boom are.
Some sort of preventer?
 
Listen rude boys .....

...those droopy lines are my lazy jacks at ease. They should not be quite so sloppy but it was that sort of a lazy day.

Are we now going to have close ups of everybody's boats so we can have some universal criticism of sail trim, boat tune, etc? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
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Are we now going to have close ups of everybody's boats so we can have some universal criticism of sail trim, boat tune, etc? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

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Good idea, who's going to start? /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
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