Position of reefing pennant attachment to boom

[eddystone]

Just about to bend sails on for start of (my) season. 2 line slab reefing.
Up till now have taken reefing pennant from cringle down under boom and tied to bracket on opposite side. Originally did that as old mainsail foot ran in track. Now have loose footed.
Not happy with position of bracket for 2nd reef and was about to move but that involves drilling and tapping a new hole for sliding bracket.
Some, including Tom Cunliffe advise tying to boom with a running loop; how can that work?
The bit running from the sheave at the end of the boom to the cringle, which is effectively the outhaul will pull the cringle back from its (loose) attachment to the boom and the clew won’t sit close to top of boom. Thought idea was for pennant to pull down and back a bit which seems impossible with sliding loop.
Or have I got it all wrong?

 

[johnalison]

I have continued what came with the new boat with Selden rig. The reef lines are simply taken round the boom and tied back to themselves with a bowline, forming a slip knot. After a short time this knot tightens and tends not to move. I just have to mark the best position a little aft of where the cringe reaches.

 

[RupertW]

I have stayed with the inherited system of sliding ubolt so the reef points find their own position as I think that gives the best shape and the least friction when reefing.

 

[dom]

Up till now have taken reefing pennant from cringle down under boom and tied to bracket on opposite side. Originally did that as old mainsail foot ran in track. Now have loose footed.Not happy with position of bracket for 2nd reef and was about to move but that involves drilling and tapping a new hole for sliding bracket.Or have I got it all wrong?

Your old system was a function of your track-constrained main. The system johnalison describes is far superior for a loose footed sail: this way the reefing line cradles the boom instead of imparting a potentially high and shock-exposed twisting force on the gooseneck, especially during gybes.

 

[lw395]

If the bowline around the boom slides freely, that is fine.
The end of the pennant running down to the boom pulls the sail down, the part running to the end of the boom pulls it out. Job done!
Equally if the pennant is secured so it runs down from the sail and aft at around 45 degrees that will be fine too. If it's a longway back, the boom will drop and the sail might not like the tension.
If it's more than a little way forwards, the foot of the sail will be too full.

 

[Martin_J]

As per johnalison's description and the Selden instructions.

The important part is that the bowline is not actually tied around the boom..

 

[Kukri]

My boat came with a further refinement to the Johnalison / Selden method, courtesy of the Joint Services Training Centre.

"Proceed as described above" - but a length of webbing clips under the boom from the kicker attachment back to the outboard end. It has three loops in it; you pass the reef pennants through these before you make the bowlines and they are just where you want them and not inclined to wander about. The mainsail is 550 sq ft and the pennants go to a 54:1 self tailer, so I reckon this will work on most boats.

 

[BabaYaga]

Not happy with position of bracket for 2nd reef and was about to move but that involves drilling and tapping a new hole for sliding bracket.

I would just find a new position for the sliding bracket. You might find that the threads are in the bracket, in which case a plain hole through boom wall is all that is required.

 

[LadyInBed]

If your sail is loose footed, then I would have thought a loop and bowline as lw395 suggests would do the job.

 

[vyv_cox]

I have continued what came with the new boat with Selden rig. The reef lines are simply taken round the boom and tied back to themselves with a bowline, forming a slip knot. After a short time this knot tightens and tends not to move. I just have to mark the best position a little aft of where the cringe reaches.

Exactly what I do.

 

[eddystone]

Not sure I’m entirely getting this; basically the pennant goes from the boom end sheave to the cringle then down to the boom and tied off with a sliding bowline loop rather than a tied off loop - so instead of sliding along the boom the loop will tighten on itself?
However the Selden guide shows, for pre 1991 booms with moveable eyes in a track on the side of the boom, the pennant passed through the cringle and the just ties to the eye - post 2001 when side channel disappeared it shows the pennant being tied in a sliding loop around the boom but refers to need to pass through an eye to be held in correct position (down but slightly back).

Also thinking when shaking out a reef doesn’t the sliding loop bind on itself?