Reef Cringle on Rams Horn Struggle

[hebdena]

Fellow sailors,

I have just had my first trip with a new Crusader mainsail and z-spars boom fitted. Everything was OK except it was a real struggle to get the first reef cringle onto the rams horn. I sure it will be even more difficult to get the second and third on.
I remember reading something somewhere about linking 2 rings with webbing or sail tape through the reef cringle and using one of the rings on the rams horn rather than the reef cringle.
Anybody done this?
If so :
What size rings?
What size webbing/sail tape, how stitched, and where can I get it from?
What is the distance between the rings?
Do both rings go on to the rams horn on either side or just the one with the other ring as a stopper on the cringle?

Presumably the webbing will have to be as strong as the halyard or at least pretty close. In my case a 10mm halyard.

TIA

Andrew (Rival 31 - "John Silver")

 

[Heckler]

if you tried to put the cringle directly onto the zspars horn no wonder you struggled, you need 2 s/s rings joined by tape thru the cringles. the size is determined by the size of the cringles! so that they dont pull thru, i would have thought the sail maker would have put them in place?
stu

 

[davidwf]

Use exact setup on my boat, Rings are about 1 1/2" diameter, webbing is about 3/4" wide, distance between rings 4-5". I Only use one ring per reef on the ramshorn.

On this boat were sewn by sailmaker but in past have hand sewn them with sail repair kit. Not an expert on sewing so cannot describe what stiches used didn't look pretty but held fine.

You can just tie then together with a bit of spectra rope to see if you like them, had mine tied together like that last year untill I could get them stiched over the winter.

Have now discovered a trick from PBO of a loop of bungey cord from front of mast that I hook over ramshorn after putting the ring on, this stops it droping off as I move back to cockpit. Brill idea wish I'd thought of it.

 

[Sui Generis]

As SkipperStu says you probably struggled, but it should have been perfectly possible.

I have a webbing strap (similar size to jackstays) with a c2cm dia ring each end in each tack. Only one has to go on the bulls horn. Makes life easier, but having said that I've now gone for single line reefing.

 

[Ships_Cat]

Easier (and in my mind better) than the 2 rings is just a piece of tape through the reef tack cringle and around the front of the luff then ends sewn together so's it forms a loose loop (much the same way if it was holding a sail slide on but long enuff to get down to the horn - maybe 100 mm or so depending on the boat).

I see many still putting rings on but the above idea was courtesy of Doyles a number of years back - works fine and tends to stay on the horns better before the halyard pulled tight.

John

 

[andy_wilson]

Spectacles do make it a bit easier, however, with or without them, the biggest aid to reefing is t accurately mark the halyard against the jammer, at the point at which you can 'just' pull the cringle down over the ramshorn, so the stretch of the sail then hold it on.

Nothing worse than it dropping off as you tension the halyard.

If you don't wan to take the sail off to get a sailmaker to fit spectacles, you could DIY, or just use a loop of spectra to hold the rings together through the cringle.

The spectacle goes on one side only. The other ring is indeed a 'stopper'.

 

[bobgosling]

Agree about the spectacles ( never knew they were called that ! ) being "normal" but I have seen several boats where these were not fitted and it was indeed a struggle to reef.

When trying to keep the cringle on the ramshorn while you haul on the halyard I have heard of using a rubber sink plug, with the brass connection point removed to leave a hole. It just slips over the horn with enough grip to prevent the sail dropping off.

 

[PhilipStapleton]

You can make up a short loop of rope that slips over one horn, through the hole and over the other - but the tape and rings system is the conventional one.

 

[Kurrawong_Kid]

Being wise after the event, but when I ordered my mainsail from Crusader I askes them to fit "spectacles" which they did! Perhaps, if it's not too far, you could take the sail back and ask them retrospectively to fit them. Should't cost too much. Incidentally I fixed a pair of snaphooks to the rams with cable ties to keep the rings on when reefing-works a treat.

 

[Lizzie_B]

Ditto snap hooks... also had sailmaker fit 'spectacles' when ordering new main