Reefing issues....

[WindyWindyWindy]

I have simple slab reefing on a 37' boat.

I'm contemplating spectacles, but are there alternatives? Somewhere in the distant past someone suggested doing this backwards - with a line attached to the gooseneck with a set of toggles/dogbones in it for the reefing points, so to reef you would lower the halyard and pop the toggle through the reef point and haul it back up.

Has anyone actually tried that?

Also, when dropping the main the reefing lines flap around unpleasantly in the cockpit, which enrages the admiral. So I find I have to pull the reefing lines in as I drop the main, which doesn't make for a quick drop and increases wear on the reefing lines substantially as they're now getting pulled tight during each drop. So, I was contemplating adding blocks to reduce the friction a bit, and save my poor arms. But it occurs to me that there's two ways to set these up as well.

One would be to attach the block to the reefing clew and run the reefing line normally up and down. This puts a dangly block on the sail and will surely add chafe.

The other would be to use a strop around the boom holding the block close to the boom and the reefing line running from the back of the boom through the block and tied off the the clew.

Any opinions on my madness? Has anyone actually tried either of these?

 

[RunAgroundHard]

I don't see the point in having blocks or toggles flap about on your sail. Possible catch points and wear points, just not required.

I think you would benefit from a lazy jack system where the sail gets stowed as you lower. It would somewhat catch the reefing lines as well, but there would still be some droop.

For example Holt Lazy Jack Kit Up To 31' Boats Inc Fastenings

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

Yeah, I've got lazy jacks, it sort of catches the sail, but with three reefing lines a couple are quite long.
I may have confused this by posting about two related but separate things..

 

[MontyMariner]

to reef you would lower the halyard and pop the toggle through the reef point and haul it back up.

That's a bit fussy.
How I do it:
A length of 6mm rope with an eye splice in one end.
Thread splice through the crinkle, hook the splice onto the horn, then pull the rope tight and make it off on the other horn.

 

[Sandy]

Here is my set up. Drop the halyard to the mark then pull on the reefing line. Simplicity itself.

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

I don't really want all the additional rope which goes with single line reefing.
I like the blocks in the back of the sail though. Actually, from your diagram, you can see how you could dispense with the blocks at the back of the sail and move them to the boom, having the rope run up to the reef clew and just tied off there with a bowline saving a few metres of rope.

 

[Daverw]

That would only give you single purchase, going up and back down 2:1 and helps with friction, we use the lines to pull down main to each reef as we drop the main, keeps it tidy and just bag the extra line on coach roof

 

[B27]

I have simple slab reefing on a 37' boat.

I'm contemplating spectacles, but are there alternatives? Somewhere in the distant past someone suggested doing this backwards - with a line attached to the gooseneck with a set of toggles/dogbones in it for the reefing points, so to reef you would lower the halyard and pop the toggle through the reef point and haul it back up.

Has anyone actually tried that?
...

I used to sail on a ~40ft boat.
There was a 4:1 purchase for the cunningham, basically like the mainsheet from a smaller boat.
We used to use that for the reef tack sometimes, because the spectacles were awkward to get on the hook.
It meant, if you were careful, you could drop the halyard to the mark and haul the new tack down, much easier than winding the halyard back up

 

[johnalison]

Spectacles can be a great boon. I have single-line reefing on my current boat, but had to go to the mast on our last boat. A replacement mainsail fitted with specs made the world of difference, because you can do the job with one hand, leaving the other for holding on.

As for the lines in the cockpit, your other half may hold the senior rank, but you are still captain of your vessel and responsible for managing your ship. A couple of lines flopping down is no great hardship, and pulling in the lines to avoid them utterly ridiculous. Just get the sail down quickly and then tuck the lines into the folds of the sail. If your boat doesn't make this easy, you could have a bungee round the boom to tuck them into.

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

A couple of lines flopping down is no great hardship, and pulling in the lines to avoid them utterly ridiculous.

You underestimate the level of rage, this induces.
Bungy is a good idea though.. I was even contemplating bungy tied to the mast with an eye on the other end to spring the lines back forward where they cause less horror... but that did seem like overkill.

 

[Daydream believer]

I don't really want all the additional rope which goes with single line reefing.
I like the blocks in the back of the sail though. Actually, from your diagram, you can see how you could dispense with the blocks at the back of the sail and move them to the boom, having the rope run up to the reef clew and just tied off there with a bowline saving a few metres of rope.

If you ran a single line up the leech then you would reduce the amount of pull from 2:1 to 1: 1 which would make friction high. I cannot understand why you want a pulley on the boom end when in post #5 as an example you should already have pullies in the boom end. Pullies in the clew that have not been stitched in the clew by the sailmaker will just add weight to the leech & increase flutter. In 20 years of sailing I have never suffered any chafe in these areas, apart from a little on the reef lines. One is still the original.
The trick is to either get used to pulling in any slack from the gooseneck as the sail is dropped or - in rough weather- stick a couple of full reefs in prior to the saildrop. There is less sail to handle when up on the deck.
Of course, as well as lazyjacks, a combined sail cover helps so that the lines can be flicked into the cover.
One of theproblems that I have - I expect that you are the same- is that to tame the loops one pulls in the mainsheet but the boom still swings from side to side. One has to stand on the cockpit seats to reach & tuck them in & in a rolly sea it can be dodgy. My wife nearly went overboard off Barfleur when she accidentally kicked the mainsheet sheet cleat & the boom swung free, dragging her out over the rail. Her rear end was sitting in space with only the backs of her shins hooked to the guardrail. No harness clipped on. Fortunately she managed to keep hold of the boom, which then threw onto the other side of the cockpit floor as the boat rolled the other way.
My solution is to have ashort line with a clip attached to the backstay which I hook to the boom. This helps retain the boom from swinging.
Still can be dangerous, so I always ensure I am clipped on in my shallow cockpit which has a tiller not a wheel for support

 

[Daydream believer]

you could have a bungee round the boom to tuck them into.

Not really, because you have sail on the top part of the boom.

 

[B27]

If the second reef is rigged, I always take the slack out of it when putting in the first.
If it's windy, lines lashing around the cockpit are not good.
They are well placed to tangle with the mainsheet. Or the first reef.
Muddling them into the bunt of the sail is not ideal when you want to get the second reef in.

 

[johnalison]

Not really, because you have sail on the top part of the boom.

Not with a loose-footed sail, but maybe that’s a bit modern for you.

 

[Daydream believer]

Not with a loose-footed sail, but maybe that’s a bit modern for you.

Fair comment, but my laminate sail has a fixed full length foot & the sail bag would further compound the issue.

 

[RunAgroundHard]

You underestimate the level of rage, this induces.
Bungy is a good idea though.. I was even contemplating bungy tied to the mast with an eye on the other end to spring the lines back forward where they cause less horror... but that did seem like overkill.

I understand some people do have significant phobias of stuff hanging down around their necks, hence not surprised. Maybe a solution is to swap roles.

 

[roaringgirl]

I don't really want all the additional rope which goes with single line reefing.
I like the blocks in the back of the sail though. Actually, from your diagram, you can see how you could dispense with the blocks at the back of the sail and move them to the boom, having the rope run up to the reef clew and just tied off there with a bowline saving a few metres of rope.

If you do that, the leech will only be pulled down, so there will effectively be no outhaul tension when reefed.

 

[Pye_End]

Also, when dropping the main the reefing lines flap around unpleasantly in the cockpit, which enrages the admiral.

Reef a little bit more off the wind so the boom is over the sea, not the cockpit.

 

[johnalison]

Reef a little bit more off the wind so the boom is over the sea, not the cockpit.

I quite often drop the main at the end of a sail too, when head to wind is my preferred option. Admittedly, in my tiny 10m boat it is simple to reach the boom, but I think that with the sheet hauled in it should be possible to stow the lines in most boats with a modicum of acrobatics.

 

[Tranona]

I love threads like this particularly as I am struggling to come to terms with the same sort of issues. All these Heath Robinson ways of overcoming what is fundamentally a flawed system.

20 years of in mast furling where reducing sail to exactly the size you want is a simple matter of holding tension on one bit of string with one hand while winding a winch with the other hand. All from the comfort and security of the cockpit.

Just saying.