slab reefing, at mast or single line?

[Peter]

The current reefing arrangement on my yacht (12m steel yacht) is slab reefing with all the winches at the mast. I am currently upgrading for a long distance cruse, not sure how far yet.
One of the upgrades I am thinking about is whether to convert to a single line reefing system with all winch’s in the cockpit, the reasoning behind this is to make reefing easier for short handed sailing, 2 of us, or leave everything at the mast.
I would appreciate any comments on the pros and cons of at mast reefing against a single line reefing system.
In advance, thank you for your comments

Peter

 

[JeremyF]

The prime advantage of at-mast reefing is less friction. I would have thought that on a 12m yacht, true single-line reefing is going to generate quite a lot of friction, and may require a new boom to accomodate the new arrangements.

One compromise is to bring both lines back for each reef - less friction and you can definitely keep the boom.

Jeremy Flynn

 

[vyv_cox]

I have had single line reefing to the cockpit for more than 10 years, using the back-to-back balance block in boom arrangement. I believe this system became patented by Z-Spars, preventing Kemp/Selden from using it. I first read about it in a magazine and made up the blocks myself by joining two singles together, but these double-ended balance blocks are now commercially available.

My boat is 10.5 metres. There is no significant friction with this system, either my (small) wife or myself can take a reef in on virtually any point of sailing, without using a winch if head to wind and winching enough to overcome the wind strength otherwise. We have never had a problem of any type with it, none of the frequently seen warnings of blocks clashing together or pennants getting tangled. We left the ramshorns on the gooseneck just in case but these are quite honestly a nuisance.

The only real drawback is that it is a two-reef system. A third reef needs a separate arrangement, using the ramshorn and the outhaul. When we "sail away" we will organise something better for it.

 

[Guest]

Although I only have a tiny boat (19')...and I am a relative novice, I do sail single-handed quite a lot and have thought about and experimented with my reefing. I have definitely come down in favour of a single line system. I really couldn't get on with the 'horns' and have removed them. I found I had a tendency to put off reefing if it involved going forward to the mast, rather than 'reef as soon as you think of it'. It may not be perfect and there is some friction...but it IS easier to put in a reef or shake it out from where I am and is for me the better,and safer, option. Even better would be 2 lines coming aft for each reef.....but not really necessary for my boat. Something I would consider for my next (larger) boat perhaps!

 

[chippie]

You make a good point about putting off reefing if it is more difficult ( in your case going to the mast). Trying to reef in difficult conditions because you have left it a bit late can be a lot more hazardous. The simpler and easier the better in my opinion.

 

[halcyon]

Probably more pernonal choice I'm afraid.
Our Hurley 27 we changed to single line reefing to cockpit, our current boat Halcyon 27 has single line reefing to mast.
The Halcyon was converted by previous owners for trans Atlantic, completing two, therefore assume that it worked ok.
The main differance I can see between them is cockpit clutter with all the lines coming back, and complexity with all the turning blocks.


Brian

 

[Guest]

The major advantage of lines lead aft (including main halyard, kicker and topping lift as well as reefing lines) is safety and convenience. Not having to leave the cockpit to put in or take out a reef must be a good thing - although you do hear people say that if you arrange things so that you don't have to go on deck very often you become out of practice so are vulnerable when you do!

The disadvantages are managing all the lines in the cockpit and the expense of deck organisers rope clutches winches and probably new (longer) running rigging. But thought-through and designed properly it is perfectly practical. For long distance cruising I think it is worth doing (IMHO).

Single line slab reefing obviously reduces the number of reefing lines and has a lot going for it. We had our old Kemp boom upgraded by Selden (then Kemp) to the balance block system and, like Vyv Cox had no trouble. Selden's new booms have the blocks runnning on a track inside - so the blocks are not "floating" like the old system. Zspars have various systems (www.zsparsuk.com), and if you have to buy a new boom they will probably be cheaper than Selden.

I don't think that the any of the booms designed for single line reefing include the third reef as a single line. The third reef has separate luff and leach lines. With only three sheaves in the boom ends, the mainsail outhaul is used to reave the third reef (A bit unsatisfactory considering the likely conditions in which you will have to do it). We had this but I never had to put in a third reef. With four sheaves in the boom you can have dedicated third reef lines.

These systems are very good and you have fewer lines to manage in the cockpit. But they are more complcated and expensive than separate luff and leach lines lead aft. Andrew Bray had a reefing line disappear into the boom on his recent arc trip!

 

[Robin]

All at the mast is fine, half and half is not, all back in the cockpit is ideal. We have just revamped our new boat (Sun Legende 41) to take all 3 reefs back, with separate lines for tack and clew reefs. We already had 2 self tailing winches on the coachroof and some jammers, the revision included changing to bigger organisers on deck, replacing the reef lines with longer ones (some can be re-used perhaps, in our case 3 were new) and all new clutches instead of the old jammers. The tack lines go through fairleads on the mast and can be pulled in easily without a winch once the halyard is let off, the clew lines go through turning blocks at the base of the mast and do need the winch to tension the last bit. The clew lines use the normal boom end sheaves and run internally in the boom as before, the inner boom end jammers are now redundant. The system has already proven easy to use in practice. We have a fully battened main fitted with proper cars on an 'X' track to reduce friction and expect the new set up to allow reefing without having to come up into the wind.

I personally believe that unless you can have all 3 reefs back and do everything from the cockpit you might as well leave everything at the mast, doing reef # 3 on deck does not appeal, nor does a system which requires one person at the mast and one in the cockpit.

 

[Oldhand]

In my experience, the trouble with single line reefing comes when one has to shake reefs out. The friction of the system requires the pendants to be manually pulled out at the boom end. Separate luff and leach pendants brought aft worked best for me but you need plenty of clutches on the coachroof.

 

[vyv_cox]

That's true, but usually when shaking reefs out the strong winds have eased and going forward, if necessary, is less of a risk. We find that pulling the aft pennants back through the boom from the cockpit is enough to remove a good deal of the friction. So still no need to go forward.