Advice on new cleats

[jr438234606]

I need to add two cleats to my cockpit. Presently, I have four winches in my cockpit; two on each side. The primary winches are forward, and two smaller winches are aft. Each side has a single, traditional cleat between both winches. Two cleats for four winches is not enough.

I could add two more traditional cleats, but I'm wondering if some of the new-fangled hardware might be better. For example, cam cleats, lance cleats, clutches, etc. Is this stuff more suitable for racing applications? Is it durable or prone to failure/slipping? Forgive my ignorance. My boat is rigged out with very traditional and simple hardware. See image:

[Giulietta]

The way your boat looks I'd go traditional and make it like the existing ones.

However should you want to go more modern, Lewmar clutches are the better, and Harken Jaw cleats are the best.

Still for that beauty of yours...go with the wining team, and don't change a thing.

[sailingfool]

I agree with Giu, in fact you should use the same make and size as the existing hardware.

One comment is: if you don't fly the spinnaker too often, or have self-tailing primary winches, you might consider continuing with just the one cleat, as a second would be a minor occasional convenience which will busy up an otherwise nicely open and flat cockpit coaming...

PS - nice looking construction and finish in the pic, what design of boat?

[Giulietta]

SF its a Cheoy Lee

[GeorgeB]

What are you using your secondary winches for? When used for spinnaker sheets, the sheets don’t necessarily need to be cleated off. I was able to rebuild my double foot blocks (Garhauer) with friction clutches. My hard core racing buddies give me a bad time about it as the clutches have on occasion inadvertently locked on to a free running line (I now tape them open when I race.) The racers just tie slip knots at the foot block and leave it at that.

[jr438234606]

Yes, it's a Cheoy Lee-built Bob Perry design. The yacht is cutter-rigged and I use the secondary winches for the staysail sheets. I suppose I would use it for the spinnaker sheets as well, if I ever used my spinnaker. I often find that I'm using one cleat for both the genoa and the staysail at the same time. And, I'm thinking to myself, why is there not another cleat??