How attach reefing lines

[sailingdog]

Originally Posted by Bene505

There's 2 lines for each reef. (Double line reefing?)

Yup...that's what it'd be called.

I don't think I'd trust a figure 8 knot. I read somewhere (maybe sailnet) about a better stopper knot that doesn't come undone, and converted all my figure 8s to it. Not sure of the name for it.

Generally called a stopper knot.

The bowline sounds the best. That and half hitches can't be beat IMHO.

If there's any chance you might need to untie it under a load, a round turn and two half-hitches are a better solution...but a bowline works for most reefing setups.

[kgs113]

I've been a big fan of the timber hitch. I have two reef points in my main and a pad eye for only one. Tried the timber hitch and it was very secure. BTW I have a loose footed main.
The Timber Hitch (Lumberman's or Countryman's Knot)

[sailboy21]

Buntline hitch works well with slippery lines. That, with a seized tail, is what I use for my reef lines which terminate on eye straps on the side of the boom. I don't like that setup but it hasn't failed yet for 3 years and several thousand miles. Some people seem to have success running the reef line through the sheave, through the cringe, down and under the boom and then back to the Becket on the block. Boats with modern booms seem to have everything internal with usually only one reefing line coming out of the end of the boom. I never understood trying to reef with the reefing line coming out of the end of the boom, such a bad angle.

[Bene505]

Sailboy, can you send a picture or a shetch of that? Too many Beckets and Sheaves. For a minute I thought you were talking about some English neighborhood you live in. (Also a picture of your setup if you have one.)

For the rest of us mortals, here's his buntline hitch:

[sailingdog]

One problem with the buntline hitch is that if it is left in for any period of time, it basically becomes impossible to remove. The Bowline or Round Turn with Two-half-hitches are much better choices, since they're almost always possible to untie.

[sailingfool]

You should refer to post #15 of this older thread

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/learni...youve-got.html

as to how to secure the bitter ends of your reefing lines. Read the post carefully as the answer is not obvious. You don't need any fancy knots or hitches, and the sliding eyes on the bottom of the boom are not attachment points.

[sailingdog]

Sailboy-

One reason to use internal sheaves is to reduce the torque load of the reefing lines on the boom. The closer the sheaves the reefing lines use are to the centerline of the boom, the less torque they apply to it.

Originally Posted by sailboy21

Buntline hitch works well with slippery lines. That, with a seized tail, is what I use for my reef lines which terminate on eye straps on the side of the boom. I don't like that setup but it hasn't failed yet for 3 years and several thousand miles. Some people seem to have success running the reef line through the sheave, through the cringe, down and under the boom and then back to the Becket on the block. Boats with modern booms seem to have everything internal with usually only one reefing line coming out of the end of the boom. I never understood trying to reef with the reefing line coming out of the end of the boom, such a bad angle.

[sailboy21]

Originally Posted by Bene505

Sailboy, can you send a picture or a shetch of that? Too many Beckets and Sheaves. For a minute I thought you were talking about some English neighborhood you live in. (Also a picture of your setup if you have one.)

For the rest of us mortals, here's his buntline hitch:

Fine... I'll draw a picture. Words haven't been coming out of my head right lately... getting old sucks. BTW this is not how my boat is currently setup, but a setup I have observed on other peoples boats that seems to work.



I changed the color of the reefing line from green to yellow as it passes through the reef point.

[sailboy21]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

Sailboy-

One reason to use internal sheaves is to reduce the torque load of the reefing lines on the boom. The closer the sheaves the reefing lines use are to the centerline of the boom, the less torque they apply to it.

You mean its not just to make everything look clean and fancy???
There isn't any torque on the boom in the setup I posted above if the reef line is cleated off to the boom. Lines led aft is a whole other ball game...

[Bene505]

Well done Sailboy! Now we have another person to fear. We have to keep Giuletta from getting our pictures, yes. But Sailboy could just draw us doing something silly.

I see what you mean.