Reefing hooks

[Barquito]

I often have trouble getting the reefing cringle on my rams horn hook. Is there any downside to having the simple style hook rather than rams horn shape?

[mikehoyt]

Another option is to have your sail maker fashion a strap that passes thru the cringle with a ring on either end. Will be easier to put the ring on the rams horn shaped hook. One benefit of that hook shape is that the reef attachment is less likely to fall off the hook while in process of retennsioning halyard while setting the reef.

All that being said I have never seen that style hook used for reefing before

Mike

[sailordave]

Ditto what mike said. You're much better off w/ a reefing strap/D ring to hook on w/. It pulls straight down on the sail luff thus not twisting the sail and you don't have to worry about getting the sail hooked on the hook.
Shouldn't cost hardly anything to have your sailmaker do over the winter.

[Faster]

An issue with the hook shown on the left is that the cringle can fall off before you tension the luff. This can be a major PITA if you're set up so you have to go to the mast to hook the tack, then come back aft to rehoist - only to find the tack fell off. This is less of an issue with the ramshorn style.

However as you've noted they are very hard to get on at times, esp with limited free movement of the cringle.

A good compromise is to use the open hooks (left one) but rig a small/short shockcord with an eye in each end, connected in the middle somehow to the gooseneck or full-hoist tack fitting. Once you have the reef cringle on the hook, slip one of the shock cord eyes over the hook to help hold the sail in while you get around to tensioning the luff again. If you have two hooks (typical for 2-slab reefing) the double-ended shock cord works for either side/either reef.

This trick applies to Mike's suggestion above as well...

[FishSticks]

West Marine has two sizes of Seafit Cunningham Hooks, PN CO179-CH07-W and CO179-CH08-W. I have used these for years with good luck. They have a large eye so you have some wobble when working them into the cringle. You can see one on the main in this photo.

[Yorksailor]

All hooks are a PIA and I use a 3/4 inch line that goes thro' the cringle to a cleat.

Much easier in 50 knots.

Phil

[Barquito]

Thanks for the replies all. I do all the reefing work at the mast, so having the cringle fall off the hook might not be as much of a problem. I also have a sliding goose neck, so the weight of the boom holds tension on the cringle as the halyard is raised.

To tell the truth, I don't have much experience reefing the main, b/c my previous experience has only been daysailing. I don't really want to run everything back to the cockpit, but, want it to be as bang-bang as possible.

[jaschrumpf]

Originally Posted by Yorksailor

All hooks are a PIA and I use a 3/4 inch line that goes thro' the cringle to a cleat.

Much easier in 50 knots.

Phil

A 3/4" line? That seems a bit large for a reefing line.

[Barquito]

A 3/4" line? That seems a bit large for a reefing line.

Is that just the strop that replaces the reefing hook? Extra big to deal with chafe. Still, would have to be a pretty big cleat on the mast.

[sailordave]

Originally Posted by Faster

An issue with the hook shown on the left is that the cringle can fall off before you tension the luff. This can be a major PITA if you're set up so you have to go to the mast to hook the tack, then come back aft to rehoist - only to find the tack fell off. This is less of an issue with the ramshorn style.

However as you've noted they are very hard to get on at times, esp with limited free movement of the cringle.

A good compromise is to use the open hooks (left one) but rig a small/short shockcord with an eye in each end, connected in the middle somehow to the gooseneck or full-hoist tack fitting. Once you have the reef cringle on the hook, slip one of the shock cord eyes over the hook to help hold the sail in while you get around to tensioning the luff again. If you have two hooks (typical for 2-slab reefing) the double-ended shock cord works for either side/either reef.

This trick applies to Mike's suggestion above as well...

The thing I have found that helps w/ hooks is a piece of clear plastic tubing that matches the diameter of the hook. Stick one end on each of the two hooks at the gooseneck and you won't accidentally snag stuff when they aren't in use and once you put the reefing cringle on it helps keep it from popping off.