Cleat hitch

[Barquito]

My halyards terminate at the mast. The PO had the bitter end through the middle of the horn cleat with a stopper knot to keep the end from running up the mast. The problem is, that the stopper knot is so bulky it is difficult to tie the line to the cleat. Do I just need a bigger cleat, or am I missing something? (I will eventually be going to a slightly smaller diameter modern line)

[CaptainForce]

It may be suitable to pull the "stopper knot" away from the cleat when belaying the halyard upon the cleat so you are dealing with just the presence of the line through the eye of the cleat and not the bulky knot. Take care and joy, Aythya crew

[nolatom]

If I'm envisioning this right (?), you're talking about the "working end" at the base of the mast, that you pull on to raise sail and then cleat? If the halyard's long enough, you should have an extra 5-10 feet for cleating after main's been lowered and the hoisting end tied off, so the stopper knot at bitter end should be "irrelevant". If you lack this length, then you can cure it when you update to newer line.

[TSchwarck]

I've had the same problem. One way to fix it is to attach a deck clip to the mast above the cleat and run the halyard through it. This way you keep the halyard under control without having problems using the cleat.