About 4 feet up from the foot or bottom edge of the sail, you will see two or three or more holes sewn into the belly of the sail. These are your reef points. When you’re sailing downwind and the boat is not heeling, you may not notice at first that the wind is increasing. Since you have to turn up into the wind to do the reefing, things may get dicey if you wait too long to reef. Let’s zoom out, first. Boats are designed to sail best at a particular angle of heel — depending on the boat, somewhere between 10° and 20°. If the force of the wind on the sails causes the boat to heel more than that, it not only makes it harder to control and puts unnecessary strain on the rigging and the crew, but it is almost always a slower way to sail.

Reefing 101: How to reef a mainsail and when to do it Reefing 101: How to reef a mainsail and when to do it

Most sails with reefing cringles also have smaller grommets across the width of the sail at the same level as the reef points. After reefing, you can secure the loose part of the sail to the boom by passing a sail tie through the grommets and tying it off around the boom, as shown here. It’s not acoincidence that the best knot used here to tie the reef in place is called a reefing knot.Gather up the sail and as neatly as possible tie those lines around the bottom of the boom using a “reef” or “ square” knot. Dual Reef Hooks are formed from 5/16" rod, Assembly is (maximum) 4 5/8" wide x 7" high, and includes

Reefing Kit Barton Marine - Tech Info - Sail Handling - Slab Reefing Kit

But when the wind abates and you're ready to shake out your reef, there are a few things you ought to do. Reefing is meant to increase your ease-of-use, flatten sail shape, reduce sail area, and re-positionthe boat’s center of effort. This reduces heeling and de-powers your sails to improve safety and stability in rough weather.You will note that your sail looks a bit smaller and perhaps even a bit awkward with all that extra fabric bunched up at the bottom and a bare pole at the top. SS Cunningham Reef Hook is formed from 1/4" diameter rod with welded eye for up to 5/16" (8mm) line. Make sure to have your lines organized beforehand and a reefing plan in place. This will assure that each time a crew member reefs the same actions are taken to re-organize the lines so no time is lost figuring out what the preceding person has done. Practice Makes Perfect Precision Sails prides ourselves on building custom sails for your boat and sailing conditions. Our sails are fully customizable and we have many other sail enhancements and customization options for you to consider. Thinking about getting new sails?

Mainsail reefing Offshore Sailor: Mainsail reefing

My Need for Cruising Speed Demands a Great Suit of SailsI like to sail fast mostly in the heavy winds that Lake Ontario throws. Here a single line is reeved as shown in the drawing below. This is a simple and inexpensive arrangement, making it a predictable favourite among boat manufacturers and sailmakers looking for an easy option. Unfortunately, the cumulative friction can make for heavy going – firstly in taking in the reef and later when it comes to shaking it out again. It looks like an attractive arrangement and might serve acceptably on the smallest boats or those which only expect to take a very occasional reef; Adjusting your Genoa or Jib can help balance out the boat and reduce heeling. Furling in your headsail is a great way to reduce sail area. An ingenious addition to their portfolio, Karver's KHR Reef Hook offers an unconventional way to reef your mainsail. The Karver Reef Hook is available in various sizes, with options available with 1T – 40T SWL (Safe Working Load).When you hold it at the top and bottom, it is quite strong. But when you apply just a little pressure to the middle, it can fold in half easily. That is why some skippers don’t ever reef, because they don’t want to be out there when the seas turn gloomy. First sail close-hauled or on a very close reach. The helm’s attention should be focused entirely on maintaining the course. Slab reefing does require some practice and careful installation of the basic system. Once the line is rigged, it’s always ready for use and comes close to being foolproof. But again, you're changing the angle of force on the stay or mast and when the wind blows harder things are easier to break.

Barton Reefing Hook Gooseneck or Stemhead Fitting

This is a simple slab reefing system you can easily install on your boat if you do not have one. If you already have a reefing system, be sure you understand how it works before you need it in rough conditions. That was until I moved to the coast of East Carolina and to sail meant not only to reef, but reef regularly, if not every day. My rule is anything over 15 I would prefer to have a reef rather than not. But your boat might love a stiff breeze and only wake up at 20 so don’t go by my rules. Reefing is an important part of sailing to learn and understand how to do efficiently and effectively. This guide is meant to give a general overview of the process and discuss the preparation a sailor should take. There are various methods of reefing and each sailor has their own process. Nonetheless, whether you are slab reefing, in-boom reefing, in-mast reefing your mainsail, or furling in your headsail the principles remain the same. Preparation is essentialNow that you have found your reef points take a reefing line or sail tie and feed it through the holes. Top five as rated by Upffront.com In this article we round up five of the best bottom up furlers on the market. Choosing the right furler is a question of boat size and SWL (safe working load), sail area, performance level and budget. Posted on 5 Oct Premium Ropes range - which rope to choose? A prudent sailor reefs the main when the wind starts to build before things get wild. When the wind is blowing more than twelve to fifteen knots, depending on the boat, conservative sailors will start out with a reefed sail. Over twenty knots on many boats and it can become difficult to control the boat for smooth reefing, especially when short-handed. Again, this will be different based on the sail inventory, experience, boat, and sailing conditions for each person. Ron, our Lead Sail Consultant regularly recommends that “one reef keeps you sailing, two gets you home safely”. Can Reefing Damage Your Sails?