L 40.5 Reefing

[Rick D]

Had to reef to the first reef for a while recently (doesn't happen too often in SoCal). I was really disappointed in the sail shape. Great big bag. Went all the way down on the (hard) vang, but it didn't help much. Assume the reef line going to the aft part of the boom should have generated adequate flattening/aft force. Everything looked snugged in well enough. Other's experiences??? Thanks, guys. Rick D.

 

[Ray Bowles]

Rick, This is probably a fairly dumb question,

but in addition to hooking the tack cringle to the rams head and drawing the reef line tight similiar the outhaul function, how well did you lace/tie down the sail gathering ties to the boom? I have found the way I lace/tie down the excess main sail material to the boom is very important. On my main if I don't gather the sail properly, so as to present a well defined line from the tact to clew it will allow excess material from the foot to spill upward and bag the center of the reefed main.If it helps good. Please post what you find the helps your problem as up here in our winds reefing is almost a daily thing. All ideas are welcome.Raysv Speedy

 

[Rick D]

Actually, Ray, I Did Not Tie Off The Intermediates

since it is a loose footed main and since it is supposed to be reefable from the cockpit and because I have a zipstop-type mainsail cover-lazy jack system. But you make a good pint and I will check. Still, I would think you should be able to get a decent reef shape even loose-footed. Rick D.

 

[Chris Behre]

Some other things to check...

Rick, Two thoughts for you to check:1) Make sure the boom's topping lift is slack - it will be different when you reef.2) The bitter end of the reefing line runs from a slide on the aft end of the boom to the reef point and then to the end of the boom where it i routed towards the mast. Make sure that slide is fairly far aft on the boom. I wouldn't try to shape the sail with the intermediate reef lines - they are for looks and are not designed for any real stress. I seldom use mine. I reef fairly often on the lower Chesapeake and the sail has great shape on a single or double reef.Hope this helps.ChrisJORUM III

 

[Rick D]

Thanks, Chris...

..an added complication is the hard vang. No topping lift. However, it goes down pretty far. Is your D-ring(s) underside the boom to which the reefing line(s) tie off fixed in position? Mine are not and I assumed the aft pull would cause them to pull aft also. RD

 

[Chris Behre]

D-Rings

Rick, On my 1996 H40.5 I have two D-rings, one for each reef point, that are free to slide and the first time I reefed the D-ring was just about directly below the reefing eye on the sail. This caused similar bulging problems to what you described in your original note. The next time I reefed I preset the D-ring aft so that the reefing line not only pulled the (reefed) clew down but also aft, significantly flattening the sail. There may be a way to fix the D-rings in the correct position but I haven't looked into that as a fix.Chris

 

[Rick D]

Chris, I think I'll Try Your Suggestion

.. and fix the d-ring further aft on the boom to be sure I get plenty of aft pull. It works OK in the slip, but not underway; I suspect there is not adequate aft pull because of the D-ring location that tends to wind up just under the reefing eye. Thanks, Rick D.