I bought an Oday daysailor 3 this spring and am having a blast sailing it. My question deals with reefing the sail. How do you run the lines to reef the sail and at what wind speed do you think you should consider reefing . The boom has two blocks, one at each end, which I think might be used for this purpose. Any information would be appreciated
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Reply to reefing
John, If there is a block at each end of the boom, it would appear that the boom can be rigged for a reefing line. First a couple of questions. Does the mainsail have any reef points? The reef points are a series of grommets running from the luff to the leech parallel to the boom. If the reef points are there, you should be able to rig the main to reef it. You will need a length of line of the correct diameter to pass smoothly onto the blocks. Tie the line to the boom with a bowline directly below the grommet on the leech. If the sail is bent on with a bolt rope, there should be some sort of attachment on the boom to attach the reefing line to. If not, you'll have to fasten an eye strap to the underside of the boom to tie the reefing line to. Next, lead the line up (either side)through the leech grommet, then down through the block at the aft end of the boom, then forward along the boom to the block at the front of the boom. From there, you have a couple of choices. If you want to try a jiffy reefing rig, lead the line up through the luff grommet, and down to a cleat on the mast, or better, to a stand-up block mounted at the foot of the mast. From there it can be led to the cockpit through a deck organizer onto a cleat or through a line clutch. When you are ready to reef, point up, ease the main halyard, and haul the reefing line, which will pull both the luff and leech reef points down onto the boom. After the sail is reefed, rehoist the main halyard to tension the luff, and the sail is reefed. You can then tie off the remaining reef points with small stuff. The second method involves leading the line DOWN from the forward block on the boom instead of up. By leading it down, it will only pull the leech grommet down onto the boom. To complete the reefing system using this method, you need a reef hook at the front of the boom and a carabiner tied to each side of the luff grommet. Someone has to go forward to attach one of the carabiners to the reef hook after the mainsail is lowered. So here is how the second method works. Ease the main halyard, go forward to hook the carabiner to the reef hook, go back to the cockpit and haul the reefing line to tighten the leech grommet. I have rigged the reefing line on my 272 both ways, and I prefer the second, mainly because the sailmaker/rigger told me that some people have torn out the luff grommet when using the jiffy reef method. I think they do that when they tension the main halyard. There is a lot of stress where the reef line pulls against the halyard. Using the second method puts the stress on the carabiner and reef hook,a more vertical pull right at the luff. Others may disagree, but I find friction to be a major problem when hauling the reefing line using the jiffy reef. One last thing... don't forget to tension the topping lift before you lower the main halyard. Otherwise the boom will be in your lap
I hope this isn't too confusing. Here is where a picture is truly worth a thousand words. Tom
John, If there is a block at each end of the boom, it would appear that the boom can be rigged for a reefing line. First a couple of questions. Does the mainsail have any reef points? The reef points are a series of grommets running from the luff to the leech parallel to the boom. If the reef points are there, you should be able to rig the main to reef it. You will need a length of line of the correct diameter to pass smoothly onto the blocks. Tie the line to the boom with a bowline directly below the grommet on the leech. If the sail is bent on with a bolt rope, there should be some sort of attachment on the boom to attach the reefing line to. If not, you'll have to fasten an eye strap to the underside of the boom to tie the reefing line to. Next, lead the line up (either side)through the leech grommet, then down through the block at the aft end of the boom, then forward along the boom to the block at the front of the boom. From there, you have a couple of choices. If you want to try a jiffy reefing rig, lead the line up through the luff grommet, and down to a cleat on the mast, or better, to a stand-up block mounted at the foot of the mast. From there it can be led to the cockpit through a deck organizer onto a cleat or through a line clutch. When you are ready to reef, point up, ease the main halyard, and haul the reefing line, which will pull both the luff and leech reef points down onto the boom. After the sail is reefed, rehoist the main halyard to tension the luff, and the sail is reefed. You can then tie off the remaining reef points with small stuff. The second method involves leading the line DOWN from the forward block on the boom instead of up. By leading it down, it will only pull the leech grommet down onto the boom. To complete the reefing system using this method, you need a reef hook at the front of the boom and a carabiner tied to each side of the luff grommet. Someone has to go forward to attach one of the carabiners to the reef hook after the mainsail is lowered. So here is how the second method works. Ease the main halyard, go forward to hook the carabiner to the reef hook, go back to the cockpit and haul the reefing line to tighten the leech grommet. I have rigged the reefing line on my 272 both ways, and I prefer the second, mainly because the sailmaker/rigger told me that some people have torn out the luff grommet when using the jiffy reef method. I think they do that when they tension the main halyard. There is a lot of stress where the reef line pulls against the halyard. Using the second method puts the stress on the carabiner and reef hook,a more vertical pull right at the luff. Others may disagree, but I find friction to be a major problem when hauling the reefing line using the jiffy reef. One last thing... don't forget to tension the topping lift before you lower the main halyard. Otherwise the boom will be in your lap
I hope this isn't too confusing. Here is where a picture is truly worth a thousand words. Tom- Status