Three of us did the reefing that first time, but that’s only because there were three on the boat and it was convenient. Also, doing is a better way to learn than watching, so involving both of them was good. In 2023 when I asked the broker (who is also a professional racing captain) to reef the sail during the sea trial the winds were very light and he just popped over from the helm and did it so fast that nobody even needed to steer. I doubt we’ll ever get to that level, but we’ll improve with practice.
I’ve been told by a couple of long time local sailors that I’ll never need the 3rd reef in San Diego. I think that is probably true, but I have chosen to keep it rigged during the winter for a number of reasons. First, they are used to sloops or multi-masted boats and mine has all of its sail area in one big sail. They can take down or furl or even “roller reef” a headsail. My only way of reducing sail area is to reef. Second, I’ve noticed that most sailboats stay inside the bay unless the ocean is pretty flat. They have lots of races inside the bay, etc. So I suspect that nobody gets into the 2nd reef around here because most of them just wait for a better day. You don’t have to wait long because they really don’t have “winter” down here.
I wonder about my sail. I don’t have the experience to know just how much life it has left in it. It’s certainly not pristine, but was heavily built for S.F. Bay area racing, where heavy weather is apparently common(?), so I don’t think it’s going to rip apart within my lifetime. I don’t like how the batten sits against the wishbone when it is reefed, but nobody has commented on that, so maybe it’s ok?
Regarding sail storage. My StackPack is old and was damaged while loading/transporting the boat in early 2023 (during a windstorm and then a blizzard). But even so, I wouldn’t give it up. It was a requirement when looking for a boat, both for safety and convenience. (Or I would have had to add one, myself.) I get so tired by the end of a day of sailing that I have no energy left to fuss with the heavy sail. With the StackPack the sail drops into it with a satisfying whump and then you don’t have to do anything until you are at the dock. Then you just disconnect the halyard and zip it up. Something to think about if you plan on getting older along with your boat.
Thanks, Ken. I am going to print this out and take it with me the next time we sail. And I’ll look up Bott’s Thots. We plan to practice reefing every time we go out until we get good at it.
I haven’t messed with the topping lift for a number of reasons. First, it just hasn’t been necessary while sailing. Second, it’s old and all fuzzy and doesn’t handle well - it needs replacing. Third, I really need to grease its winch. (It’s actually on my list for my next boat visit. Which means I might get to it sometime this winter. And fourth, I guess I don’t know all of the reasons one might need to adjust it. (Like in reefing.)
Brian,
Regarding your question about Vela’s sail life expectancy, I agree with your assessment. Your sail looks perfectly capable of doing what you need/want to do with Vela for the foreseeable future ( 2-3 seasons… maybe more ).
Given your interest level and commitment to sailing, I’ll bet you outgrow the sail before it wears out.
Regarding use of the topping lift. If the condition of your topping lift pennant is questionable definitely replace it or at-least verify the safety is short enough to keep the wishbone off your bimini & dodger if the pennant fails. Topping lift gives you the ability to play with sail shape. I see it as useful on very light wind and also stronger wind conditions… but interesting to observe anytime.
Sail trim is as simple or complicated as we choose to make it and our NonSuch boats are unique. I’m learning NonSuch sails are more subtle than conventional main / jib rigs. Our boats don’t have as many controls for sail shape, but there are lots of design factors that make sail shape controls more automatic.
Conventional mains have booms at the foot, so any vertical sail forces pull up and they require lots of down forces ( traveler, vang ) to counteract. Our wishbones dissect the mainsail so the lower third of the sail pulls down and the upper 2/3 pulls up on our clew. Sail forces plus wishbone weight plus mainsheet angle causes the wishbone to float to a pretty good height without much help in moderate wind. This simplifies complexity for the crew but it also lessens the amount of force our sail fabric needs to distribute from key points like our clew. ( which I’ve been told reduces the benefit of using super strong composites like North 3Di )
At first I saw the wishbone as a boom …and the choker as an outhaul, and I missed the vang (from my Flying Scot days ) but now I’m seeing the wishbone as a combo tool that is both outhaul and vang when using choker and topping lift together.
Have fun… I envy that your seasons offer more time for sailing.
Rob has run his tack reef line in the manner suggested by Ed Botterell (Botts) in his booklet “Nonsuch thots By Botts”. You can find the booklet on the INA member’s site (you have to sign in) under Members/Sailing a Nonsuch-Guidance. I recommend you give the booklet a read. It answers many of the questions raised in this discussion thread. Starting at the mast you tie the tack line to one of the eyes on the mast collar ( we will assume port side. I suggest using a bowline with a half hitch to keep the bowline from opening under pressure. The loop of the bowline should be small. The one in Rob’s picture looks good but as mentioned I would add a half hitch, I have had bowlines slip until the line pulled out. run the tack line up through the reef crinkle to the starboard side and immediately back to the port side and through the turning block. This way the cringle is not at the top of the stack of the sail slides.
If you are having trouble getting enough halyard tension with the full sail up, adding a Cunningham can be helpful. If the problem occurs when you are reefed, Ed had a suggestion. When reefing haul in the tack reef line until it is almost fully down, then hardened the halyard as hard as you can. Then put the tack reef line around a winch and winch it down a bit. This should provide the tension needed.
At page 3 of Nonsuch thots , Note C, Ed suggests the clew “Somewhere near a foot above the wishbone is optimum.” This depends a bit on the cut of the sail. It is important to remember that there is considerable variety in how the sails are cut and that they stretch with age. The numbers given are approximations.
A few points to keep in mind. It is very difficult to lift the boom on the topping lift when there is tension on the halyard. You have to bend the top of the mast with the topping lift to do it. It is also very hard to lift the back of the boom using the reef line. It is much easier to lift with the topping lift. With those thoughts in mind, i use the following sequence then reefing:
Turn the boat and ease the main sheet until I have taken pressure off the sail and the sail is centered over the boom. If the sail is not over the boom it can fall outside and it become difficult to pull in the leech cringle.
Ease the choker and harden the topping lift (note you can wait to harden the topping lift until after the tack and halyard are adjusted)
Ease the halyard and pull in the tack reef line. Lock the tack line and really harden the halyard (see the note above about halyard tension)
Lift the boom with the topping lift if not done in step two. Pull in the leech reef line until the cringle is about 1 foot above the boom (remember this number is approximate)
Ease the topping lift, harden the choker. It should be hard. You are reefing because the wind is strong so you want a fairly flat sail. When hard on the wind you will likely want the sail just kissing the boom or not touch it at all. (again an approximation)
6 Choose your point of sail and adjust the mainsheet accordingly.
That is the order i use. You can try something else if you like but as Joe says do not harden the choker unless and until the halyard is fully hardened.
I did not see it mentioned but when you believe you have the reefing as you like it you may want to mark your lines so it is easily and quickly repeated.
Use a permanent marker or whipping line to mark where you lower the halyard for each reef and where you set the reef lines . I also mark the topping lift and the outhaul, This makes it quicker to get your initial settings and then you can fine tune them based on conditions.
I can out in a reef fairly quickly, now I just have to learn to sail fairly quickly.
I marked my halyard with a Sharpie pen at the fully raised position after recommendations from this group. (Maybe from you! That has worked very well and we are planning to mark the reefing lines once we’re sure we have them set right.
The topping lift is white and will be easy. The choker is black (is that normal?) and so the Sharpie won’t show up on it. I guess I’ll need to figure out how to mark that one with thread.
Whipping a line is nice but you have to make sure it can run freely through any rope clutches that you have.
For a black line consider a flexible paint in white to mark the line.
I have a wealth of sails and the reefs are not in the same location. That means a different set of marks for each sail. The halyard is white with blue trace so I have to use several different coloured markers. When I just used one sail I could use blue for the first reef and red for the second. Maybe black and green for the second sail.
To answer your question about choker colour. It often depends on what was available when you bought. If you go to a rigger and ask for 35 or 60 feet of 3/8” Dyneema they will not order in a 500 foot roll so you can have it in a particular colour.
When I bought La Reina the lines were all double braided polyester. The halyard and topping lift were white. The choker was solid green, I considered that to be green for go. The first reef tack was solid blue and leech line was white with blue tracer. Cool blue for cooling the speed.. The second reef tack was solid red and the leech was white with red tracer. Red was for stop scaring the crew. I like the colour set up because the crew did not have to read the labels on the rope clutches. I could just ask them to harden or ease the green line or to pull in the small white line when I wanted the topping lift. When I started using Dyneema solid colours were not readily available. To the extent possible I have tired to stick to the colour scheme. My choker is now green with white and yellow tracer. I suspect no many of use have a black choker although the wishbone choker line as apposed to the wishbone choker tackle is a mixture of black and grey but since it is not handled the colour is not an issue.
Brian,
As far as flexible paint you could consider one of the paints designed for inflatable dinghies or a thin coat of Plasti Dip although a light coloured Sharpie might be better.
I have never marked my choker. The only mark I can think of that might be helpful would be the max you ease. The choker for purposes of hoisting and reefing. You want the choker eased enough so that it does not interfere with the topping lift but not so loose that the boom bounces all over snagging the boom hangers on the steaming light. This would be a consistent point, The rest of the time you adjust based on observations of the sail.
I do mess with my choker from time to time, but I tend to avoid it. The reason is that if I don’t bring the boom far enough aft before dropping the sail, then the block at the end of the boom bangs and scratches against the roll bar. (Plus, I still haven’t greased its winch, even though I keep saying I will!) If I were to put a mark on it for the proper setting when dropping the sail that would really make a big improvement and I’d feel more inclined to fuss with the choker while sailing.
Marking the reef lines is very helpful. The marks help get it right the first time.
I use bright yellow or green electrical tape tightly wrapped around the line. I don’t have any rope clutches just cleats which work fine for me.
I would avoid permanent marks because of different sails or changes to the clew lashing or the position of the tack (this should not change but I am constantly changing the blocks at the mast). Also I end to end the reef lines every few years so extra marks get confusing. No marks on the halyard, it is tightened as hard as I can make it. Choker is tightened to lift the sail off the boom. When reefed the boat sails better upwind with a flat sail.
Caution on the the Choker being tight upwind.
Before you round the windward mark and ease the boom, ease the choker a bit first. As your boom goes out it tightens the choker and if it is already tight the weakest link may break. This could be the sail or the slides ripping out of the sail or the track ripping off the mast.
And fourth, I guess I don’t know all of the reasons one might need to adjust it. (Like in reefing.)
