Stuff we have and use [and do...]

March 20, 2019

Tidbit: Tacking the headsail with an inner forestay in place...

Or... Alternative methods of attaching sheets to headsails...

This is one of a series of brief, no nonsense posts that we call aTidbit: 
noun; small and [possibly] particularly interesting item of gossip or information...
The purpose is to share succinct posts about lessons learned, or things we use or do that work [or don't...] that are common to most of us boaters. 


The goal is to garner feedback from those of you having first-hand experience with a different approach/ solution/ product/ or additional useful information to share...  
We never assume what we are sharing is the ideal or only; it just seems to best suit our needs [and/or habits and/or budget] from our experiences thus far...
Sometimes these Tidbits originate from a topic of discussion on one of the forums we participate in, and this happens to be one: Link to original post [4-Jan-2019; A good read by sailors sharing their tried and true methods...] 

Following is an expanded version of my original reply to the above forum discussion...

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If your boat doesn't have an inner forestay, we hereby give you a few minutes of your life back and advise against reading any further... [Unless you are interested in using something besides bowline knots to affix sheets to your headsail(s)...]

Scenario: When tacking [or even gybing] the headsail with an inner forestay in place, the inner stay can interfere with the smooth transition of the headsail from windward to leward in many conditions...

We can always furl the headsail as we come into the wind, and unfurl on the new tack, but we would rather not have to...

We can also send someone forward to walk the sail through 'the slot' in very light air...

And in some conditions we remove the inner forestay [using the Highfield lever]. But unless sailing in very light air [making tacking the headsail easier] or beating into stronger winds, we prefer to leave it in place.

Instead, when tacking, sometimes it helps to time the release of the [now] windward sheet; waiting until the jib begins to fill on the new tack— pulling the the sail through the gap once the sheet is released.

To help mitigate snagging the typical pair of [ungainly] bowline knots on the inner forestay when tacking in lighter air, we do as many racers purport: cow hitch the jib sheets [one long sheet] to the headsail clew... [We use a cow hitch on our staysail sheets as well.]

We mark the center of the sheet line to facilitate attachment and observe if the cow hitch ever slips— and it hasn't so far... [20 years and counting with this approach.]

Worried about a cow hitch slipping under load?

Use a Prusik Knot [or even a 'short' Prusik; a cow hitch with one extra wrap]. It has the added benefit of still holding if one of the lines parted near the knot [unlike a cow hitch...]
This is also how we have always attached our anchor bridle line— with 100% success to date...
One could also temporarily seize the sheetlines right behind the cow hitch if it appeared to be slipping. [e.g., nylon zipties, seizing twine, etc.] But I have never found it necessary. Perhaps this is in part because we switch to [balance better with] the staysail once the wind picks up [depending upon circumstances...]

Another approach if worried about the possibility slipping under high loads is to run one of the two sheet ends back through the clew fitting and then through the loop so formed [a half-hitch through the clew ring...]
Regardless of attachment method, to reduce chafe we install a short length of Dyneema Chafe Sleeve on the sheets at the clew attachment point. 

The trade-offs of using a cow hitch include:
  • No quick disconnect [knife in an emergency- then back to bowlines with 2 individual sheets...]
  • A very long jib sheet to deal with when removed from the sail
    • We flake it after halving the line, so the center is first off the flake for quick affixing to the sail. This way we are passing a flake of rope through the loop instead of two long sheets...
  • The knot can slip under extreme loads
  • The knot can slip if one line parts close to the hitch
    • Both of these concerns are eliminated by using a Prusik knot instead of a cow hitch...

Other proven options we are considering experimenting with include:

To keep the preferred small knot profile but make sheets quick to remove, we could make a small, soft eye [i.e., no thimble] in one end of each sheet. Use a soft shackle through those eyes to affix the sheets to the clew. [Incorporate Dynema Chafe sleeve inside those eyes.]
Since our current sheets were new in 2014, adding a soft eye into one end of this older line would be difficult. [if even possible...] We may do this next time they need replacing...
Meanwhile, we will test how well a soft shackle attachment works for us by tying either an Alpine Butterfly Loop or a Dropper Loop in the middle of our current sheet line and affixing that to the jib clew with a soft shackle... Stay tuned... 
Do you have other solutions that work well for you?

2 comments:

  1. In an effort to minimize knots (and other objects that can hurt you when sheets flog) I have small eyes spliced on each sheet. I have recently added a new piece of kit to my head sail sheets though. Taking a page from Jamie Gifford's Totem, I have a four or five foot piece of 3/8 inch dyneema with eyes on both ends. One eye is cow hitched to the sail and the sheets are joined to the dyneeema with a soft shackle. We rarely have the inner forestay in place but there are still plenty of of ways for sheets to snag, especially when the dinghy is on the deck. The length of dyneema seems to reduce the potential for snagging just a little bit more and it lowers the attachment point for the sheets so they can be reached from the deck when the sail is furled or when sheeted in.

    The dyneema sleeve material is a good idea for chafe protection. I will add that to our list for our trip across the border.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the great feedback Mike!

      A HiMod line pendant is an excellent solution. And the soft shackle attachment for the sheets solves the quick connect/disconnect issue, while still minimizing points [blobs] of interferance on the inner forestay [bowline knots...] I like the idea of being able to reach a line from the clew when the sail is furled too... [when sheets are not attached...]

      A well thought out system.

      I have heard from other cruisers who chose to use higher tech sheets like some racers choose: Doublebraid line with a HiMod core. Some say they trip a few feet of the outer braid to expose the high mod core to work similarly to how you describe.

      I think if we had individual sheets with eyes the stand alone pendant would be a better solution in our case.

      I also plan to replace our running backstays, and the inner forestay with HiMod line in the future. This makes them all much easier to handle. And a HiMod forestay would also be less abrasive than SS wire, and offer less friction to the foresail when tacking.

      The Dyneema anti-chafe sleeve is great stuff. I need to get some at the point where halyards rest in their masthead sheaves when tensioned...

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