Author Topic:   Reefing & genoa downhaul CL16 Tom D CL16 Member posted May 20, 2003 12:35 PM             It seems as though that I spend much more time puttering with my boat than sailing. It is all part of the enjoyment of owning a sailboat. I setup my jiffy reefing system yesterday in the afternoon sunshine. I had the awning shop put in a new clew, tack and I had the 3 reefing mid points put in myself. Using the instructions I downloaded from the Wayfarer site, I connected the clew line to the new leach cringle. It took some time to get the proper position for the new eyelet on the boom for the line. I brought the line forward of the mainsheel and mounted a clamcleat with eyelet. The line was left long enough to attach to an eyelet that was existing near the vang connector. I ties it off there with some slack. The clew end has a loop that is attached to the outhaul. The new tack I just ran a line from the new tack cringle with a cunningham hook to a cleat on the mast. I used 1/4 nylon line for both. This seemed to work ok on the test sail. (All testing is done in the driveway). I need some new bungee cords. I have several 6" but they are too tight to wrap around the boom and extra sail. I need 8" ones, maybe I will have to make them. These are the ones with a short loop passed through a ball no hooks to catch the sail material. The jib down haul didn't fare so well. My original downhaul had a line from the halyard through each grommet to a block mounted on the forestay assembly, back to the cockpit. This would bring down the jib as I let loose of the halyard. The problem was, I would have the genoa sail flopping all over the deck and into the water on occasion. This is not neat or acceptable so it had to be changed. The new version is similar except about midway down the forestay I have a carabiner attached and run the line from it down one side of the jib to the leech cringle back up the other side to the carabiner and continue down to the foredeck block. The theory is that the jib can be dropped and wadded up at the same time. My attempts didn't work that way! I would release the halyard and jib sheet and pull the downhaul line. It would always bind up about half way through the process. I tried several method of the connection from the forestay to the leech. On subsequent tries I would not release the halyard only the jib sheep and I would pull the jib up to the forestay making it partially furled. I could release the halyard and not the sheet and bring down the jib. This was not much better than my original downhaul. I think my problem could be that I used 1/4" line maybe 3/16 would not bind. I have brass hanks on my genoa and they use a lot of the grommet space on the luff and they do not have much area for the line to run through. I'll try a 1/8 nylon line there is not much stress on the line if both the halyard and sheet are released. I still believe the system will work great as I get the bugs refined. WARNING to all drive way & yard sailers. WEAR sunscreen I fried my cheeks and ears worse than I ever did on the boat. I even have some color from my winter in Florida. Soon I plan to get KatieAnn on the water and begin this years sailing adventures. Tom D.

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