Mizzen Boom

[Anthony Huggett]

I'm only just getting to grips with how to furl the sails - we were noticeably slower than other boats on the raid at getting ready to sail or return to port. My  mizzen is a little tight in the partners, and won't rotate very easily, so I had to resort to standing up and winding the mizzen boom around the sail. This is a pain because unless you are very careful when you set it up again, something will be twisted. The obvious answer would be to put a snap shackle on the mizzen outhaul, so the mizzen boom can be easily removed as you suggest.

[Peter Taylor]

The obvious answer would be to put a snap shackle on the mizzen outhaul, so the mizzen boom can be easily removed as you suggest.

I'm not sure how you would use a snap shackle? My thinking was that the outhaul line needs to stay attached to the sail to control it and allow it to be neatly furled. However I didn't want any hardware, like a block on the outhaul, flogging with the sail when the boom was removed.  Hence my use of a snatch block attached to the boom and a side entry clamcleat.  With my setup I have lost the "2:1" outhaul purchase but the advantages of the latter were mostly negated by the friction of the rope through the holes in the boom.

Peter

[Graham W]

I'm fed up with the boom on the furled mizzen hitting me on the head every time the outhaul Clamcleat lets go when it shouldn't.  So, inspired by Peter's idea of being able to detach the boom, whilst keeping the outhaul's mechanical advantage and at the same time avoiding flogging hardware misery, I came up with the attached as an idea.  It's made up of a clevis pinned swivelling boat snap and a low friction ring with a plastic spacer washer driven through the middle.  The advantage of this kind of hook is that it can be released under tension.

I haven't tried it in anger yet and I'll have to get rid of the split rings.  And it means that the furled mizzen will have to be kept in place with sail ties but I've been moving in that direction anyway.  I may keep a tie permanently attached to the clew cringle as long as it doesn't tangle with anything else.

[Julian Swindell]

I haven't had any particular problems with a furled mizzen, it seems to stay pretty docilely wrapped up. I notice that most people seem to use both holes at the end of the boom, to get a high friction purchase when hauling the sail tight. I just use one hole. The out haul just goes out and through one hole and then is tied to the clew of the sail. It is such a small sail you don't really need a purchase, I find. When I slacken it off to furl the sail, I make it very slack, which gives me a lot of loose out haul rope which wraps round the sail, and that's what seems to keep it quiet. I usually just leave the boom lying across the back of the boat.I did quite a lot of sailing at Mylor with it furled when we were beating up river.

[Colin Morley]

Please Sir,
What is a brailing line?

[Julian Swindell]

Brailing line: a light line which is fixed to the mast at one end, some way up from the foot of the loose footed sail. It runs from the mast to a cringle (hole) in the leach of the sail, back to the mast on the other side and then usually down to the deck. If you release the sheet and haul in the brailing line, it should bundle your sail up against the mast. You need to get the position of all bits right to hold the sail tight. Much used by Thames barges. It's a very quick way of dowsing a loose footed sail, but you would need to furl the sail properly if you were going to leave the boat. I have been tempted to fit one on my mizzen. The only tricky bit is the hole in the leach. I am no sail maker.

[Anthony Huggett]

The problem with the spirit booms (as I found out to my cost on the raid) is that you have to let off the foot or the outhaul before you lift the boom. I broke the T track on Emily the first time I lifted the  the boom, with the topping lift, and had to sail the Mylor raid with a sail tie around the bottom of the mast in lieu of the slider in the track! The same would apply to brailing the mizzen, I believe.