Reefing
Reefing Downwind
We’re broad reaching with two reefs already in the main and the breeze rapidly building. We’ve already seen gusts in the upper 20s and a few above 30 knots. A third reef is clearly needed, but luffing up to depower the mainsail will see the apparent wind spike from the low 20s ...read more
Know-how: Installing an Electric Furler
Push-Button Reefing Boats have never been easier to sail, and yet, designers and builders still strive for that extra iota or two of convenience. A case in point is the growing acceptance of powered headsail furlers. Roller-furling headsails are ubiquitous not only on cruising ...read more
DIY: Install a New Boom
After purchasing new sails last year and installing a Tides Marine mainsail track, we decided it was time to upgrade the 45-year-old roller-reefing boom on our Allied Seabreeze 35 project boat Keewaydin. The old boom was in working order (for the most part), but I was suspicious ...read more
Get the Best Out of Your Furling Headsail
Setting up your genoa Unroll the sail completely and look up its luff. Adjust the halyard tension until the sail is perfectly smooth – you don’t want to see any horizontal wrinkles along the luff. Halyards can stretch under load, so crank another half turn on the winch. If ...read more
Update Your Reefing
Traditionally, all sailboat mainsails were reefed by simply pulling down the reefing lines through cringles in the luff and leech of the mainsail, then securing the reefing pennants—often permanently attached to the mainsail—to the boom to tidy the sail up. Then, in the late ...read more