leave the mainsheet cam open

[Snore]

Originally Posted by Kelkara

D'oh ... of course. I don't have self tailers, so it didn't register.

My boat does not have self- trailers either —- real sailors can tail their own winch [emoji41].

I have jam aka clam cleats for the jib sheets

[fxykty]

If you leave sheets on the winch and cleated (jammed?) on the self tailer (and the clutch forward of the winch towards the load open), you need a quick way to release the sheet from the self tailer without having to be right beside the winch.

A way to do this is to lead the tail of the sheet from where it exits the self tailer in a 180 degree loop and lead it back around the body of the winch in the reverse direction. Then you can extend the tail to a handy location.

Pulling on the tail releases the sheet from the self tailer. If you don’t have too many wraps on the winch then the sheet will run out.

This is what we do with our jib and main sheets. And our sheet clutches are always left open so that releasing the sheet always eases the sail controlled by that sheet.

[Snore]

Originally Posted by fxykty

If you leave sheets on the winch and cleated (jammed?) on the self tailer (and the clutch forward of the winch towards the load open), you need a quick way to release the sheet from the self tailer without having to be right beside the winch.

A way to do this is to lead the tail of the sheet from where it exits the self tailer in a 180 degree loop and lead it back around the body of the winch in the reverse direction. Then you can extend the tail to a handy location.

Nice! On cats and 40’s it is an easy dive to the winch. When you get up into 50’ boats it takes a bit to get to the other side and this would be very handy.


Learned something there.

[dfelsent]

Sheets. Ahh. There a subject.
My big boat philosophy is winch. Self tailer if you have one. Then cleat for security. It’s all visible and transparent. And quick to dump in a hurry.
And no, I do not trust self tailing winches without at least a round turn of the tail on a cleat. I’ve been burned before.
I don’t think clutches belong on sheets. Halyard and reefing lines and roller furling lines yes for sure.
Sheets are to lively for that.

Little boats? Hold the sheet or drop it in a can clear for sure.
By little I mean Dinghy or up to etchells or sonar. Big I mean 30+. And yes an Etchells is 30’

[olaf hart]

Originally Posted by Exonerated

Clutch cleat. Apologies for my error in the original post. Hence why it's important to leave open.

Never use a clutch for a sheet, one loop in the line and you are in trouble.

[sailon46]

I will second this. I was heading north from St George in Grenada with two inexperienced occupants on board. Leeward side of the island full sail up. Nice breeze doing about 5-6 knt. I then noticed a cloud moving very fast coming down (catabatic) I think they call them, towards us. I immediately release the clutch of the main and veered to port. The main halyard made a loop when least needed and jammed in the clutch. The main had lowered only about ten feet. So when the squall hit us it was pandemonium. But at least I was running with it and no harm done except a small tear of the shortened genoa. That lasted about 10-15 minutes.
Ernie on the Mary Jane

[MarkI]

To add to the notes: Keep the mainsheet flaked cleanly also. Loops can get caught up in clutches OR winches OR blocks.

I was in a boat that was damaged by another boat striking us because the mainsheet was knotted up when it needed to be released to give control back to the helm (round up). Only $20,000 damage, since our boat did not sink.

All aspects of releasing the main and jib sheets need attention for just such emergency situations that cannot wait.

Thanks to the OP for the reminder!

OH yeah, for those "no clutches on sheets" comments: Double ended mainsheets pretty much scream for a clutch at each end, BUT they (IMHO) should never both be active. Only the inactive end should be locked down.

[a64pilot]

Ref flaking, I started off doing so, but found that due to the half roll that is imparted to every flake that you get the loops that can jam.
I now don’t flake and let the line form figure eights as I stow it, and it no longer forms those loops and runs though sheeves cleaner too as a result.
I started doing this on my dinghy davits with the three to one purchase and have moved it to the other lines.
Probably sacrilegious, but I’ll live with it.
Flaking is prettier, but doesn’t work as well.

[charliehows]

the transition from a long leisurely waft down the coast to a busy harbour is always a bit of a shock. I've had a number of nasty little surprises over the years that have led me to a few simple rules; always have the engine ready to start; douse sails to a manageable minimum (ie. drop the mizzen and/or main leaving the jib for slow manoevre) before entering busy or confined areas; have an anchor prepared for quick deployment...
cams? my old tub has winches and cleats, no cams aboard.
Having had to sail quite significant distances with a failed engine a few times sharpens up the anticipation skills. I've learned to always have at least a plan b, and a plan c and d is good too.

[Sailorlady323]

Buy a trigger cleat. It releases by pulling up. the cams open and you can release the mainsheet easily. Really big help when the wind gets up.
Happy solution.

[MarkI]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Ref flaking, I started off doing so, but found that due to the half roll that is imparted to every flake that you get the loops that can jam.
I now don’t flake and let the line form figure eights as I stow it, and it no longer forms those loops and runs though shelves cleaner too as a result.
I started doing this on my dinghy davits with the three to one purchase and have moved it to the other lines.
Probably sacrilegious, but I’ll live with it.
Flaking is prettier, but doesn’t work as well.

Can others help unconfuse me???

A64pilot is clearly an experienced sailor, BUT i was taught something different in sailing school in the last year. Please help me understand.

I learned "flaking" to be laying out the sheet or line on the deck in such a way that it will "run" cleanly with no tangling. The easiest way with short lengths is to lay out a non-overlapping serpentine pattern, that cannot catch an errant loop and has no twisting. It should run out cleanly. If there is a lot of sheet and deck space is short, you can overlap loops, but they have to be offset so the line will never catch another loop.

What A64Pilot described sounds like what I was taught in boy scouts. Placing loop after loop into one hand with a half twist. It make a really clean donut shape. But for sailing, this does not run out cleanly at all, and I cannot think of a use for that technique (sailing).

If you want to coil up a line you make the loop after loop in one hand, but NO twist, and the rope usually quickly creates figure 8 patterns (it should). You can tie up the end loop and store it, great. BUT that is not flaking because even laid on deck one loop can catch another.

So, what is flaking? Did I mis-use the term? (when I said you should flake the mainsheet so it can run out cleanly)

[fxykty]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Ref flaking, I started off doing so, but found that due to the half roll that is imparted to every flake that you get the loops that can jam.
I now don’t flake and let the line form figure eights as I stow it, and it no longer forms those loops and runs though shelves cleaner too as a result.
I started doing this on my dinghy davits with the three to one purchase and have moved it to the other lines.
Probably sacrilegious, but I’ll live with it.
Flaking is prettier, but doesn’t work as well.

That’s the proper way to coil a line where you don’t want to add twists.

Flaking is laying the line on deck in loops. You can do this without twists as well by making loops in both directions - basically a butterfly coil.

No videos to show you but lots of YT videos of these techniques.

[fxykty]

Regarding clutches on sheets, each to their own. We have a larger boat and pretty much every line on the boat goes through a clutch before its winch. Not a problem - line management is a fundamental skill and it does not include just stuffing the tail into a rope bag. Proper coiling technique, such that twist is not imparted, is critical. Every time a halyard, sheet or other control line is adjusted it is checked and if necessary re-coiled.

Regarding a double ended mainsheet, whenever a tail is on a winch its clutch is open. This is a key safety point in our crew briefing.

[docwood]

I'm trying to look up what a sail tailer is (still learning) and my google page keeps taking me to boat trailers .lol........love these pages.. getting help I didn't even know I needed..yet

[fxykty]

Originally Posted by docwood

I'm trying to look up what a sail tailer is (still learning) and my google page keeps taking me to boat trailers .lol........love these pages.. getting help I didn't even know I needed..yet

Self tailer, right?

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/i...Q2PWde6BmjVtfv

And another pet peeve of mine is leaving the winch handle in the winch. NO! Not only do you risk losing the handle (as the lock can be mis-engaged and hold the winch handle in) but more importantly you cannot quickly release the sheet with the handle in the way.