Main Halyard shackle

[Char99]

I remove the halyard when I close up the stack pack and attach it to help keep the stack pack up. Like Jim I must stand on a step to reach the head of the sail.

Jim you did not say what kind of snap shackle you are using.

I also have steps on the mast and I have a time keeping the halyard from getting caught in the steps.

[Jim Cate]

Jim you did not say what kind of snap shackle you are using.

Well, as I said it is an antique (almost) that was given to us some 25 years ago when a pal was selling his boat. It's chromed bronze, conventional design, pretty big. It is the sort that opens opposite to the attachment point so that once open, it falls free. Some snap shackles are designed to retain the attached object until lifted a bit... not so good where yu are at arms length!

Sorry I can't be more specific!

Jim

[chrisr]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Chris, on Insatiable II I must stand on a folding mast step to barely reach the head of the mainsail. At this position balance requires one hand to hold onto something on the mast to keep from falling over backwards... not a pleasing prospect for old bones! thus a one-handed device is a big help to me.

And we take the halyard off the sail at t he end of every sailing day, leading it off to avoid halyard slapping (just in case SB1 should be anchored nearby). We also use that halyard to raise and lower the outboard from the dinghy, so for us, easy connection with one hand is crucial. And that old snap shackle just keeps on doin' the job for us.

Other boats with other geometries may have no need, but we do and apparently the OP does too.

Jim

PS How far up the river are you now? If you get as far as Ulmarra, CFer Pickles and Jesse lives there and is an interesting chap to talk story with.

hmmm

i can see the attraction, although never felt the need myself

if you must have a one handed snap shackle, something like this is about the best available

https://www.arnoldsboatshop.com.au/t...ainless-s.html

cheers,

(jim : will pm you regarding the clarence)

[Tillsbury]

I think I must be missing something. What's torsion or one-handed quick release got to do with a main halyard?

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Char99

I remove the halyard when I close up the stack pack and attach it to help keep the stack pack up. Like Jim I must stand on a step to reach the head of the sail.

Jim you did not say what kind of snap shackle you are using.

I also have steps on the mast and I have a time keeping the halyard from getting caught in the steps.

All you need then is a piece of very fine string run along the outer ends of the steps.


Selden has in fact special small holes there.


b.

[Cheechako]

Racers use snap shackles all the time. On a cruiser I prefer a good captive type, but not sure why.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by chrisr

why on earth would you want a snap shackle on your main halyard ?

just how often do you take it on / off ? in a hurry ? the only time our main halyard is detached is once a year when the sail comes off the boat for maintenance

keep it simple...a bowline is perfectly fine, or if you want to be a bit tidier, a captive pin D shackle.

cheers,

E.g to keep the halyard off the mast.


Ours slaps when the boat rolls, so I place the halyard onto a fitting then tension it till slapping stops.


A bowline is not the preferred method of tying the halyard on. And it is only done when the halyard is soft. Ours has a wire end (on the sail side).


Hence, a snap.


ymwv



b.

[slug]

Originally Posted by Tillsbury

I think I must be missing something. What's torsion or one-handed quick release got to do with a main halyard?

Torsion ... twist

Each time you put five wraps on a winch you induce five twists into the halyard

Each time you coil a halyard tail you induce even more twist

The reason a shackle has a swivel is to offload these twists in the halyard ...torsion ....at the dead end

The reason a line has a tracer thread it to spot twists

The reason they rate rope torsion resistance is to judge the remaining service life of the halyard

[Tillsbury]

Originally Posted by slug

Torsion ... twist

Each time you put five wraps on a winch you induce five twists into the halyard

Each time you coil a halyard tail you induce even more twist

The reason a shackle has a swivel is to offload these twists in the halyard ...torsion ....at the dead end

The reason a line has a tracer thread it to spot twists

The reason they rate rope torsion resistance is to judge the remaining service life of the halyard

Ok I get that, but how many times do you coil up the main halyard tail between attachments of the halyard? And assuming you coil it appropriately you wouldn't get twist in there anyway surely? Using a soft shackle on the mainsail head I can't say I've ever seen even a half turn of twist in it at any point. I guess some people must be doing things differently to get twist there.

[Cheechako]

There's no twist in the halyard. You put it on a winch (probably 70-100 feet from the sail head!), then you unwrap it the opposite way taking out anything you put in. Never seen any twist make it to the masthead.