Jib Sheets

[DWT]

I am looking for a way to attach my sheets to my jib? I now have both tied on the the jib with a bowline knot. Each time I tack the knot hangs up on the shrouds. Any great ideas out there?

David
69 Morgan 30'
CaRolAnn

[svHyLyte]

Add shroud rollers!

accessory locker - sailing accessories shroud rollers

(Paint them white if you don't like the natural look!)

Cheers,

s/v HyLyte

[rtbates]

I use a single sheet that's looped in the middle. This loop is passed through the sail clew ring and each end is then passed through the loop and brought tight. Name of knot, I have no idea...

[Vasco]

If your bowlines are catching they may be tied wrong. Tie them so that the smooth side hits the shrouds. If you think this is confusing simply tie a bowline in a line the same size as your sheet, look at the knot, one side will be smoother than the other. This is the side that should be against the shroud.

[FrankZ]

Originally Posted by rtbates

I use a single sheet that's looped in the middle. This loop is passed through the sail clew ring and each end is then passed through the loop and brought tight. Name of knot, I have no idea...

A lark's head hitch. This is what I use as well. It will sometimes get caught in very light air, but I suspect anything else would as well.

Also it will not allow you to turn your sheets end on end as it is one long line with the hitch in the middle.

[David M]

If a Lark's head hitch is snagging then the problem is not the hitch, it is what the hitch is snagging on. You could also wait until the boat is all the way on the other tack before sheeting in. Let the wind bring the sheet around instead of pulling it around prematurely...which tends to allow it to snag.

[beetle]

Originally Posted by DWT

I am looking for a way to attach my sheets to my jib? I now have both tied on the the jib with a bowline knot. Each time I tack the knot hangs up on the shrouds. Any great ideas out there?

On the tack release the loaded sheet slightly earlier than you are currently doing such that it doesn't drag as hard across the shroud; be certain the sheet can run.

Tie the bowline such that the loose end/tail is on the inside of loop attached to the clew (a bowline tied such that the tail is on the outside will hangup on the shroud). Let the bowline use a relatively long 6-8" loop attached to the clew - if the loop is short and tight it won't flex as much and is more likely to hang up on the shrouds.

Use J-locks on the sheets.
Tylaska Marine Hardware - Mystic, CT

Use T-Rings on the headsail clew.
T-Ring

Add a shroud roller as a last effort as you're only treating the symptom, not solving the problem.

- beetle

[Weyalan]

J-lock shackles are good (if expensive). I got some beautiful Tylaska ones on eBay for about 1/3 of RRP. I got them eyespliced into the ends of my 12mm headsail sheets. I like them a lot,

[DWT]

Thanks for all of your help. That Lark's head hitch sure is a simple and easy way to attach the sheets. I will be giving it a try.

Heading out for a 12 day cruise starting next week with the wife to the Everglades... looking forward to some easy tacks! I'll let you all know how it worked out.

David
69 Morgan 30'
CaRolAnn

[GordMay]

FWIW:
This year's Ig Nobel prize in physics fell to US academics Dorian M. Raymer and Douglas E. Smith providing mathematical proof that hair, string, or anything else of the kind, will inevitably become tangled in knots - a process termed:

"Spontaneous knotting of an agitated string”

Abstract
It is well known that a jostled string tends to become knotted; yet the factors governing the “spontaneous” formation of various knots are unclear. We performed experiments in which a string was tumbled inside a box and found that complex knots often form within seconds. We used mathematical knot theory to analyze the knots. Above a critical string length, the probability P of knotting at first increased sharply with length but then saturated below 100%. This behavior differs from that of mathematical self-avoiding random walks, where P has been proven to approach 100%. Finite agitation time and jamming of the string due to its stiffness result in lower probability, but P approaches 100% with long, flexible strings. We analyzed the knots by calculating their Jones polynomials via computer analysis of digital photos of the string. Remarkably, almost all were identified as prime knots: 120 different types, having minimum crossing numbers up to 11, were observed in 3,415 trials. All prime knots with up to seven crossings were observed. The relative probability of forming a knot decreased exponentially with minimum crossing number and Möbius energy, mathematical measures of knot complexity. Based on the observation that long, stiff strings tend to form a coiled structure when confined, we propose a simple model to describe the knot formation based on random “braid moves” of the string end. Our model can qualitatively account for the observed distribution of knots and dependence on agitation time and string length.

Get the full paper & See the Movies:
Spontaneous knotting of an agitated string — PNAS

[captain465]

I certainly hope that none of my tax money paid for this bit of information.........all sailors have known this since boats were invented!!!!!!

[mike d.]

but captain 465 look at how many people would be put to work and let's not mention the number of gov. departments that could be created to head up all this in the name of aid

[GordMay]

Danish biologist reveals all in top-10 list of stylistic eye-glazers

Albert H. Teich, a director at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, suggests the capacity to be dull is an evolutionary adaptation for self-preservation.

“If your article is boring, no one will read it,” says Teich. He says a recent study in Physics World found 90 per cent of all scientific papers are never cited and as many as 50 per cent are only viewed by their authors, referees and editors.

“If your article isn’t read or cited, it can’t be criticized or refuted, but you can still list it on your CV. And the longer your list of publications, the better your prospects.”

Greatest enigma of our time: How do scientists write such boring stuff? ~ by Misty Harris

Greatest enigma of our time: How do scientists write such boring stuff?