If the foxes work out too fast, others must supply their places, till the whole length is worked, which is from five to seven fathoms long. To secure the ends, make a bight, by turning upwards one of the foxes, and plait the others through the bight, then haul tight upon that laid up. TACKLE. A machine formed by the connection of a rope or fall, with an assemblage of blocks. The number of parts of the fall is more or less, in proportion to the effects intended to be produced. That part of the fall which is fastened to one of the blocks, is called the STANDING-PART, and the other parts of it are called the RUNNING-PART. SHANK-PAINTER. A short rope and chain bolted to the ship’s sides, above the fore channels, to hang or secure the shank of an anchor to; the flukes resting in a chock on the gunwale.SHEEP-SHANK.

Rope, rigging & deck gear: how to choose the right rope

CAPS. Short thick blocks of wood, with two holes in them, used to confine the masts together. BUTTONS. Small pieces of thick leather under the heads of nails that are driven through ropes. BOWSING. Hauling or pulling upon a rope or fall of a tackle to remove a body, or increase the tension. BENDING. Fastening one rope to another, or to different objects, and fastening a sail to its yard. 17 , is a conical piece of wood, scored on the outside for the reception of the strands. Sailboat halyard rope is to keep the strands separate between it and the winch, and to regulate the amount of twist in the rope behind it, by being moved along either slowly or rapidly.

Like halyards, sheets are an area where Spectra/Dyneema-cored lines can improve performance and even your sailing experience. “Since you can downsize your line when you switch from polyester, you end up with smaller, lighter piles in your cockpit and less weight pulling at your sail,” says Fisher. He offers an example of genoa halyards on an Oyster 46, which are 69 feet long. In this application, polyester double-braid lines would measure 3/4-inch in diameter, with a breaking strength of 16,000 pounds and a weight of 11 pounds. A Spectra/Dyneema-cored line would have a 1/2-inch diameter, a breaking strength of 20,000 pounds, and a weight of only 4.6 pounds. And only the polyester cover would absorb water, offering additional weight savings as well as more pleasant tacking.

Responses to Knowing The Ropes

STAY is cable-laid in large ships, and hawser-laid in small ones. The latter has an eye spliced in the upper end to the circumference of its mast-head, and served with spunyarn over the splice. The cable-laid is fitted with a collar, and moused, as any other stay.

GUEST-ROPE is fastened to an eye-bolt in the ship’s side, and to the outer end of a boom projecting from the ship’s side, by guys, to keep the boats clear off the sides. MAN-ROPES are for the security of the men, when going out on the bowsprit. PARRAL-ROPES are to connect the ribs and trucks of parrals together. PASSING-ROPES lead round the ship, through eyes in the quarter, waist, gangway, and forecastle stantions, forward to the knight-heads. Lobstermen may be the few among us regularly handling great lengths of rope.

Caribbean Sailing School & RYA Training Centre

Formerly used for topsail tyes, and for tailing on to such ropes as are exposed to much chafe in some particular part, as topsail sheets, etc., it is now allowed only for wheel ropes. Dockline was developed for outstanding strength, easy handling and to have a high abrasion resistance. This rope is perfect for mooring, docking but also anchoring. It has superb elongation characteristics that protects your boat from rough weather conditions. This is an high-performance regatta rope and has a core of coated Stirotex fibers. The Technora/polyester cover is suitable for big winches and works very well in clutches.