Reefing

I would like to hear your advise on reefing with the Hanse 470. When taking either the first or the second reef, tipycally the pulley at the front (near the mast- please excuse my lack of technical english), reaches the boom, before the pulley at the back. Quite often it makes it impossible to take the pulley at the back all the way down, closer to the boom. I make sure that the vang is completely loosen but this still continues to happen.

How do you avoid this? Is there anyway to take the reef that allows both pulleys to come down at the same time?

Thank you in advance for your assistance

Hello Hobietiger,
I have try out both system.First I have 2 reefinglines for each reef, one in the front one on the back leach.
I changes this by a one reefline system but than I become the Same problems like you so I changes it back.
So far I know the decklayout of our 545 is simular to the 470 and the loads almost the same.
First I release the mainsheet and the vang, than release the halyard a little more than necessary take the front reefline by hand in and than the back reefline(elect winch) till the reef is complete in.Put back tension on the halyard,mainsheet and vang till the sail is flat.I have put markers on all the reeflines and halyard to not overtensioned (elect winch) and damaged the sail.I have the two frontreeflines and the mainhalyard on portwinch and the two backreeflines on the starboardwinch to avoid changing the lines on the winches while reefing.It works well even solosailing.
Wil
545#268


Edited by Wild - 14 November 2012 at 09:26

In my experience, the reef point in the front always reaches the boom first. The way I have solved this is to loosen the kick so that the boom points slightly upwards. After lowering the sail and securing the reef line, I tighten the kick and both reef points are now on the boom. This is a bit more fiddly for the second reef than for the first reef but the el. winch helps.

 

Cheers

Instead of marking the halliard i put 2 pieces of tape on the mast. I have dinema halliards & release the halliard in stages as I take up the tension on he reef lines.
I leave the halliard with 2 or 3 turns round the winch bit not fixedin the stopper so it slips as the load comes on. This keeps a bit of tension on it & enables the slack to come in at the clew to avoid tangles. This way the sail comes down fairly evenly
When I see the end of a batten coming near the corresponding mark on the mast I lock the halliard off but still keep winching in the reef line. Letting the vang off a bit helps.
When the clew is nearly in I let off the halliard so the end of a batten lines up with the corresponding mark on the mast. I then give the final pull on the reef line to get the clew in.
It takes as long to write this as it does to do it.
I use roller bearing oversize non rotating blocks on the luff but no block on the clew.
I find nothing like the friction others claim & i certainlywould not entertain blocks inside the boom
But to each his own

Edited by samuel - 14 November 2012 at 19:47

I think you have room for a third reef. You need to cut slots in the sail cover similar to the ones for first & second. You put a strop with an eye each end around the boom & put in 2 knots to stop it dropping out. Lay the two ends each side of the sail until needed. When setting up pass one end through the cringle for the third reef then the other end through this loop. Hook the free loop onto the normal clew out haul. Mine is fitted with a snap shackle. As this strop is pulled it tightens down the clew
At the boom end you possibly have a spinnaker ring fixed to the front of the mast
Pass a strop either under it or through it. This strop has a snap shackle each end. These fix to a pair of rings passing through the cringle on the luff & should be made the correct length to avoid crushing the luff sliders at the bottom of the sail . This os also handy as a reserve in case reef line snaps or gets lost in the boom

Edited by samuel - 14 November 2012 at 21:18