I am about ready to order lazy jacks and a sail stack cover/ bag. I have never used one before and want to be able to use it for slab reefing while singe handed. As well as for the convenience of storage etc.
Is there anything I should be aware of or look out for before I go ahed and get some quotes from sailmakers?
Thanks

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andy59 said..
I am about ready to order lazy jacks and a sail stack cover/ bag. I have never used one before and want to be able to use it for slab reefing while singe handed. As well as for the convenience of storage etc.
Is there anything I should be aware of or look out for before I go ahed and get some quotes from sailmakers?
Thanks

That it doesn't interfere with reefing as you note, especially tying the sail up once the reef is in place. I went for a separate sail cover and lazy jacks.

MB. Just how do you reef when you have a stack pack.....does the line on the leech go right
around the bag ?

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samsturdy said...

MB. Just how do you reef when you have a stack pack.....does the line on the leech go right
around the bag ?

Not sure samsturdy as I can't picture your setup. The leech line will tear anything between it and the boom so it needs to go directly around the boom.
I was referring to being able to wrap the sail up over the boom (the sail is not wrapped on to the boom). With a boom bag it can be difficult to get under the sail to feed the line underneath.
It isn't uncommon to put in and take out a reef a few times a day so you don't want it to be a cumbersome process. E.g. I don't wrap the sail with one reef in as the lazy jacks are adequate to hold a single reef of excess sail. Saves time with people on deck.

It depends on how the bag attaches to the boom. Ours fits in a track attached to the length of the boom each side, so there must be gaps where the reefing lines go round the boom. Ours is done by gaps in the track.







Also consider how it goes around the mast. Ours is a single piece each side with a zip where the sides join at front of mast. With ours, we end up with a loose section when unzipped around mast that must be tied back. It can be used without unzipping around the mast, but makes it harder to bounce the halyards.





A better system has a removable piece at the mast.

The previous owner of Itchy Feet was an upholsterer and made his own boom bag as shown below, also note the winch covers, furler cover, boom tent etc. It is a pretty big bag with electrical conduit as stiffeners and a zip on the top and clips that hold the bag around the mast. It stores the sail really well and we haven't any trouble dropping the sail as yet. The whole bag can drop down under the boom if necessary but as we only hook on the luff reef, tension with the main halyard and tension the appropriate reef downhaul on the leech I can't see why you would need to. I would have thought you don't need to worry about securing the sail with reef ties when you have a boom bag and lazy jacks. Am I wrong?

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Wander66 said..
The previous owner of Itchy Feet was an upholsterer and made his own boom bag as shown below, also note the winch covers, furler cover, boom tent etc. It is a pretty big bag with electrical conduit as stiffeners and a zip on the top and clips that hold the bag around the mast. It stores the sail really well and we haven't any trouble dropping the sail as yet. The whole bag can drop down under the boom if necessary but as we only hook on the luff reef, tension with the main halyard and tension the appropriate reef downhaul on the leech I can't see why you would need to. I would have thought you don't need to worry about securing the sail with reef ties when you have a boom bag and lazy jacks. Am I wrong?

I suppose it depends on the boat and conditions.

MB only has two reefs, bloody deep and .....ing deep. A single reef on MB leaves the luff in the mast track and is ok in the lazy jacks without being wrapped.

A double reef on MB has lots of excess sail and the bottom of the luff has to come out of the mast track. A double reef goes in above 25kts and often we experience over 35kts and these winds can grab bags of sail. It isn't just the wind, if you take a big wave into the main the weight of water in a baggy sail can really cause problems.

If you are sailing in relatively sheltered waters it probably isn't much of a problem. In roughers and strong winds you don't want bags of loose sail.

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Wander66 said..
The previous owner of Itchy Feet was an upholsterer and made his own boom bag as shown below, also note the winch covers, furler cover, boom tent etc. It is a pretty big bag with electrical conduit as stiffeners and a zip on the top and clips that hold the bag around the mast. It stores the sail really well and we haven't any trouble dropping the sail as yet. The whole bag can drop down under the boom if necessary but as we only hook on the luff reef, tension with the main halyard and tension the appropriate reef downhaul on the leech I can't see why you would need to. I would have thought you don't need to worry about securing the sail with reef ties when you have a boom bag and lazy jacks. Am I wrong?

No you are perfectly correct. I can drop 3 reefs into mine.

I would suggest andy 59 checks out the Sailrite web page www.sailrite.com/ Search out the plans and video and make your own from that. Canvas acrylic , ordinary house hold sewing machine if you don't have an industrial and sew your own with straight stitches.

A minor detail that can get really irritating. If you have swallows in your area make certain that you can seal the bag at the mast. My sail bag has around a 300 mm opening just behind the mast. The swallows love to get in there and build nests on the flaked sail. Including some provision to lace and seal this area would be great.

Hi Andy,
One thing I find really handy, is that on Fusion the lazyjack closest to the mast is adjustable, ie: it is what controls the boom height.
The lazyjacks are threaded in such a way that by undoing and hauling on the first set, that this feeds back through a series of loops and provides lift on all three sets.
They are dyneema, so super slippery and strong.
Thi is because I don't have a topping lift.

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The bag is semi-permanently attached to the boom.
The reef lines go under the bag and tie around the boom. I leave the first two in all the time now, as it can be a bother to feed them through under the bag, especially with tension on the lazyjacks.
I also find I need to drop the bag (undo the 1st set of lazyjack) so the bag drops low enough so I can see the leach reef line when I'm grinding it in (me being paranoid, I like to see the sail so I dont foul anything)


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Edit: I just thought of something else. Dropping the sail on mine needs to be controlled descent, as with a lot of sail it can end up in a mess inside the bag if you just let her go. I spent an hour trying to flake it by myself at the dock after the crew had left as I wasn't happy with the flake.

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andy59 said..
I am about ready to order lazy jacks and a sail stack cover/ bag. I have never used one before and want to be able to use it for slab reefing while singe handed. As well as for the convenience of storage etc.
Is there anything I should be aware of or look out for before I go ahed and get some quotes from sailmakers?
Thanks

Hi Andy,
I used a bloke from afloat magazine (named Jos but hes in Sydney), very experienced blue water sailor who sews up things like sail bags and dogers and did mine along with installing the lazy jacks...I've got a two part system (so there is a bit thats removable at the mast) and therefore can reef as required and this system doesnt interfere with reefing hth

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Shaggybaxter said..
Hi Andy,
One thing I find really handy, is that on Fusion the lazyjack closest to the mast is adjustable, ie: it is what controls the boom height.
The lazyjacks are threaded in such a way that by undoing and hauling on the first set, that this feeds back through a series of loops and provides lift on all three sets.
They are dyneema, so super slippery and strong.
Thi is because I don't have a topping lift.

[URL= .html]

The bag is semi-permanently attached to the boom.
The reef lines go under the bag and tie around the boom. I leave the first two in all the time now, as it can be a bother to feed them through under the bag, especially with tension on the lazyjacks.
I also find I need to drop the bag (undo the 1st set of lazyjack) so the bag drops low enough so I can see the leach reef line when I'm grinding it in (me being paranoid, I like to see the sail so I dont foul anything)


[URL= .html]
Edit: I just thought of something else. Dropping the sail on mine needs to be controlled descent, as with a lot of sail it can end up in a mess inside the bag if you just let her go. I spent an hour trying to flake it by myself at the dock after the crew had left as I wasn't happy with the flake.

I'm guessing if you don't have a topping lift or a solid boom you have the lazy jacks hauled in hard when you reef. My stack pack is similar but I use a topping lift and that loop at the end of yours is what it's attached to. When sailing I let the lazy jacks off and don't touch them until I drop the mainsail. When I reef I haul in the topping lift and that holds the bag up and the fully battened main just drops in. The various reefing lines hold the sail in the bag, the lazy jacks are loose so they don't do much in the reefing process. The top of the bag with the conduit rods is about the height of the top of the boom when sailing. Fully battened sails are so much easier to handle.

I like the open section against the mast. I think there is a need for the breeze to pass through here to dry the sail. Mine has straps and clips and I keep them loose.

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holdfastom said..

andy59 said..
I am about ready to order lazy jacks and a sail stack cover/ bag. I have never used one before and want to be able to use it for slab reefing while singe handed. As well as for the convenience of storage etc.
Is there anything I should be aware of or look out for before I go ahed and get some quotes from sailmakers?
Thanks

Hi Andy,
I used a bloke from afloat magazine (named Jos but hes in Sydney), very experienced blue water sailor who sews up things like sail bags and dogers and did mine along with installing the lazy jacks...I've got a two part system (so there is a bit thats removable at the mast) and therefore can reef as required and this system doesnt interfere with reefing hth

Jos is a good mate of mine. He and I sailed his concrete boat to Coffs a few years ago.
He is now about 84 years old. Still going strong last I saw him a few months ago when he and I fitted my new Tonneau cover to my Triumph car.
He has made a few things for me including two dodgers. A good job each time at a very good price.

Thanks everyone for your advice. Its given me a much clearer understanding of the questions I need to ask and the design features that are important. Much appreciated: MB; Ramona ; Free Radical; Holdfastom; Shaggy; and Wanderer.