Reefing Claw

[gary l. britton]

Hi to All Daysailers:

There is always talk about reefing the main sail on the Daysailer. And many times it is
mentioned about using a “reefing claw” after roller reefing the main, or “jiffy reefing”.
The problem has been that no one seems to know where to obtain a “reefing claw”.
Someone on this or another Daysailer web site found an address in the UK that sells
“reefing claws”, so I thought I would give them a try. Their web address is:
www.trident-UK.com, they are located in Gateshead, UK. (far northeastern part of the
UK)

Go to that address, and about half way down the home page on the right side is ‘search’
and type in reefing claw. They have two types, a 76mm and a 126mm claw, and they had
the 126mm size in stock and not the 76mm claw. (126mm cost 42.50 pounds) I did
some measuring and decided that the 126mm size would be the best and the 76mm might
be to small. They were a bit pricey but I decided to go for it. (remember all the prices
are in British Sterling, and the exchange rate is approximately 1 pound = $1.85 and the
price includes the V.A.T. ((like a national sales tax)) plus 5.95 pounds shipping) I
contacted them by e-mail and they were very prompt in replying. I went ahead and
ordered my reefing claw online, via credit card and had no problems, I placed my order
on the 18th of August and received it on the 25th of August. I was very pleased with the
speed in which I received the reefing claw. (I live in Oklahoma City)

Tonight I went to Lowe’s and purchased a shackle and pulley for the main sail and it was
much less expensive than if I would have purchased one from a boating store. (shackle
and pulley: $4.18) Now I am ready for some of the famous Oklahoma winds and see
how the claw works. More on that in a later post.

So, for all who have been wanting to know where to obtain the elusive “reefing claw”,
now you know where to obtain one.

Fair winds to all

Gary
“Dancing Girls II”

[carol]

www.trident-UK.com doesn't seem to work.
i have a '93 daysalier and just put cringles in the main in order to reef. singlehanding this boat off the north shore of li is sketchy @best and w/the fall winds this should do nicely.
problem is that i'd like to fit the tack into a hook and if i could find a hook alreadyattached to the gooseneck pin this would simplify.
any ideas? thanks. carol

[carol]

www.trident-UK.com doesn't seem to work.
i have a '93 daysalier and just put cringles in the main in order to reef. singlehanding this boat off the north shore of li is sketchy @best and w/the fall winds this should do nicely.
problem is that i'd like to fit the tack into a hook and if i could find a hook alreadyattached to the gooseneck pin this would simplify.
any ideas? thanks. carol

[gary l. britton]

Carol:

Sorry that you are having trouble getting to the website. I tried it several times and once got "page not found" and the other times it went through okay. Try lower case letters for the UK. www.trident-uk.com and see if that works better. Then scroll down the home page until you see an orange/yellow box with many of the areas to navigate to are located. Ther is one titled "search". Click that, and then type -- reefing claw-- in the box and click search. That will show the two types that they sell. I received mine within one week of ordering which I consider quite fast considering it was mailed from NE England. I have not tried mine out yet. I have not been able to sail as much as I would have liked this summer. The one weekend after I received my claw was pretty windy, so I thought I would try it out. BUT, the winds really picked up to gusting over 30 mph and little old ( and I do mean old) me decided to try again another day.

After I received my creditcard statement I found out I paid and exchange rate of $1.8456/pound and the total bill for my claw was $91.02. Now I notice the exchange rate is about $1.75/pound, so the dollar is a little stronger and yours would be a little cheaper than mine.

Good luck and contact me again if you have problems.

Fair Winds

Gary ~~~~~~~_/) ~~~~~~~

[Peter McMinn]

Can anyone post pics of how the claw works? I guess my criteria involves first the health of my sails (not too much stress on the threads), and second, the ease of reefing. I'm more inclined to go with the more standard reefing method, but could be swayed with graphics!

Peter