Assembly instructions
Valdivia
Order No.
1140
Parrel
Means of attaching jaws of gaff fitting; consists of rope with balls which facilitate movement up and
down
Peak halyard
Rope for raising the gaff; attached to the free end of the gaff
Peak
Top rear corner of a gaff sail
Pennant stock
Thin rod to which the pennant is attached above the masthead
Pennant
Flag which projects above the mast
Ratline battens
Battens tied into the shrouds to act as “steps”
Ratline
Short lengths of rope tied into the shrouds to form “steps”
Reef point
Length of cord used to tie the sail when reefing
Reefing line
Rope at the front and rear edges of the mainsail or schooner sail, used for reefing
Relieving rope
Safety rope, designed to prevent the sheets snagging on the anchor winch etc.
Roof light
Window in deck or on superstructure
Rudder bush
Watertight bearing in the hull for the rudder
Runner
Short length of rope between the Fisherman sail and the mainmast halyard
Sail batten
Batten designed to stiffen the rear edge of a sail and improve the sail profile
Schooner mast
Shorter forward mast on a schooner
Schooner
Sailing ship with at least two masts and fore-and-aft rigging
Scupper
Opening in the bulwark through which water drains
Sheet
Rope for changing the settings of the individual sails
Shivering
Term used when sails flutter in a headwind. Sail has a braking effect instead of generating forward
thrust
Shroud
Rope which supports the mast to the sides of the hull
Slacken
Paying out a rope or sheet
Splicing
Method of attaching an item to a rope without using knots, e.g. for “weaving” a deadeye into a rope
end
Spreader
Transverse beam on the mast for spreading the shrouds
Stay hook
Hook-shaped fitting for attaching the sail to stays; can be moved
Stay
Rope for bracing the mast forward or aft
Stem
Extension of the keel up to the deck at the bow
Sternpost
Extension of the keel up to the deck at the stern
Strop
Short piece of rope
Tackle
Method of tensioning ropes using blocks
Thimble
Tubular eye in sail corners to which ropework is attached
Throat halyard
Rope for raising the gaff; attached to the throat of the sail
Throat
Bottom front corner of a triangular sail
Topmast
Round-section upper part of the mast which can be raised and lowered as required
Topping lift
Rope for holding or raising the main boom or schooner boom to reduce the load on the sails
Uncontrolled gybe
Unintentional gybe; the sail swings uncontrollably from one side to the other
Weather tendency
The boat tends to turn its bow into the wind when the rudder is neutral, with the result that the sail
area facing the wind decreases, and the sails start to shiver. Remedy: the effect of the foresails must
be increased
Weather
The side facing the wind. The wind always engages the sails from the weather side
Going about
Course change in which the boat’s bow turns through the wind
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