27
General Rigging
and Sailmaking
Newcomers to the nautical world
should learn the following rigging
terms. Old salts can skip this part and
grab a mug of grog.
Each edge and corner of a sail has a
name. On a square sail, the top is the
head
, bottom the
foot
, and sides the
leech
.
Lower corners are the
clews
. On a fore
and aft sail, the top is the head, bottom
the foot, aft side the leech, and forward
side the
luff
. The lower forward corner is
the
tack
, aft lower corner the clew, upper
forward corner the
throat
, and the aft
upper corner the
peak
. A triangular sail is
similar, except the upper corner is called
the head. There is no throat or peak.
Standing rigging:
Fixed rigging supporting
masts and spars. Standing rigging is gener-
ally tarred; hence, it is black or dark brown.
Shrouds:
Transverse lines supporting masts.
Deadeyes
are wood and have three holes for
reeving the
lanyard. Lanyards
tighten
shrouds, stays, and other lines. Metal turn-
buckles replace deadeyes on modern ships.
A
heart
or
bullseye i
s similar to a deadeye,
except it has one large hole. They are used
on more permanent installations.
Chain plates
: Iron bars or rods holding the
deadeyes. Topmast shrouds have no
chain plates. Instead, rods or lines run
from the deadeye or bullseye to the mast
band. These are called
futtock shroud
s. If
they go just to the lower shrouds, they
generally tie to a wooden or metal rod
called a
futtock stave
.
Catharpins
are short
lines fastened to each shroud to take up
the slack and brace the yards more
sharply. They are generally located at the
intersections of the futtock staves.
Footropes and manropes
: Lines on yards,
booms, and bowsprits where seamen
stand while working and furling sails.
Stirrups
hold the footropes, which are
sometimes called
horses
.
Cranelines
,
footropes running athwartships from the
lower fore and mainmast shrouds, are
used to furl the main staysails or spanker.
They are a recent development and were
not rigged on early ships.
Ratlines
are
footropes on shrouds. A
sheer pole
is a
round or rectangular iron or wood bar
seized to the shrouds just above the
deadeyes. It maintains shroud spacing
and can serve as a belaying point.
Stays and Backstays:
Lines supporting the
masts from fore and aft forces. A
running
backstay
has a movable tackle on deck.
Bobstays
: Support the bowsprit from
upward loads.
Guys
support the jibboom
and bowsprit from side forces. Bowsprit
guys are sometimes called
bowsprit
shrouds
. Bowsprits occasionally have a
vertical strut below the jibboom cap to
increase the stays' downward pulling
force back to the hull. This strut is the
martingale
or
dolphin striker
. Head stays
reeve through the jibboom, down to the
dolphin striker, and back to the bow.
Martingale stays
are separate and start at
the jibboom rather than continuing from
the head stays.
Backropes
continue from
stays back to the hull after the stays pass
the dolphin striker.
Running rigging
: Lines that move, reeve
through blocks, or operate sails and spars.
Blocks:
Wooden or metal shells with
sheaves (pulleys) for handling lines. The
oval
clump
block is used for staysail sheets,
because it won't tear a sail if it rubs against
it. A
purchase (
tackle) consists of several
blocks and a line to provide a mechanical
advantage for handling sails and spars.
Halliards or halyards:
Lines for raising
and lowering a sail, yard, boom, gaff, or
flag. The part of a halliard attached to a
yard is called a tye. For gaffs, the outer
halliard is the
peak halliard
. At the gaff
jaws is a
throat halliard
, named for the
part of the sail it operates.
Downhauls,
outhauls
, and
inhauls
drag a sail along a
boom or up and down a stay.
STAGE 7
UPPER RIGGING
BOWSPRIT
