Hi Dave. I'm watching this with great interest, as I too want to make my mirror better for cruising, and have been thinking about how I could come up with some sort of reefing system. It's very good to see your thoughts and ideas, and to be able to compare them with my own. Looking forward to part two. Respect to you Dave
Hi Dave, I am very happy to see this video as I'm currently trying to fit a reefing system to my gunter rigged mirror. I'm fairly new to sailing a mirror as I sailed a topper for 6 years beforehand. I enjoyed sailing my topper but I have no interest in racing so I always wanted to get a more suitable dinghy for cruising. I have been a big fan of David Sumner's Mirror Cruising channel where he uses two halyards to lower the gaff down whilst keeping it close to the masthead for reefing. I am contemplating fitting two reefs and using a halyard fitted to the head of the sail and lowering the sail itself down the gaff. I found a block that has a fairlead built into it that could be fitted to the top of the gaff to prevent the halyard slipping off the block. I am going to try fitting a strap round the gaff and head eyelet of the sail to keep the sail from coming out of its track on the gaff and hopefully reduce the pressure on the gaff. My topper dinghy had a clew strap to keep the clew of the sail close to the mast when reefing so I'm going to try the same idea for the head of my mirror sail when reefing. I found this video of someone using a similar system for a gunter rigged gull dinghy and they don't seem to have any issues with the strength of the gaff so i'm hoping it will be ok: th-cam.com/video/cV4BPB2EEm0/w-d-xo.html. I spoke to some of the people on the mirror dinghy facebook group and they have done similar methods without issues but I'm no expert so it will be trial and error with my plans too. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with and I will let you know if what I have planned works if you're interested. Thanks, take care.
Hi Nathan. Thats very interesting and would love to see the outcome. Actually (Apoiler alert) I did the same system with a Bermuda style halyward that I can lower the mainsail using. One issue was with bigger reefs, the sail can come out of the Gaff as the gaff only lowers so far. I do have a few issues with the system, but seem to overcome them...Watch this space!!! I've actually spoken to David Sumner a few times. He's still quite active on the Dinghy Crusing Association and he's been really helpful on a few things including the reefing and other things like cleats!! I've watched all his videos and find them really interesting. I don't do Facebook so can't get onto the Mirror group there which is a shame. Trial and error is the way to go for me. I think having a go, showing your process and outcomes and sharing ideas is 80% of the fun of it all. If you can, please share what you do.
Hi Dave, Saw a Mirror dinghy today at the sailing club - had a neat spinnaker fitting. Curved wooden semicircle batten fixed to the port inner gunwhale just aft of the curved fillets on the bow. Also had a sock fitted to this hoop and inner gunwhale. I guess it’s available commercially for your interest,
Hi Colin. Aha yes, that the spinnaker "Snuffer" for the Mirror and Black Pig actually came with one all rigged up and Spinnaker ready to go (See the 2nd ever video on this channel). I took it off though as the boat was full of lines and sheets whilst I was trying to learn. I just have to work out how to put it all back from some photos I took when I removed it!!
When thinking about reducing sail area remember that reefing reduces the fullness of the sail as well as its area. So the reduction in power will be greater than you might expect for a given area reduction as the sail will be flatter as well as smaller.
Here's a couple of thoughts: 1.) You have what is basically a 3/4 sloop rig, which means, in most ordinary conditions, the jib can be dispensed with, once there is too much Sail. A simple down-haul system can bring it down remotely. This will mean two less lines to deal with,although the helm may get a bit hard. When it does, it is time to reef the main. 2.) Probably the best way to do this is to pull it down all the way down, then tie in the reefs, as the boat slowly drifts down wind, with the rudder hard over. You could add a parallel, where the but end of the gaff meets the mast. This will hold it to the mast no matter how high it is raised. Then, the only job of the halyard is to keep it at the correct height. This parallel could be nothing but a loose rope loop, or it could have beads to help it slide down the mast. It could be a lassoo with its tail near the base of the mast. So when the yard is lowered, the lassoo can be tightened. 3.) I suggest only one reef point for the main, which removes 40 to 60% of its area. This is so the reefing method can be made easier to execute and quicker. This can be comprised of two lines, which meet mid boom. The forward one takes care of the tack. And the aft one takes care of the clew. Just drop the main, tighten these two lines, cleet then off, then re-raise the main, and you're done. This will give you 5 possible sail combinations: a,) full main and jib, b.)full main without jib, c.)reefed main with jib, d.) reefed main only, and e.) jib only. This is a lot for a 12 ft dinghy.
Hi Bob Some nice advice there, I never thought about that. The idea of the "Parallel" is a good one. In fact I have seen Parallels used on other "Gaff" rigged boats like Drascombe Luggers (Wonder how I know about that!!! - Watch this space), and I am sure I have seen someone reef their sail using the parallel method as they didn't seem to reset the gaff to a new point, so I wonder if thats what they were doing. So it would be interesting to see what you think as I go through the process. The next 2 videos are due very soon and I take a novel approach in the end!!!
Interesting to see your thought process. Perhaps start with a single reef to trial you reefing method before adding a second. The gunter rig does seem to add an extra level of complexity, but many others have done it and I'm sure you'll succeed too. Al
Yes, the deeper I get into reefing on the Mirror, the more complex it gets, but's that the fun!! I think I will probably try reefing the jib first, although not even sure you would need to reef the Jib. I spoke to someone else who has and he says it definitely made a difference to stability in high winds and allowed a bit more in the main sail so maybe thats where we start!! My sewing machine is also a bit cheap so if i'm going to mess something up, its probably best being the cheaper jib!!! - Maybe I have bitten off a little more than I can chew on this one!!!
@@SailingWithDave I'm not sure how true this is, but believe that have a jib helps considerably in going to windward. How you achieve reducing the sail area of the jib seems fraught with challenges. I have bought a roller furling system, still waiting to be fitted and tried as my genoa has a wire luff and turns into something of a monster if you lower it. Having a foredeck makes reaching the tack to change sails a hazardous activity in the conditions you need to perform such changes. My own progress towards getting on the water is still painfully slow, but I have hopes of getting to Windemere in October for a DCA rally.
@@knucker4931 Hi Knucker. Yes my thoughts exactly. I'm going to be honest here. I don't really know how people manage to reef their dinghy sails whilst in the sea bobbing about, without something happening!! Maybe its becuase i'm a little big for the Mirror, I don't know, but like you, there's no way I can get to the bow of the dinghy when on the water. So, reefing the jib mid-sail does seem pretty impossible. In any event it will still allow me to reef onshore before I sail which will be worth a test.
Agreed, although I have no topping lift or lazy jacks on the Mirror! I think the best way forward is to use the boom with a kind of scissors style stand on the Stern and then throw the tent around that.
Never heard someone so complicated about somthing that excist Already at least in holland. Do not make small things big problems. Theo Dinghy sailor from Holland
Hi Theo. Thankyou for the comment. My channel is all about coming along for the journey as I learn. There are already many places where you can just be taught by experts. My channel is a journey together. This sometimes means seeing the mistakes I make and sharing my thoughts and logic on what I am doing and I appreciate it's not for everyone. I also do this openly so people will comment and hopefully add ideas or their experience to the comments, thus helping novices like me even more. Hope that helps a bit. Can you share the system you mention in Holland? I am intrigued by this?
Always wondered the best way to reef a mirror ⛵️👍
Maybe not the best way but certainly my way!! I tihnk the idea is to at least see someone muddle through the process and to gain insight that way.
Hi Dave.
I'm watching this with great interest, as I too want to make my mirror better for cruising, and have been thinking about how I could come up with some sort of reefing system. It's very good to see your thoughts and ideas, and to be able to compare them with my own. Looking forward to part two.
Respect to you Dave
Well I hope I can help. I usually bodge my way through things but as long as people see the mistakes and the successes I think we'll learn together.
Hi Dave, I am very happy to see this video as I'm currently trying to fit a reefing system to my gunter rigged mirror. I'm fairly new to sailing a mirror as I sailed a topper for 6 years beforehand. I enjoyed sailing my topper but I have no interest in racing so I always wanted to get a more suitable dinghy for cruising. I have been a big fan of David Sumner's Mirror Cruising channel where he uses two halyards to lower the gaff down whilst keeping it close to the masthead for reefing. I am contemplating fitting two reefs and using a halyard fitted to the head of the sail and lowering the sail itself down the gaff. I found a block that has a fairlead built into it that could be fitted to the top of the gaff to prevent the halyard slipping off the block. I am going to try fitting a strap round the gaff and head eyelet of the sail to keep the sail from coming out of its track on the gaff and hopefully reduce the pressure on the gaff. My topper dinghy had a clew strap to keep the clew of the sail close to the mast when reefing so I'm going to try the same idea for the head of my mirror sail when reefing. I found this video of someone using a similar system for a gunter rigged gull dinghy and they don't seem to have any issues with the strength of the gaff so i'm hoping it will be ok: th-cam.com/video/cV4BPB2EEm0/w-d-xo.html. I spoke to some of the people on the mirror dinghy facebook group and they have done similar methods without issues but I'm no expert so it will be trial and error with my plans too. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with and I will let you know if what I have planned works if you're interested. Thanks, take care.
Hi Nathan. Thats very interesting and would love to see the outcome. Actually (Apoiler alert) I did the same system with a Bermuda style halyward that I can lower the mainsail using. One issue was with bigger reefs, the sail can come out of the Gaff as the gaff only lowers so far. I do have a few issues with the system, but seem to overcome them...Watch this space!!!
I've actually spoken to David Sumner a few times. He's still quite active on the Dinghy Crusing Association and he's been really helpful on a few things including the reefing and other things like cleats!! I've watched all his videos and find them really interesting. I don't do Facebook so can't get onto the Mirror group there which is a shame.
Trial and error is the way to go for me. I think having a go, showing your process and outcomes and sharing ideas is 80% of the fun of it all. If you can, please share what you do.
Hi Dave,
Saw a Mirror dinghy today at the sailing club - had a neat spinnaker fitting. Curved wooden semicircle batten fixed to the port inner gunwhale just aft of the curved fillets on the bow. Also had a sock fitted to this hoop and inner gunwhale. I guess it’s available commercially for your interest,
Hi Colin. Aha yes, that the spinnaker "Snuffer" for the Mirror and Black Pig actually came with one all rigged up and Spinnaker ready to go (See the 2nd ever video on this channel). I took it off though as the boat was full of lines and sheets whilst I was trying to learn. I just have to work out how to put it all back from some photos I took when I removed it!!
Looking forward to your solution(s)!
I'm just installing a topping/lazy jacks today
When thinking about reducing sail area remember that reefing reduces the fullness of the sail as well as its area. So the reduction in power will be greater than you might expect for a given area reduction as the sail will be flatter as well as smaller.
Cheers for the advice Allen.
Here's a couple of thoughts:
1.) You have what is basically a 3/4 sloop rig, which means, in most ordinary conditions, the jib can be dispensed with, once there is too much Sail. A simple down-haul system can bring it down remotely. This will mean two less lines to deal with,although the helm may get a bit hard. When it does, it is time to reef the main.
2.) Probably the best way to do this is to pull it down all the way down, then tie in the reefs, as the boat slowly drifts down wind, with the rudder hard over.
You could add a parallel, where the but end of the gaff meets the mast. This will hold it to the mast no matter how high it is raised. Then, the only job of the halyard is to keep it at the correct height. This parallel could be nothing but a loose rope loop, or it could have beads to help it slide down the mast. It could be a lassoo with its tail near the base of the mast. So when the yard is lowered, the lassoo can be tightened.
3.) I suggest only one reef point for the main, which removes 40 to 60% of its area. This is so the reefing method can be made easier to execute and quicker.
This can be comprised of two lines, which meet mid boom. The forward one takes care of the tack. And the aft one takes care of the clew.
Just drop the main, tighten these two lines, cleet then off, then re-raise the main, and you're done.
This will give you 5 possible sail combinations:
a,) full main and jib,
b.)full main without jib,
c.)reefed main with jib,
d.) reefed main only, and
e.) jib only.
This is a lot for a 12 ft dinghy.
Hi Bob
Some nice advice there, I never thought about that. The idea of the "Parallel" is a good one. In fact I have seen Parallels used on other "Gaff" rigged boats like Drascombe Luggers (Wonder how I know about that!!! - Watch this space), and I am sure I have seen someone reef their sail using the parallel method as they didn't seem to reset the gaff to a new point, so I wonder if thats what they were doing.
So it would be interesting to see what you think as I go through the process. The next 2 videos are due very soon and I take a novel approach in the end!!!
@@SailingWithDave
I'm looking forward to them.
Carnt wait Dave ,interesting
Interesting to see your thought process. Perhaps start with a single reef to trial you reefing method before adding a second. The gunter rig does seem to add an extra level of complexity, but many others have done it and I'm sure you'll succeed too.
Al
Yes, the deeper I get into reefing on the Mirror, the more complex it gets, but's that the fun!! I think I will probably try reefing the jib first, although not even sure you would need to reef the Jib. I spoke to someone else who has and he says it definitely made a difference to stability in high winds and allowed a bit more in the main sail so maybe thats where we start!! My sewing machine is also a bit cheap so if i'm going to mess something up, its probably best being the cheaper jib!!! - Maybe I have bitten off a little more than I can chew on this one!!!
@@SailingWithDave I'm not sure how true this is, but believe that have a jib helps considerably in going to windward. How you achieve reducing the sail area of the jib seems fraught with challenges.
I have bought a roller furling system, still waiting to be fitted and tried as my genoa has a wire luff and turns into something of a monster if you lower it. Having a foredeck makes reaching the tack to change sails a hazardous activity in the conditions you need to perform such changes.
My own progress towards getting on the water is still painfully slow, but I have hopes of getting to Windemere in October for a DCA rally.
@@knucker4931 Hi Knucker. Yes my thoughts exactly. I'm going to be honest here. I don't really know how people manage to reef their dinghy sails whilst in the sea bobbing about, without something happening!! Maybe its becuase i'm a little big for the Mirror, I don't know, but like you, there's no way I can get to the bow of the dinghy when on the water. So, reefing the jib mid-sail does seem pretty impossible. In any event it will still allow me to reef onshore before I sail which will be worth a test.
You need to unhook the topping lift / lazy jacks to put up a tent. Of course you need to prop up the boom.
Agreed, although I have no topping lift or lazy jacks on the Mirror! I think the best way forward is to use the boom with a kind of scissors style stand on the Stern and then throw the tent around that.
Never heard someone so complicated about somthing that excist
Already at least in holland.
Do not make small things big problems.
Theo
Dinghy sailor from Holland
Hi Theo. Thankyou for the comment. My channel is all about coming along for the journey as I learn. There are already many places where you can just be taught by experts. My channel is a journey together. This sometimes means seeing the mistakes I make and sharing my thoughts and logic on what I am doing and I appreciate it's not for everyone.
I also do this openly so people will comment and hopefully add ideas or their experience to the comments, thus helping novices like me even more. Hope that helps a bit.
Can you share the system you mention in Holland? I am intrigued by this?