IжMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REEFING AND FURLING FORE AND APT SAILS, IN FITTINGS FOR THE SAME, AND IMPROVED FITTINGS FOR THE GAFF
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Allix, of Saint Helier's, Jersey, Shipwright,
for the Invention of "IжMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REEFING AND
FURLING FORE AND APT SAILS, IN FITTINGS FOR THE SAME, AND IMPROVED
FITTINGS FOR THE GAFF."
Sealed the 11th December 1866, and dated the 12th June 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Allix at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
12th June 1866.
I, GEORGE ALLIX, of Saint Helier's, Jersey, Shipwright, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REEFING
AND FURLING FORE AND AFT SAILS, IN FITTINGS FOR THE SAME, AND IMPROVED
FITTINGS FOR THE GAFF," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates, first, to apparatus for causing the boom to be rotated
for the purpose of reefing and furling or unreefing and setting fore and aft
sails; secondly, to an arrangement for enabling the main tack to be triced;
thirdly, to an arrangement of hoops and thimbles on the mast to bring the
luff of the sail to the mast; and, fourthly, to improved fittings for the gaff to
enable the peak to be lowered or hoisted without lowering or hoisting the

page_text: throat, or the throat to be lowered or boisted without slacking or hauling the
peak haulyards, as well as to allow the peak and the throat to be raised or
lowered together if required.
For causing the boom to be rotated I employ one of the ordinary topping
lifts as a parbuckle. The boom is free to turn upon a pivot at each end, the
pivot at the fore end being formed in ordinary metal jaws which embrace the
mast; at the after end of the boom I apply fittings arranged as follows:-These
fittings consist of a forked stay with a hole in the centre to receive a pin on the
after end of the boom, and free to revolve with the boom. This forked stay
is connected by lugs or otherwise to a band or hoop loose on the boom, which
band carries at its lower part a traveller for the main sheet. To the forked
stay, and either to the outside or inside of the forks, and either fore or aft of
the hoop, joint a fork and upper stay fitted with a sheave near its lower end,
and with a thimble, eye, or sheave at the upper end to lead the parbuckle to
the boom end; this parbuckle is, as before stated, one of the ordinary topping
lifts, being rove in the usual manner through a block at the mast head, and
carried down through the thimble and over the sheave on the jointed upper
stay and secured to the boom end, several turns round the boom end being
previously taken. The other topping lift is secured to an eye on the jointed
upper stay. To the tack of the sail I attach the bight of a rope, one end of
which I carry through a hole in the boom near the jaws and secure it to the
boom, and the other end I lead through a block attached to the boom
inside the traveller before mentioned. To bring the sail to the mast I form
each of the ordinary mast hoops with an eye or thimble, through which I lead
a separate rope attached to the luff of the sail opposite the eye or thimble.
These ropes are secured above to the lower band of the jaws of the gaff. The
mast hoops are kept in place when the sail is set by a rope secured to the
upper band of these jaws and fastened in turn to each of the hoops, the lower
end being secured to the mast or deck as required. When the sail is set
there are several turns of the parbuckle or topping lift around the boom
end, so that when this lift is pulled to reef or furl the sail the boom by giving
off the turns of the lift is caused to revolve, and thereby roll up the sail, the
peak and throat baulyards being slacked at the same time. To set the sail
it is merely necessary to slack off this lift or parbuckle, and to hoist the sail
by hauling on the peak and throat haulyards; the foot of the sail is laced to
the boom.
My improved fittings for the gaff consist of two bands forming the jaws,
which embrace the mast and are connected to each other on the after side of
the mast by a vertical bar formed with an eye to receive a pin which is passed

page_text: through a shackle carrying the lower block of the throat haulyards and through
two plates forming a fork on the fore end of the gaff; the gaff is thus free to
turn up or down upon this pin when the peak is raised or lowered, and the
peak can be hoisted or lowered without the throat, or the throat can be
lowered or hoisted without slacking or hauling the peak baulyards, or the
peak and throat can be lowered or hoisted together; the bands forming the
jaws may each be formed in halves bolted together.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Allix in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
12th December 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
ALLIX, of Saint Helier's, Jersey, Shipwright, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said George Allix, Her special licence that I, the said George Allix, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George
Allix, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR REEPING AND FURLING FORE AND AFT SAILS, IN FITTINGS FOR THE
SAME, AND IMPROVED FITTINGS FOR THE GAFF," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said George Allix, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to
be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Allix, do hereby declare th6
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say :-
My Invention relates, first, to a combination of parts of apparatus for

page_text: causing the boom to be rotated for the purpose of reefing and furling or un-
reefing and settling fore and aft sails; secondly, to an arrangement for enabling
the main tack to be triced up; thirdly, to an arrangement of hoops and
thimbles on the mast to bring the luff of the sail to the mast; and, fourthly,
to improved fittings for the gaff to enable the peak to be lowered or hoisted
without lowering or hoisting the throat, or the throat to be lowered or hoisted
without slacking or hauling the peak haulyards, as well as to allow the peak
and the throat to be raised or lowered together if required.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a view of a fore and aft sail
with its mast, boom and gaff, and illustrating the several parts of my
Invention.
A is the mast; B, the boom; C, the gaff, and D, the sail. For causing the
boom B to be rotated one of the ordinary topping lifts a is employed as a par-
buckle. The boom B is free to turn upon a pivot at each end; the pivot bat
the fore end being formed in ordinary metal jaws c, which embrace the mast;
at the after end of the boom I apply fittings arranged as follows:-These
fittings consist of a forked stay d with a hole in the centre to receive a piu on
the after end of the boom B, and free to revolve with the boom. This forked
stay dis connected by lugs e or otherwise to a band or hoof f loose on the
boom, which band carries at its lower part a traveller 9 for the main sheet h.
To the forked stay d, and either to the outside or inside of the forks, and
either fore or aft of the hoop, I joint a fork and upper stay i fitted with a
sheavej near its lower end, and with a thimble, eye, or sheave k at the upper
end to lead the parbuckle a to the boom end; this parbuckle is, as before
stated, one of the ordinary topping lifts, being rove in the usual manner
through a block at the mast head, and carried down through the thimble k
and over the sheavej on the jointed upper stay and secured to the boom end,
several turns round the boom end being previously taken. The other topping
lift is secured to an eye on the jointed upper stay. To the tack m of the sail
I attach the bight of a rope n, one end of which I carry through a hole in the
boom at o, or through a thimble or block on the boom, and secure it to the
boom, and the other end I lead through a block p attached to the boom
inside the traveller g. To bring the sail to the mast I form each of the
ordinary mast hoops q with an eye or thimble r (a roller may be fitted in the
eye or thimble), through which I lead a separate rope s, 8, attached to the luff a
of the sail opposite the eye or thimble. These ropes 5, 8, are secured above
to the lower band t' of the jaws of the gaff, or to other convenient part. The
mast hoops 7 are kept in place when the sail is set by a rope 1 secured to
the upper band t of these jaws, and fastened in turn to each of the hoops 7,

page_text: the lower end being secured to the mast or deck as required. When the sail
is set there are several turns of the parbuckle or topping lift a around the
boom end, as shown, so that when this lift is pulled to reef or furl the sail
the boom by giving off the turns of the lift is caused to revolve, and thereby
roll up the sail, the peak haulyards v and throat haulyards w being slacked
at the same time. To set the sail it is merely necessary to slack off this lift
or parbuckle a, and to hoist the sail by bauling on the peak and throat
haulyards; the foot of the sail is laced to the boom B.
My improved fittings for the gaff are seen in Figure 1, but will be more
clearly understood on reference to Figure 2, which is a vertical section on a
larger scale through the line 1, 2, of Figure 1; they consist of two bands t¹, t',
forming the jaws which embrace the mast A, and are connected to each other
on the after side of the mast by a vertical bar a formed with an eye to receive
a pin y, which is passed through a shackle carrying the lower block a¹ of
the throat haulyards w, and through two plates & forming a fork on the fore
end of the gaff; the gaff is thus free to turn up or down upon this pin y when
the peak is raised or lowered, and the peak can be hoisted or lowered without
the throat, or the throat can be lowered or hoisted without slacking or hauling
the peak haulyards, or the peak and throat can be lowered or hoisted together.
The bands t', ', forming the jaws may cach be formed in halves bolted together.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
First, the combination of parts of apparatus, substantially as herein-before
described and represented in Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings, for
causing booms to be rotated for the purpose of reefing and furling or unreefing
and setting fore and aft sails.
Secondly, the arrangement, substantially as herein-before described and
represented in Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings, for enabling the main
tack of fore and aft sails to be triced up, such arrangement consisting of a
rope, the bight of which is attached to the tack of the sail and the ends of
which are led substantially in the manner described.
Third, the employment upon the mast hoops of eyes or thimbles, through
which ropes are led and are attached to the luff of the sail, the opposite end
being attached to the jaws, substantially as herein-before described and
represented in Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth, the improved fittings for the gaff herein-before described, that is to
say, the two plates or fork on the fore end of the gaff attached to the vertical
bar connecting the two bands of the jaws by a pin which passes through an
eye of the vertical bar, through the two plates or fork, and through a shackle

page_text: carrying the lower block of the throat haulyards, all substantially as berein-
before described and represented in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, tho said George Allix, have hereunto set my
band and seal, the Eighth day of December, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-six.
GEORGE ALLIX. (L.S.)