IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REEFING AND FURLING SAILS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Day, senior, and Thomas Day, junior, both
of Hartlepool, in the County of Durham, Sail Makers, for the Invention
AND AIRLING SATES"
Sealed the 27th December 1864, and dated the 1st July 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFIC
and Thomas Day, junior, at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 1st July 1864.
We, THOMAS DAY, senior, and THOMAS DAY, junior, both of Hartlepool,
in the County of Durham, Sail Makers, do hereby declare the nature of the
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REEFING AND FURLING SAILS,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improved arrangements of apparatus for reefing
and furling sails where a roller is employed connected to the yard arm, on to
which the sail can be wound to reef or furl the same to any extent when
desired by means of "halyards" worked from the deck of the vessel; and our
improvements consist in so arranging the roller in connection with the yard
arms that it will only project to a slight extent forward, and the ironwork on
the yard arms may be of much less weight than heretofore where reefing and
furling apparatus of this character is employed, thus allowing a stouter roller
being used which requires no additional support in the middle or quarter of
the yard. The sail is wound on to the roller by means of the "reefing
halyards" which are led through two hanging blocks or clamps one on each
side of the mast opposite the ordinary hoisting sheave, and by having a per-
pendicular "lead" prevents any extra strain being put on the masthead or

page_text: any chafe aloft, and permits the yard to swing freely. The reefing "halyards"
are led through the above-mentioned blocks or clamps, thence through two
small blocks in midships of the yard, and passing along the top of the yard
through an ordinary sheave to and around the roller. The top-gallant sheets
pass through a small metal clamp on the after side of the yard, one pin
answering for the sheets "reefing halyards," and an eye in the end of the pin
for the braces. On the end of the roller there is a metal conductor for the
reefing halyards." It is not necessary to take off either rolling cleets or the
iron jackstays, or to make any alteration in the "parrail." The down haul
may be rope with a single whip with the standing part made fast in the top.
When reefing, the yard can be lowered down by the "reefing halyards"
entirely, by which means the sail will be kept tight and firm even when
close hauled by the wind; when the sheets are let go, the whole of the sail can
be instantly furled,
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Thomas Day, senior, and Thomas Day, junior, in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 31st December 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, THOMAS
DAY, senior, and THOMAS DAY, junior, both of Hartlepool, in the County of
Durham, Sail Makers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Thomas Day and Thomas Day, Her special licence that we, the said
Thomas Day and Thomas Day, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said Thomas Day and Thomas Day, our 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 REEFING AND FURLING
SAILS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Thomas Day
and Thomas Day, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of
one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of

page_text: 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 we, the said Thomas Day and Thomas Day, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
$6
This Invention relates to improved arrangements of apparatus for reefing
and furling sails where a roller is employed connected to the yard arm, on to
which the sail can be wound to reef or furl the same to any extent when
desired by means of "halyards" worked from the deck of the vessel; and our
improvements consist in so arranging the roller in connection with the yard
arms that it will only project to a slight extent forward, and the ironwork on
the yard arms may be of much less weight than heretofore where reefing and
furling apparatus of this character is employed, thus allowing a stouter roller
being used which requires no additional support in the middle or quarter of
the yard. The sail is wound on to the roller by means of the reefing
halyards" which are led through two hanging blocks or clamps one on each
side of the mast opposite the ordinary hoisting sheave, and by having a per-
pendicular "lead "prevents any extra strain being put on the masthead or
any chafe aloft, and permits the yard to swing freely. The reefing "halyards"
are led through the above-mentioned blocks or clamps, thence through two
small blocks in midships of the yard, and passing along the top of the yard
through an ordinary sheave or through a clamp on the fore side of the yard to
and around the roller. The top-gallant sheets pass through a small metal
block on the after side of the yard or through the usual sheave hole of the
yard, one pin answering for the sheets "reefing halyards," and an eye in the
end of the pin for the braces. On the end of the roller there is a metal con-
ductor for the "reefing halyards." It is not necessary to take off either
rolling cleets or the iron jackstays, or to make any alteration in the "parrail."
The down haul may be rope with a single whip with the standing part made
fast in the top. When reefing, the yard can be lowered down by the "reefing
halyards" entirely, by which means the sail will be kept tight and firm even
when close hauled by the wind; when the sheets are let go, the whole of the
sail can be instantly furled.
And in order that our Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into practice, we will proceed to describe the Drawing hereunto

page_text: Our improvements will be readily understood by describing its adaptation
to one of the sails of a ship or vessel, a top sail, for instance. Figure 1 shews
a top sail close reefed; Figure 2, view of a top-sail set in full.
It will be seen, by referring to the Drawing, that we adopt the usual top-
sail yard marked y, on the top of which we fix two iron blocks c, each one
five inches or thereabouts from the centre or middle of the yard, and at each
"hound" or arm of the yard we fix one or two iron clamps, one on the top or
fore cant to be used for the reefing chains, and the other on the after side as a
spare clamp which may be used for the top-gallant sheets or otherwise.
Underneath the fore cant of the said yard we fix a wood or iron bar e, which
we term a roller; if wood, the diameter may be increased by nailing wood
battens on to it, or by casing the iron roller with wood. The roller is sus-
pended at each "hound" or arm of the yard by a projecting iron g, which is
firmly fastened round the yard near the "hounds" with a screw pin. On the
top side of the projecting iron g is one or two eye bolts for the lifts and
braces. The roller e may be of such diameter as to be used with or without
crutch or crutches h; we prefer the former, one on each quarter, or one in the
middle of the yard, the fore part of the crutches openly grasping and sup-
porting the roller, each crutch carrying small wood rollers which prevents the
sail from chafing against the iron. We also fix two blocks or clamps 6 one
on each side of the topmast opposite the original tie or sheave hole or on each
side of the cross or trussel trees. Under the middle of the top-sail yard we fix
a plate with an eye bolt in the centre, to which a block is fixed and used as
a down haul, which together with the reefing halyards, if properly attended
when reefing the sail, will be kept tight, and will doubtless wind fair on the
roller.
The rotation is produced as follows:-The reefing chain consists of two
pieces of different lengths; the longer piece is rove into the upper end of the
shorter (as seen in Figure 3), into the lower end of which the reefing
halyards block is fixed. The two ends of the longer chain are rove from aft
one end through each clamp or block 6, thence down to the blocks c, and
along the top of the yard through the fore clamps d near the "hounds," and
to the roller, where each end is made fast with a staple. When setting the
sail, the reefing halyards should be lifted with a small tripping line until the
sail is sheeted home, then made fast, and the yard is hoisted by the original
tie or halyards to the full extent, or as far as may be required, and then
tightened by the reefing halyards; when "reefing," the original tie or

page_text: halyards are overhauled and the down haul pulled on; thus the action of
"setting" and "reefing" is produced by simply hoisting or lowering the yard.
When the yard is lowered down to the cap and the sail to be furled, the down
haul is made fast, the sheets let go, and the sail is speedily rolled by pulling
on the reefing halyards.
of the yard through the clamps a on
The sail is marked f; the standard or
the crutches or supporters h on the
Figure 1 shews a top-sail close reefed. a are the reefing chains which are
rove from aft through the clamps or blocks b on the sides of the topmast
opposite the sheave hole or under the cross or trussel trees, thence down to
the midship blocks c, and along the top
the hounds of the yard to the roller e.
projecting irons on the yard arms g;
quarters of the yard; the yards are marked y. Figure 2 shews a top-sail set in
full; Figure 3, the after view of a mast shewing the reefing chains a, as
before described, with the reefing halyards block attached; Figure 4, the top
or surface of half of a fore yard near the "hounds," of which we place one or
two clamps c, same as on the top-sail yard. Figure 5 is a side view of the
crutch or supporter h, shewing the position of the roller c as connected with
the yard. Figure 6 represents the middle part of a yard and the fittings of
the midship blocks c with plate 7 under the yard with eye bolt and down haul
block m; the blocks c are fixed with a bolt through the yard, and plate
secured with screw nuts. Figure 7, side view of the standard or projecting
iron g with eye bolt for the lift; the eye bolt b is for the braces.
Having thus described the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we do
not confine ourselves to the exact details herein described so long as the
peculiar character of our improvements be retained; but what we claim is, the
reefing and furling of sails in the manner and by means of the arrange-
ments shewn and previously described, by reference to the accompanying
Drawing.
In witness whereof, we, the said Thomas Day and Thomas Day have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-sixth day of December,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.