IMPROVEMENTS IN REEFING, FURLING, AND SETTING THE SAILS OF SHIPS AND VESSELS, ALSO FOR PROTECTING SUCH SAILS FROM PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION ABUSES CAUSED BY ROPES AND RIGGING
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Dyer, of the City of Bristol, Shipowner,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN REEFING, FURLING, AND SETTING
THE SAILS OF SHIPS AND VESSELS, ALSO FOR PROTECTING SUCH SAILS FROM
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Dyer at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
7th June 1856.
I, SAMUEL DYER, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN REEFING, FURLING, AND SETTING THE SAILS OF SHIPS AND
VESSELS, ALSO FOR PROTECTING SUCH SAILS FROM WET, AND OTHER ABUSES CAUSED
BY ROPES AND RIGGING," to be as follows:-
T
:
This Invention consists in the adoption of a hollow or tubular yard, with an
opening to allow the sail to pass into the bollow thereof, such yard being
provided with a roller running through the same from end to end, upon which
roller the sail is wound by the aid of pulleys or wheels belonging to the said
roller, and the tackling in connection therewith (which may communicate with
and be worked on deck), and from which roller the same may be unwound by
the same agency. By this means the whole of the sail may be enclosed in the
hollow yard, and preserved from injury from wet, &c.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Samuel Dyer in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th December 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SAMUEL
DYER, of the City of Bristol, Shipowner, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by IIer Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, IIer heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Samuel Dyer, Her special licence that I, the said Samuel Dyer,
my exccutors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Samuel
Dyer, 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
REEFING, FURLING, AND SETTING THE SAILS OF SHIPS AND VESSELS, ALSO FOR
PROTECTING SUCH SAILS FROM WET, AND OTHER ABUSES CAUSED BY ROPES AND
RIGGING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Samuel Dyer,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascer-
tain 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 Samuel Dyer, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
The nature of the said Invention, as hath been before described in tho
Provisional Specification left and recorded on application for the said Letters
Patent, consists in effecting the reefing, furling, and setting the sails of ships
and vessels from the deck of the ship or vessel, or in other convenient position,
and also in protecting sails as aforesaid, by adopting and using for such
purposes a hollow or tubular yard, with an opening to allow the sail to pass
into and out of the same, such yard being provided with a roller, which may
be termed a rolling jackstay, being similar to the rolling jackstay described in
the Specification of the Letters Patent granted to me on the 30th day of April

page_text: 1856, No. 1023, the said roller extending from one end to the other of the.
interior of the hollow yard, upon which roller the sail is wound (when reefed,
or furled) by the aid of suitable pulleys or wheels appertaining to the said
roller and the tackling in connection therewith (which may communicate with
and be worked on the deck), and from which roller the sail may be unwound.
(for setting, &c.) by the same agency. By this means the whole of the sail
may be snugly encased within the hollow yard, and preserved from injury from.
wet, the chafing of ropes or rigging, and so forth.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, I now proceed to
describe in what manner the same is to be performed, wherein I shall refer to
the Drawings accompanying this Specification by the words, figures, and letters
following, that is to say:-
In the said Drawings, Fig. 1 denotes a front view; Fig. 2, plan; Fig. 3,
transverse section at A, B, Fig. 2; Fig. 4, transverse section at C, D, Fig. 2;
Fig. 5, end view. The Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are on an enlarged scale.
Although it will be obvious from the foregoing that this Invention is not
restricted to any particular yards of ships and vessels, yet, for convenience of
explanation, I now exhibit and describe its application to a topsail yard,
remarking, that for fixed or lower yards the same action as that which is
described for furling the topsail can be adopted and used for reefing and furling
the lower sails of the ship or vessel attached to such yards, and usually termed
the "courses.'
S.".
The yard exhibited by the Drawing at A has at each end a collar, with
several eyes or rings B, B1, B2, B3, B', affixed thereto. At each end of this
hollow or tubular yard (the section of which (see Fig. 3) exhibits of a circle,
or thereabouts, the remaining one-eighth being the month or opening for the
entry and exit of the sail), I have two annuli II, II, which are secured inside
the said yard by screws, which have projecting heads marked C, C, C, C,
which screws on being removed will allow, when required, the said annuli II, H,
to be removed, as also the collar with the eyes or rings (B, B', &c), (which
collar is secured between the said projecting screw heads,) when the rolling
jackstay may be detached from the yard. Next to this collar, and nearer tho
end of the yard, are sheeves (D), two being preferred, these sheeves being
secured to the top of the yard by bearing picces provided for their axes, as
shewn. Within this hollow or tubular yard is the roller or rolling jackstay E,
above referred to, which passes through the whole length of the yard, and
out through the annuli H, II, at each end of the yard; at each end of which
roller or rolling jackstay, just outside each end of the yard, is keyed or securel
a studded sheeve F. This roller or rolling jackstay and the studded sheeve F

page_text: are the same, as regards construction and office, as the roller or rolling jack-
stay and studded sheeve described in the Specification of my former Letters
Patent, of 30th April 1856, No. 1023 aforesaid, and such studded sheeve is
in the same pesition, as regards the rolling jackstay, as in my said former
patented Invention.
Withinside this yard are friction rollers, arranged as shewn at Fig. 3.
To secure this yard to the mast, on the upper part of the sling of the yard I
fix a tie block, through which the tie chain or haulyards is or are rove, and
on each side of such block I fix a block (G), nearly the same size as the tio
block, through which my reefing and furling ropes and chains are rove over a
plain sheeve in the said block for the purpose of rotation; these two chains
also reeve through two cleats, having plain sheeves at the mast head, one on
each side of the tie sheeve.
The studded sheeve, fixed to the roller or rolling jackstay, causes the same
to rotate when acted on, it being free to turn in its bearings in the ends of
the hollow or tubular yard. I produce rotation in manner similar to that
described in the Specification of my Patent, of 80th April 1856, No. 1023,
aforesaid, that is, by merely hoisting or lowering the yard, and the weight of
the yard is a means, in proportion to its weight, of aiding in more speedily
reefing the sail. The rotation is produced as follows:-The yard is secured to
the mast, as in ordinarily appointed ships and vessels, (by means of a bucket
parrel, and truss,) but at the mast head I have sheeves as aforesaid, three being
preferred, all made to reeve fore-and-aft. In each of the sheeve holes a distinct
piece of chain is rove, from whence each and every of the said chains descends
to the yard. The middle chain is used as a tio chain, and the other two I
term the reefing and furling chains. The tie chain or haulyards is or are rove
from aft forwards, down through the tie block on the yard, and the end, which
I term the standing part, is fixed by a shackle and bolt to the middle of the
forecrosstree at the topmast head; or, if prefered, the standing part may, as
shewn by the Drawing, be made fast to an eye (I) in the sling of the yard,
thus doing away with the need for a tie block on the yard. The said reefing
and furling chains are rove from aft forward, brought down to the two blocks,
one on each side of the tie block, rove one in each of them, and taken out
along the top surface of the yard through the fairlead eyes B, B, thereon,
and through the fairlead eye K on the yard to the foremost (that is, that
which is farthest from the mast,) of the two recfing and furling sheeves, at the
hounds or end of the yard; it is then passed down over such sheeve, and thence
to the studded sheeve at the end of the roller or rolling jackstay, the "bight"
of which chain is allowed to embed itself in such studded sheeve secured to

page_text: the end of the said roller, whence this chain is passed up over the after sheeve
(that is, the one nearest the mast), then it is passed again along the surface of
the yard, and down through a fiddle block, fixed between the arms of the truss
of the parrel of the yard on each side of the tie block. As there are of
necessity two reefing chains, these two chains are also the furling chains.
Both ends of both these chains being made fast to the deck or other convenient
position, having blocks and falls attached, the sail being sheeted "home," I
hoist on my haulyards, and then the rotation is produced by the action of the
two chains acting simultaneously on the two studded sheeves fixed to the roller
or rolling jackstay, and without further trouble the sail ascends and unfurls
itself to its fullest or any lesser portion of its extent, and when the haulyards
are let go the sail descends and reefs itself in part, or to a close reef, according
as the action may be shortened or prolonged. To furl the sail, it is only
necessary to let go the fore ends of the reefing chains and sheets and haul on
the after ends, and whether the sails are to be reefed or furled there will be
little difference in the operation; as by this method reefing is partially rolling
up the sail, and furling completely rolling it upon the roller or rolling jack-
stay and within the hollow or tubular yard, aforesaid. The same process. of
reefing and furling applies to all the square sails of a ship or vessel; and in the
case of fixed yards, such as lower yards, the process is completely performed to
its fullest extent by pulling in one or other of the reefing chains, they being
arranged in the same manner as on the topsailyard, but substituting for cleats
at the mast head blocks hung to the trusseltrees of the lower mast head
immediately over the lower yard.
It will be seen that my Invention enables me to use the ordinary square
sails unbroken by any slit or opening in their surfaces, though I dispense with
the use of clewlines, reef tackles, reef points, reef cringles, recf earrings,
buntlines, gaskuts, and all blocks at present in ordinary use for the purpose of
reefing or furling sails, by which a great saving is effected, and in conjunction
with the protection afforded by rolling the sail within the hollow or tubular
yard, chafes on the sail more effectually prevented, whereby also the sail will
be kept dry, (provided it be dry when furled. My topgallant and other sheets
are rove through cleats fixed on the aft side of the yard, and my topgallant
and topmast studding sail booms are placed on the yard, as in common use.
For the leaches of my sails, I propose to use flat ropes, such as are now in
use for coal-pit purposes; but this is not essential, and the ordinary square
sails may be bent to my roller or rolling jackstay, only requiring to be deprived
of all the blocks, ropes, reef points, gaskuts, &c., herein-before mentioned, as
dispensed with. An iron jackstay rod can be fixed to the rolling jackstay, in

page_text: the same manner as now in use on ordinary yards, to which the sail is bent by
means of carrings and head stops, as is the custom in bending the old-fashioned
sails; but this extra jackstay is not necessarily requisite, as the sail may be bent
to the rolling jackstay without it, by passing the turns of the head stops round
the rolling jackstay, as now adopted on booms and yards where no jackstay
exists. To prevent the sail flying to leeward whilst being furled or reefed, I
adopt the method described in the Specification of my former Patent, dated
30th April 1856, No. 1023, saving, that in the description there given, where
"sling band" is mentioned, "sling" must be understood. In the construction
of this hollow or tubular yard I should give preference to galvanized sheet
iron.
In adapting this Invention to fore-and-aft sails, the fore-and-aft main yard or
"boom" is to be hollow or tubular, with the appurtenances above described,
and the mouth for the entrance and exit of the sail to be turned upwards. To
secure the boom to the mast, I use jaws or swivel goose necks, as in ordinary
use in the old-fashioned booms; these are secured outside the hollow boom,
and rest on saddles placed in suitable position around the mast.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim the "improvements in
reefing, furling, and setting the sails of ships and vessels, and protecting such
sails from wet, and other abuses caused by ropes and rigging," effected by the
adaptation and use, as described, of a hollow yard, of the nature and character
herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Dyer, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-eigth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
SAMUEL DYER. (L.S.)