IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO REEFING AND FURLING THE SQUARE SAILS OF NAVIGABLE VESSELS FROM THE DECK
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Maurice Gandy at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his. Petition, on the 20th October
-1864..
I, MAURICE GANDY, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Master
Mariner, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
APPLICABLE TO REEFING AND FURLING THE SQUARE SAILS OF NAVIGABLE VESSELS
FROM THE DECK," to be as follows, that is to say:-.
This Invention has for its object a-convenient arrangement of apparatus for
reefing and furling the square sails of navigable vessels from the deck, and by
which arrangement the sail may be reefed or. furled.at any part of the hoist
thereof...
To apply this Invention to, say, a square topsail, each yard-arm is fitted
with a small chain wheel or barrel made fast thereto, and which revolves in a
vertical. iron collar plate fitted into a groove or its. mechanical equivalent
formed on the periphery near the outer. side of the chain wheel. The chain
wheel is formed with suitable recesses to receive the links of the chain, so as
to prevent the same slipping thereon. The collar is, formed with two horns
or arms projecting upwards, to the insides of the points, of which are attached
two single-sheaved metal blocks, and which collar plate is provided with a
third arm which projects horizontally backwards and is used to carry an eye
to receive the end of a chafing spar abaft the yard. A pair of small stay rods
connect the short arms or horns, to which the single-sheaved metal blocks are
attached, to a plate on the end of the yard arm, and which is connected
thereto by an horizontal pin springing from the yard arm, and which forms an
axle upon which the yard revolves. To this plate is connected the topmast,

page_text: studding sail halliard block, and in addition to which a support through the
stay rods to the vertical collar plate. encompassing the chain barrel. The
"parel" or "bucket" sliding on the mast is fitted on front with a united
double crescent-shaped truss hook for supporting the centre of the yard, and
in which it revolves, having antifriction rollers, the axles of which have their
bearings on the pair of crescent-shaped jaws (resembling those described in
the Specification of the Patent granted to Lewis Higgins and Alexander
Brown, numbered 1913, and dated 23d August 1858). The topsail halliards
is made fast to the truss hook. In addition to the chafing spar described, a
rod of wood or metal extends across the top of the yard from one vertical
plate in which the chain wheel on the yard revolves to the other, which may
be termed the life rod for the seamen to hold on by when going out on the
yard for bending the sail or other purpose. Abaft the mast one end of a
chain is reeved through the upper sheave of a sister reefing block, the ends.
are then passed, one on each side of the mast, through single blocks on each
side of the cap of the topmast down through the single-sheaved metal blocks
on the fore-arms or horns of the metal plates in which the chain wheels
revolve, thence round the under side of the chain wheels and up through, the
single-sheaved metal blocks on the after horns of the said plates,, in, along the
yard, and through blocks attached to the neck of the truss hook which hang.
a little below the chafing spar, and thence on to the deck in front of the mast,
where they may be.made fast. A chain or rope is then passed. over the lower
sheave of the sister reefing.block, abaft the mast, one end of which is made
fast on deck and the other end, used to roll or unroll the sail on the yard.
Having now reeved the chains, the yard is ready to receive the sail, which is
bent to the yards in the ordinary way. Then to reefe the sail,. when the yard
is on-the -cap, slack-the-back part of the reefing chains and haul on the reefing
tackle, and roll the sail up to the point required. When it is desired to furl
the sail, let go the sheets and continue to haul on the reefing tackle. To set_
the sail, slack off the reefing tackle, haul on the back chains, and unroll the
sail, haul on the sheets, hoist with the. halliards, taking in the slack of the
reefing tackle while so doing, until the sail is fully. set. To reeve the sail,
lower the halliards to the point desired, then, by merely. hauling tight the
reefing tackle the operation is completed.