I thought this might be of interest for others to see here. I thought it up while sailing my little 4m skiff and trying to deal with the clutter of so many lines in the cockpit. Beau now has 3 masts, and a lot of lines to keep tidy, especially as they are all led to the cockpit. The photo shows my reels forward, which are for the foresail, and everything for the mainsail except the sheet. (There are three extras, possibly for downhauls, or gybe preventers in time). The mainsail sheet and mizzen lines are spooled on a similar rod at the aft end of the dodger. After I’ve hauled and cleated lines, I simply ‘mouse’(by hand) the mess of line onto its spool. Everything is led through a turning block ahead of its cleat. Then, when it’s time to let out line, I simply uncleat the line and it spools out without foul. Often, for fun and effect, coming to an anchorage, I’ll drop all my sails (aside from the mizzen, so the boat will turn to wind) and anchor at once. Having uncleated all accessory lines, I can simply let go of the fore and mainsail halyard (at the same time I’ve told my crew to let fly the anchor) and everything flys off the spools in incredible time. It is quite fun to watch!
cheers, jonaven
oh. The helm above is on a pivot pole. Its hydraulic lines flex like those on an excavator. I haven’t quite got it perfect yet, but I’m working on it. It’s nice not to have the clutter of the wheel all the time!