Speed Clips Of The Stars
It’s So Easy
Have you ever wondered if there was a better way to attach the outhaul to the boom – or the mainsheet to the boom. I really like the design of the spiral sliders that slide along the boom. But after you have marveled over how neat they are, you eventually get to the point of how can I get around these things?!
Problem
On the outhaul, you first need to feed a rather bulky knot through the aft slider and then figure out which way to enter the maze to get the loop to end up in the slider bale. And usually you end up with the line spiraled around the boom and need to straighten out the sliders. Sound familiar?
Solution
What if we untie the outhaul line from the sail, add a hook to the clew of the sail? That will allow us to install the outhaul onto the boom, and leave it there. When we are ready to rig, simply connect the hook (already attached to the sail) to the loose end of the outhaul line. Sounds good to me.
What hook?
The trick is to find a hook that is strong enough, light enough, sure-hold enough, AND easy enough to use.
Enter the speed clip!
This fancy little number was actually developed for fisherman to quickly and easily change there fishing tackle. I don’t know how fisherman like it, but it is PERFECT for what we do.
You will need one for each sail you own (because it takes a bit to get it installed on the sail). And you will need one for the mainsheet slider.
When the speed clip is installed, it takes very little strength, and absolutely no pain, to hook the sail to the outhaul ,and the mainsheet to the boom. Fast, clean, safe, sexy, and painless!
Mainsheet snap is tied to the sheet and snaps into the slider bale.
This article was written by Steve Lang of SailRC.com.