Dirt, sand, and grime can accumulate in your blocks over time. To prevent this, the best sailors keep their gear clean and in tip-top shape. Let’s show you how.

Explore the ins and outs of ratchet blocks and how they work with Chuck Lob, Harken Senior Engineer. This is a follow up to our previous video: Ratchet Blocks Give Your Hands a Break.

Learn how to ease and tension your hiking strap to adapt to changing conditions quickly. Move just one knot and you can go from loose and a full hike, to tight and in-touch with the boat.

Bungee line is popular on dinghies for uses such as keeping hiking straps taught and tidying up lines. Installing bungee can be tough however, with knots often tightening too much or slipping out over time. Thankfully there is a great piece of hardware that is perfect for securing your bungee: a hog ring.

Hog rings are made of stainless steel and are designed to be pinched shut around whatever they are securing. Learn how to properly install your bungee line using a hog ring!

Learn how to finish a splice or tidy up the end of a line by tying a whipping. This video is a follow up to Making a 12-Strand Eye Splice. Whipping is an essential process for securing the tail of a splice and preventing any slippage over time. Watch and take note as Whitney Kent of Sheboygan Youth Sailing demonstrates this step-by-step process.

Splicing can often seem like a daunting skill to learn. When done well, it more closely resembles art than a functional rigging application. Everyone, however, needs to start somewhere, and the 12-strand eye splice is an easy first project to begin your splicing career with! Watch and take note as Whitney Kent of Sheboygan Youth Sailing demonstrates this step-by-step process.

Check back next week for our follow-up video on whipping, an essential process for securing the tail of the splice and preventing any slippage over time.

Check out this video for a few quick tips on upgrading your Opti boom vang.

The sprit halyard is one of the most important sail controls onboard an Opti. The more you  can actively adjust the halyard tension to match conditions, the better your boat will sail. This is why it’s super important to have a low-friction system that’s easy to adjust while you’re sailing. Check out this video featuring Blockhead ambassadors Chapman and Jack as they install the key components to optimize Jack’s Opti sprit halyard.

Here is a list of the parts you will need for this project:

• Harken 10mm Lead Ring (Harken part #3270).
• Spectra halyard line for splicing onto the lead ring.
• Harken Opti Hook Block – available through your local Opti dealer.

In search of awesome rigging upgrades for their Optis, Blockheads Jack Goggins and Chapman Petersen joined with professional rigger Olli Lubker for a trip to Harken World Headquarters one cold day in snowy Pewaukee, Wisconsin.

First on the list was upgrading Jack’s mainsheet to an interchangeable 4:1/3:1 “quick release” system. The goal of this system is to let you quickly switch from more to less purchase (or vice versa) without untying the line.  It is one of the more popular upgrades in the Opti class and can be accomplished in several ways using a variety of parts and rigging methods. While we totally encourage you to experiment and find new ways to rig your boat, we’ve chosen to focus on this simple, effective method.

Watch the video for a step-by-step walk-through of the project. Here is a rundown of the key pieces of hardware you will need:

1. Harken 40 mm Carbo fiddle block (Harken part #2655). This will mount to the boom using a trigger shackle (Pictured below).
   

   Harken 40mm Carbo Fiddle Block with Trigger Shackle

2. Trigger shackle: This piece enables the “quick release” feature of the system. A trigger shackle is a spring-loaded hook that easily opens and closes. You will install two trigger shackles in different locations:
   1. Attach the first trigger shackle to the 40 mm Carbo fiddle block that hangs off the boom. Chapman explains the reason for this later in the video.
   2. Use the second trigger shackle on the “deadend” of the mainsheet line (the opposite end from which you hold and trim). In most mainsheet systems, the deadend is tied off to a block or shackle. However, in this system the trigger shackle lets you quickly release the deadend and remove purchase. This is demonstrated in the video.
      

      Trigger Schackle

3. New mainsheet line. Prepare to either splice or tie-off a trigger shackle to the deadend of this line.
4. Mount a Harken 40 mm stand-up Carbo block (Harken part #2652 forward on the hull.
5. Mount a Harken 57 mm Carbo Ratchet block (Harken part #2135) aft on the hull.
   1. 38 mm eyestrap: double fastener (Harken part #074).
   2. 22 mm spring (Harken part #071).
6. Tie a short but easily accessible Spectra loop around the forward-most of the two blocks affixed to the hull. This loop is where you will hook the trigger shackle to create a 4:1 purchase. Release the shackle and it will get sucked up to the block mounted on the boom, reducing the mainsheet to a 3:1 purchase. (Loop pictured below)

• Bonus tip: Watch to the end of the video to learn why adding a second ring to the mainsheet bridle helps during light air tacks and gybes.

Peter Harken first designed the now iconic six-sided Hexaratchet® block in 1971. With a 17:1 holding power ratio, this meant that the trimmer had only to exert one (1) pound of force to hold 17 pounds of load. This leverage provides much-needed relief when conditions are breezy. As Peter said, “(it) has made every ratchet block in existence obsolete including our old one.” Fast forward forty-six years and Harken Ratchet blocks are found aboard nearly every class of boat across the sport of sailing.

Learn about key features of Ratchet blocks from Matt Schmidt, Harken Product Manager for Small Boat blocks:

Header Photo: © Billy Black

Between campaigning for Tokyo 2020, working with the Magenta Project, or dropping into the J/70 circuit, pro sailor Maggie Shea always follows one simple tip to ensure your hardware a long and happy life!