The J/109 Class Association Forum

The Class Measurer was contacted to determine if two requests were allowed by Class Rules.

1) Is a second clutch allowed for both the main and jib halyards?

Answer: A second rope clutch is acceptable as it was asked and allowed previously by the Class Measurer as a method to prevent halyards under tension from slipping through the rope clutches. Alternate methods acceptable to achieve similar results include splicing extra core or covers in the halyards by the clutches, or replacing the teeth in the Spinlock clutches with model 0610 to replace the 0812 so the clutch grabs better.

2) May the forward hand rails be shortened so that in-hauling may be done across the cabin top without having to also clear the handrail?

Answer: Shortening of the handrails is not allowed per Class Rules paragraph 4.1 which states "Standard factory supplied equipment, including, but not limited to, railings, stanchions, and furnishings, except as listed in section 4.3, shall be maintained and will not be removed, relocated, or altered when racing". This modification may also be a safety hazard since the full extend of the handrails would not be available when needed for sailing in heavy seas.

Halyard slipping has gotten rather worse in 2022. Three years back we upgraded to the smaller diameter ceramic version of the Spinlock teeth and a constrictor style clutch addition. For winter I am thinking what to do about it, any advice?

1) I don't remember why, but our second clutch on the halyards is the constrictor style. Is this best practice, or is it rather better to have two spinlocks per halyard?

2) We have the upgrade cerarmic teeth. Is it possible these have worn in just 3 years and need to be replaced again?

3) I see There is something called Spinlock RP25 we could put on our halyards, anyone try this?

4) I see people have bulked up their halyards. That works good?

5) Our halyards are longer than needed, also thinking maybe we cut off a foot and remount the hardware, that would put a new section of halyard inside the clutches.

Using an inline constrictor clutch is the way to go. Fixed all slippage issues and no wear on the halyards. Class rules require retaining the original Spinlocks but there are now other types of constrictor clutches on the market that were not available when I installed the Ronstan Constrictors (Manufactured by French Company Cousin-Trestec).

Has anyone installed the Spinlock XTX series clutches in lieu of the Ronstan/Cousin-Trestec unit?

https://www.spinlock.co.uk/en-GB/usa/products/xtx

It seems like it is a fabric constrictor with the added benefit of protecting the fabric sleeve in a metal housing.
This might help it perform better when released and prevent accidental releases from feet, etc. It seems like those are two issues I've read about or heard about with the Ronstan units.
I think I need to add something in any case as the existing Spinlock XTS have already been downsized to the 6mm-10mm jaws and the halyard still slips.