james craig crew handbook

James Craig Crew Handbook 2004 1

Edition OneApril 2004

2 James Craig Crew Handbook 2004

James Craig Crew Handbook

Edition One - April 2004

ISBN: 0-646-43354-7

Produced by Paul Harvey and Peter Gregg.

Copyright - Australian Heritage Fleet

Barque James Craig / Australian Heritage Fleet / Wharf 7 / Pyrmont NSW 2009Australia

02 9298 3888 / [email protected] / www.austfleet.com

We would like to thank to Peter Pole of the Spirit of Adventure Trust (NZ) for hisdevelopment of the initial crew handbook (2000) from which this booklet has evolved.

We would also like to thank Indiah Johnston and Chris Heeks of OTEN (TAFE NSW). Thanksalso, to James Parbery for several of the drawings in this handbook.

We would like to acknowledge the following texts used as reference sources: Square RigSeamanship, Willoughby RM, Spirit of New Zealand Program Manual, Spirit of AdventureTrust, Elissa Seamanship, Galveston Historical Foundation, Square Rig Training Manual(Draft), Open Training & Education Network, NSW.

Special thanks also to Captain Ken Edwards, Executive Master James Craig, for his valuableassistance.

Cover photograph by John Spiers. Inside photographs by Paul Harvey and John Spiers.

“to build and maintain an internationally recognised centre of excellence in maritimeheritage for the benefit of all Australians by presenting through research, acquisition,conservation, restoration and operation, our continuing maritime history”


4 AHF introduction

4 Handbook introduction

5 Ship organisation

8 Chain of command

8 Ship operations

8 Standing orders

9 Workplace safety

10 Emergency procedures & exercise drills

12 Special sea duties

19 Preparing for sea

21 Slipping

22 Anchor work

25 Knowing the ropes (ship’s rig, lines, pins, etc.)

41 Belaying

49 At a loose end (bends, knots, hitches, whippings, etc.)

55 Working aloft

57 Loosing sail

58 Setting fore & aft sails

60 Setting square sails

62 Setting mizzen sails

63 Bracing yards

65 Taking in sail

67 Furling sails

69 Berthing

70 Putting the ship to bed

72 Spreading & furling awnings

74 Maintenance

74 Crew rewards system

75 Crew uniforms

76 Crew communication

77 Hospitality

77 Guiding

78 Wharf 7 information

78 Ongoing adventure

79 Ship spaces & deck furniture

83 The ship’s flags

84 The ship’s bells

85 Tacking the ship

86 Wearing the ship

87 A maritime dictionary

92 Experience logs


AHF introductionThe Australian Heritage Fleet is based in Sydney, Australia and operates Australia’s largestfleet of operational historic vessels.

Our mission is “to build and maintain an internationally recognised centre of excellence inmaritime heritage for the benefit of all Australians by presenting through research,acquisition, conservation, restoration and operation, our continuing maritime history”.

Being an equal opportunity organisation, we consider that all persons should be treatedequally irrespective of race, gender, sexuality or religion, etc. You can find out more aboutthe organisation by contacting your crew or watchleader representatives (seecommunication insert).

Handbook introductionThe primary purpose of this James Craig crew handbook is to describe all those proceduresput in place by the James Craig Ship’s Executive to ensure the safe and effective operation ofthe vessel. These procedures are to be adopted by all persons who sail on board as crew.Thus, it establishes standardisation irrespective of changes in Masters, Mates andWatchleaders.

The handbook is to be used in conjunction with the James Craig Emergency and OperatingProcedures manual. Should there be any difference between the two documents, theOperating Procedures manual will always take precedence over this handbook.

In this handbook the ship is referred to as “she”, and for simplicity, those who crew her arecalled “he”. Given this, it should be emphasised that gender is irrelevant when it comes tocrewing roles on James Craig – from master down to the ship’s dog.

This handbook is not a training manual but does help ensure that you gain and log a widerange of experience in ship board operations.

It serves to describe your learning pathway from new entry to deck trainee to deckhand, thenpotentially to James Craig Able Seaman and/or Watchleader. In this regard, it plays a role inthe wider James Craig learning and training framework:

• James Craig Fast Track Induction .. JC introduction for new entries

• Waterways General Purpose Hand Rating (GPH) .. maritime industry qualification

• James Craig Crew Handbook assessment .. JC experience & awareness log

• OTEN Square Rig Certificate .. TAFE competency-based training/assessment


Ship organisationJames Craig is a surveyed and operational passenger vessel and our volunteer crew areticketed, qualified seamen. The ship has a formal “organisation” (or crew structure). Of keyimportance in the organisation are the officers, Chief Engineer, Chief Steward and seniorcrew who play different roles within the ship’s organisation.

The MasterHas overall command of the ship and crew, and carries the ultimate weight of responsibilityfor safety and care of the vessel and her complement (crew and passengers). The Master’sauthority for all matters concerning the sailing of the ship and the management anddiscipline of the crew is absolute.

The First MateOversees the operation of the ship according to the overall wishes of the Master. He runs thedeck while sailing and has responsibility for the management of the crew, making up thewatch bill, establishing the daily routine, directing evolutions, etc. and assumes command ifthe Master is incapacitated.

The Second MateAssists the Mate and is responsible for navigation, charts, all safety equipment andcommunication.

The Chief EngineerIs ultimately responsible for the safe operation and maintenance of the ship’s machinery,electrical equipment, pumps and anchor windlass. He is also responsible for theorganisation, operation and training of the 2nd Engineer and the Engineering Departmentcrew.

Officer of the Watch (OOW)This may be any one of the ship’s officers, nominated by the Master to take command of thevessel from time to time. His place of duty is the quarterdeck and when operating in the roleof OOW is said to “have the con”, or “have the deck”, meaning he has charge of the ship atthat time.

The Chief StewardManages the ship’s manifest which lists all people on board the vessel. He supervises thehospitality crew and is responsible for the safety and comfort of passengers and crew.

The Ship’s SurgeonWhen sailing in open waters, we usually carry a medical doctor as a crew member who ison hand to attend to accidents involving crew or passengers, and to deal with serious casesof sea sickness.


The Navigator’s YeomanAssists the Second Mate and OOW with passage and pilotage planning, maintaining logs,communication with port authorities and other vessels and onboard communication.

The WatchleadersSupervise the ship’s deck crew and ensure that the officers’ orders and directions are safelyand promptly carried out. James Craig operates three watches; one for each mast and eachmade up of 10-14 hands.

Deck crewPerform the work involved in safely sailing the ship. They act under the orders of theirWatchleader and occasionally under direct orders of the officers. They are made up of AbleSeamen (highly skilled hands), Efficient Deckhands (skilled hands), Ordinary Seamen(general hands), Deck Trainees (hands yet to attain their GPH tickets) and New Entries (newcrew who are yet to complete their JC induction modules).

StewardsWe carry 4-5 stewards whose primary role is the safety and care of passengers and crew.They organise food, drink and sun protection for all persons on board and oversee passengerorganisation in emergency situations. They support the Ship’s Surgeon in the case of injuriesor sea sickness. Stewards are also responsible for serving of alcohol to passengers and takecare of sales of ship merchandise. (For more information on hospitality, see page 77)

The Ship’s BosunTogether with the Mate, the Bosun is responsible for the ship’s rig while at sea, carrying outrepairs and adjustments where necessary, and reporting other rig-related issues to the shorebased maintenance team for later rectification. Also responsible for safe stowage of gear onboard.

Ship’s Guides (Sailing Guides)Our guides greet passengers on their arrival aboard James Craig and act as ambassadors forthe ship. They describe her history, restoration, sailing operations and provide answers topassenger’s questions about the ship and about the Australian Heritage Fleet in general.


Watchbill and Daily RoutineWatchbills list the crew in each watch. They also detail those crew who play a role in anyspecial sea duties during the day. Daily Routines detail the timing of key events during theday; departure, rest breaks, lunchtime, arrival back at port, berthing, etc. These bills areposted on our deckhouse. Copies are also carried by Officers and Watchleaders.

Watch cardsJames Craig deck crew are detailed into three mast watches (Fore, Main, Mizzen). Onceassigned to a watch, crew are issued a watchcard (fig 1) which lists duties for the day andidentifies which life raft they report to in an abandon ship situation.

Fig 1 a&b. James CraigWatchcards

4-MAIN works aloft (dependent onhis clearance and ability to climb).He is in the berthing party and hastricks as MOB lookout andquartermaster (helm).

9-FORE is involved in emergencyroles: launching of the ship’s seaboat and fire party. Consequently,he does not climb. He has a trickas Captain’s Runner.


Chain of commandLife onboard a ship is not a democracy. The Master has sole command of the vessel anddelegates different aspects of shipboard operation within a chain of command: Master, Mate,Chief Engineer, 2nd Mate, Watchleaders.

The Master gives overall instructions to the Mate - who gives specific orders to theWatchleaders - who give direct orders to initiate operation of the rig, sail handling,shipboard emergency responses, etc.

Deck crew must be able to take a positive team approach and accept working under directinstruction from their watchleader.

Ship operationsBecause of her Survey, James Craig does not sail at sea overnight with fare paying passengersand operates primarily on a day-sail basis out of Sydney harbour. The crew complement forthese operations is 45.

James Craig also does Port Jackson harbour cruises with a crew complement of 22. She isalso used as a venue for events alongside Wharf 7 with around four crew on shipkeepingduty to safeguard the ship and ensure smooth operation of functions.

Standing ordersThe Standing Orders define those procedures that are to be followed by ALL crew on boardthe vessel. They are carefully planned and tested, and are the basis of safe ship operation.They include the Ship’s Organisation, the structure of special sea duty roles, the proceduresfor launching, operation and recovery of the ship’s rescue boat, and our procedures andrules for working aloft, etc.

A key part of the ship’s standing orders is the James Craig Emergency & OperatingProcedures – a document which is available to all crew and is located in the chart room anddeckhouse.

You are expected to be familiar with all parts of the ship’s standing orders that relate to you.If in doubt, ask your Watchleader.


Workplace safetyPeople who have worked a lifetime in an industry have fewer accidents than newcomersbecause they have awareness of their workplace hazards. Our existing crew have anobligation, therefore, to safeguard new crew, passengers and other visitors to the ship.

Safety is of prime importance to the Australian Heritage Fleet – whether in regard tosailing aboard James Craig or undertaking alongside maintenance work. It applies equallyto working in the Fleet office, our Rozelle Bay workshop or in any other of our vessels.

You must have regard for your own safety and that of your crew mates, our passengersand other visitors to our work sites. You must work safely and obey all safety instructions,signs and notices.

There are safety manuals for the ship and other AHF worksites. You must familiarise yourself with these whereappropriate. You must report all perceived hazards to yourwatchleader. Ensure that you leave a work place as youfound it, if not in a cleaner, safer condition.

A safe approach to sailing in James Craig can be as detailedand specific as our working aloft rules (see page 55) or assimple as the proper use of our steep companionways andladders (see right).

Safety is an attitude. We all love a joke and you will findthat, as you work with other crew members, a rewardingcomradeship develops. Skylarking or playing practical jokesis another matter, however, and will not be toleratedaboard James Craig or in other AHF workplaces.

Crew members who are affected by alcohol or recreationaldrugs will be discharged for that day and their casereviewed by the ship’s Executive Master.

Crew members taking prescribed or over-the-countermedications should always inform their watchleader asthis can impair their senses when working aloft.

Fig 3. Improper use ofsteep companionway.

Fig 2. Proper use ofsteep companionway(acending anddecending).


Emergency procedures &exercise drillsFire PartyAs part of our Ship’s Organisation, we have a designated fire party. This group is made up offive hands, one of which is the I/C (leader). The fire party works with, and responds to, adirect line of radio or verbal communication with the OOW.In the event of a fire aboard, the alarm will be raised verbally or by sounding of the ship’salarm. If you are a member of the fire party you will muster at the appropriate area andlisten to the fire party leader’s instructions. You may be expected to:• Close doors, ventilation shafts and other openings so as to isolate the assumed fire

from other parts of the vessel• Use extinguishers and hoses correctly (you will be trained with this equipment while

doing your General Purpose Hand course).• If you are not a member of the fire party, muster at your watch muster station and

follow the orders from your watch leader.

M.O.B.The words “man overboard” carelessly used aboard can mistakenly instigate the launch ofthe sea boat. When discussing the drill or situation, always use the term “M.O.B.”

Practice drills are usually carried out whenever the ship sails. They are initiated by the call“For exercise, for exercise, man overboard.”

In the event of a man overboard situation, the first to see it happen will call loudly, “manoverboard, port/starboard side”. Three long blasts of the ship’s alarm may also be soundedand the call “man overboard” repeated through the ship so that all are aware.

If you are the M.O.B. lookout, you will immediately:

• deploy the M.O.B. safety gear (danbuoy, life ring, smoke float)

• climb the weather mizzen shrouds and look for the man in the water

• when you have sighted the person in the water, do not take your eyes off them. Pointclearly towards them until they are retrieved and the rescue boat has returned to theship. If the rescue boat were to capsize, you might be the only person to notice.

If you are the sea boat coxswain, you will immediately proceed to the sea boat and prepareto board it once it is lowered to the t’gallant rail. You must wear a sea boat lifejacketand soft sailing shoes.

If you are the sea boat crew member, you will immediatelyobtain the sea boat hand heldVHF radio, proceed to the sea boat and prepare to board it once it is lowered to thet’gallant rail. You must wear a sea boat lifejacket and soft sailing shoes.


If you are a member of the MOB launch party, you will immediatelyproceed to the sea boatand assist in its launch. Your watch card will detail which duties you are responsiblefor in the launch process.

Aside from two spare hands who should assist that hand tending the sea boat davit for’d guy,any crew not directly involved will muster:

Fore watch hands - to the fore mast

Main watch hands and Mizzen watch hands - to the quarterdeck and prepare forboxing (bracing) the main yards.

Abandon ShipIn the event of an Abandon Ship emergency, the alarm “Stations to abandon ship,” will beraised, verbally, by the Master. Deck crew will muster at their appropriate life raft canister(as indicated on their watch cards) and follow directions from their watch leader andOfficers. The call to actually start abandoning ship can only be given by the Master ordelegated officer.

Safety EquipmentCrew members must be familiar with the ship’s safety equipment, including:• fire extinguishers, fire hoses and galley fire blankets• engine room fire-smothering system and escape hatch, and the ship’s secondary fire

pump (although these systems relate solely to engineering department).• life rings, the Carley float and the ship’s three liferafts• safety gear stored in the fore deckhead – axe, crowbar, etc.

There is a schematic diagram of all this equipment on the port side of the ‘tween decks andat the engine room main hatch. Note that the ship’s wooden boats are not part of her formalsafety equipment.

Your awareness and experience in emergencyprocedures is logged at page 92.


Special sea dutiesCrew must know what is involved in these key roles. They must concentrate on the job. Idlechat with crewmates or passengers is to be avoided.

For’d lookoutWithin the harbour, the 2nd Mate or delegated hand takes on the For’d Lookout duties.

For’d Lookout post is on the focs’le, wearing a harness (beware of heads’l sheet blocks). Asthe eyes of the ship, his role is to radio the quarterdeck advising of anything affecting thesafe navigation of the ship: other vessels, navigation markers or buoys, fishing net buoys,shoals & breaking water.

Reports are given using the “four D’s”, in the following order:

Direction - given as “points” on the port or starboard bow. From dead ahead toabeam equals 8 points (90 degrees). A closed fist on the horizon at arm’s lengthapproximately equals one point (11 degrees).

Distance - at sea, use general terms such as “very close” (within 100 metres), “close”(within 1 km), “far” (several kms), “distant” (on the horizon). In harbour, be moreprecise, eg. “150 metres”.

Description - clear and brief, eg. “a large ship”, “a yacht”, a small fishing boat”, acommercial fishing boat”, “a yellow floating buoy”.

Destination - ie. where the object is going - “stationary”, “closing” (heading towardsus), “opening” (heading away from us), “moving from right to left”.

Establish radio contact by calling the station you require, then name your station. Anexample of a typical report would be:

“Quarterdeck, this is focs’l.”“Focs’l, quarterdeck.”“Four points on the starboard bow and far, a small fishing boat, moving from right toleft.”“Romeo.”

When being relieved, you brief the incoming lookout on what objects are visible andwhether or not they have been reported aft. The new lookout should then carry out a radiocheck with the quarterdeck:

“Quarter deck, this is focs’l. Radio check.”“Focs’l, quarterdeck loud and clear.”“Romeo.”


Captain’s runnerThe “runner” relays radio messages from the for’d lookout to the OOW. His station is onthe quarterdeck. Prior to departure, the runner will obtain a VHF radio headset from theSecond Mate or Navigator’s Yeoman in the chart room and verify which channel to use.

The runner should identify himself to the OOW and then stay near him as acommunication link with the for’d lookout and for any errands required.

When being relieved, the new runner will report to the existing runner, take over theradio and then identify himself to the OOW.

New runner should then carry out a radio check with focs’l: eg.“Focs’l, this is quarterdeck; radio check.”“Quarterdeck, focs’l, loud and clear.”“Romeo.”

MOB sentryMOB lookout’s post is aft on the weatherside of thequarterdeck, near the steering box (see right). Bystanding in this area of the deck, he is clearlyidentifiable to watchleaders and the OOW. Standinganywhere else, he may be mistaken as havingabandoned his post.

MOB lookout always wears a harness as his roleincludes climbing the mizzen shrouds.

The detail of this special sea duty is covered earlier inEmergency Procedures, (see page 10).

Your awareness and experience in non-helming specialsea duties is logged on page 93.

Fig 4. MOB sentryposition (grey area)


Helmsman/quartermasterWhether navigating the harbour or at sea, steering James Craig is a complex and acquiredskill. Under motor, the ship responds slowly to wheel movements and once turning, is slowto correct. Under sail, turning the ship involves a balance of wheel movements and sailhandling. Keeping James Craig sailing on a straight course involves continual slightadjustments to the wheel in response to changes in the wind conditions and the buffetingeffect of swell and sea.

The helmsman does not wear a harness as they contain metals which may interfere with theship’s compass. He should beware of loose clothing that might foul on the wheel.

The helmsman must understand how the ship’s bow relates to wheel movements so as to beable to steer a straight course or head towards an object.

“Bring the ship around to port”Top spokes on wheel turned to port.

“Check her” (eg. if ship’s bow is turning to port)Top spokes on wheel turned to starb’d,Wheel taken to amidships as bow steadies up.

In “checking her,” the objective is to apply a sufficient number of opposing turns on thewheel to meet the existing movement of the ship. Too little wheel will not check her, and toomuch wheel held on for too long will lead to oversteering - necessitating a furthercorrection.

Checking a slight meander of the bow might only necessitate half a turn, whereasstraightening the ship after a 90 degree turn, eg. around Miller’s Point, might take six ormore opposing turns, quickly applied, then taken off.

Steering in harbour

Prior to departing the wharf, the harbour helmsman (termed the “mud pilot”) will inspectsteering gear for obvious faults and turn the wheel through its full 14 turns, hard a-port tohard a-starboard.

Within enclosed waters, you steer to wheel orders or to visible headings as given by theOOW. Stand on the side of the wheel that provides best visibility for landmarks and formaintaining contact with the OOW.

Upon being given an order, you must immediately and loudly repeat the order using thetitle, “Sir” so that the OOW knows it is the helmsman responding and that he has heard himcorrectly. Once the order has been executed, you report so, eg.

OOW: “Port, three turns”Helmsman: “Port, three turns, sir”Helmsman: “Three turns of port wheel on, sir” (when order has been executed)


Common orders in the harbour include:“Hard a-port/starboard”“Hard a-port/starboard, sir”“Wheel’s hard a-port/starboard, sir” (when top spokes rotated 7 turns to port)

“Midships”“Midships, sir”“Wheel’s amidships, sir” (when wheel bought back to dead centre)

“Steady” (dead ahead sighting is taken)“Steady, sir”“Ship’s head steady, sir” (when ship’s head is checked and bought back to initial

sighting)

“Steady on (south pylon)”“Steady on (south pylon), sir”“Ship’s head steady on (south pylon), sir”

(when ship’s head is bought to bear on south pylon)

“Nothing to port”“Nothing to port, sir” (ship’s head is kept as steady as possible and if anything,

the helmsman may err to starboard but not to port. Theship may be in a narrow channel or in crowded waters).

Steering at sea. In open waters the helmsman stands at the weather side of wheel. He isgiven a compass course to steer to, or is told to steer as high into the wind as possible (“fulland by”).

Steering to a compass heading, you must understand how the ship’s head relates tothe compass binnacle lubber’s line. The lubber line (fig 5) is fixed to the compass housingand represents the ship’s head. If the line ‘drifts’ to left of your compass card course it meansthe ship has fallen off to port and must be bought back by turning the wheel’s top spokes tostarboard. The skill of good steering is knowing how much wheel to put on - taking intoaccount the wind and sea conditions - in order to bring the ship back on her course withoutoversteering.

Fig 5. The compass lubber’s line isfixed and represents the ship’s head,while the compass card floats andalways points north.Although our compass is marked “360”degrees, a compass starts at “zero zerozero” and finishes at “three five nine”.The heading marked left is “zero zero two”.


Changes to a compass course heading are made only by the OOW. Under noother circumstances is the helmsman to purposefully alter the ships course. The change ofcourse will be given as:

OOW: “Come to port and steer zero seven zero”Helmsman: “Come to port and steer zero seven zero, sir”Helmsman: “Ship’s head steady, zero seven zero, sir” (when on course)

Chasing the card is a common error made by inexperienced hands. The helmsmanmistakenly believes he needs to bring the compass card course back to the lubber’s line,thus turning the wheel the wrong way. Within seconds the ship will be well off course andpossibly taken aback.

Steering “Full and by” means steering the ship close to the wind but keeping thesquare sails full. The square sails will have been braced up sharp and if they are effectivelytrimmed in a spiral, you would keep the uppermost square sail just “off the luff”.

In “tacking” through the wind or “wearing” around with the wind, particular traditionalwheel orders are used (see pages 85-86). These are given as if the ship is being steered witha tiller (helm) rather than the wheel. Thus, you need to understand our wheel in relation toan imaginary tiller on our rudder (see figs 6 & 7).

“Helm’s a-lee”In a small dinghy, tiller pushed across to leeward and dinghy’s head veers up intowind.To veer James Craig up to wind, top spokes turned to windward.

“Helm down”In a small dinghy, heeled over, tiller pushed downwards (to lee) and dinghy’s headveers up to wind)To veer James Craig up to wind, top spokes turned to windward.

“Helm’s a-weather”In a small dinghy, tiller pulled to windward of centre and dinghy’s head falls away withwind.To have James Craig fall away with wind, top spokes turned to lee.

“Helm up”In a small dinghy, heeled over, tiller pulled up (to windward) and dinghy’s head bearsaway with wind.To have James Craig fall away with wind, top spokes turned to lee.


Relieving the wheel

The process of changing helmsman is an important and formal part of the ship’s routinewhich should be meticulously learnt and performed.

The oncoming relieving helmsman is to report to the wheel at least five minutes before thechange of watch so that he can take note of the weather and sea conditions, the currentcourse and steering conditions.

Fig 7. Helming.Left shows “helms a-lee” or “helmdown”. This boat will veer up intothe wind and tack.Right shows “helms a-weather” or“helm up”. This boat will bear offwith the wind.

Fig 6. Rudder as used on small boats andolder ships.

The main parts are the tiller (handle) and rudderblade (protruding into the water).

When the tiller is pulled across to port, the rudderblade swings across to starboard. Boat’s stern willmove to port. Boat’s head will move around tostarboard.

The James Craig steering mechanism means if thehead needs to come around to port, the wheel’s topspokes are simply turned to port.


On the change of watch bells, he should approach the OOW, introduce himself and seekpermission to take over the wheel in the following terms:

“Officer of the Watch, sir, I am Able Seaman Smith, permission to take the wheel?”

The OOW, taking into account such factors as the known steering skills of Able SeamanSmith, the possibility of an impending alteration of course or sailing evolution, the proximityof other ships and the time required for Able Seaman Smith to settle into the steering rolewill either approve the change by saying

“Yes, please.”

Or if a delay is considered, he will say:

“Please stand by.”

On receiving permission to take the wheel, the relieving helmsman will introduce himself tothe outgoing helmsman, saying:

“Able Seaman Smith to relieve the wheel.”

The outgoing helmsman will then inform Smith of the course to be steered, whether or notthe ship is carrying any wheel and how the ship is handling. Two examples:

“Course zero four five, carrying one turn of port wheel, difficult to keep on course.”

“Steering full and by on the main t’gallant luff, carrying two turns of starboard wheel,steering steady.”

The relieving helmsman will repeat the outgoing helmsman’s report (the outgoing helmsmanis responsible for ensuring that the relieving helmsman has heard and understood his report).

The outgoing helmsman will then steady the ship on her course and hand the wheel over tothe relieving helmsman, saying

“Have you got the wheel?”

The relieving helmsman’s reply is,

“Yes, I have the wheel.”

Once relieved, the outgoing helmsman should remain for a short while until he is satisfiedthat the new helmsman has the ship on course. He then reports to the OOW, introducinghimself and reporting that the wheel has been relieved using the terms:

“Officer of the Watch, sir, I am Able Seaman Jones, I have been relieved from the wheel,course is zero four five.”

It is only at this point that the change of helmsman has been formally and fully carried out.

Your awareness and experience in helming is logged onpage 93.


Preparing for seaFore Watch• display floodlights unrigged

• stockless anchor a-ready

• capstan operational

• safety gear in deckhead accounted for

• for’d lifeboat securely griped (lashed) down

• fore running rigging ready for operation

• running rigging including gantlines and flag halyards tensioned to safeguard againstchafe

• motor/sail cone ready for hoisting

• for’d hatch opened and grating in place (dependent on weather)

• number one life raft canister rigged for emergency deployment

• safety life rings in place and operational.

All gear or other objects likely to move in heavy weather must be securely lashed – onforedeck, deck galley, deckhouse, ‘tween decks (for’d of fore mast), maintenance locker, allof lower hold (Bosun looks after his locker).

Main Watch• display floodlights unrigged

• aft lifeboat securely griped (lashed) down

• sea boat secured and ready for operation

• main running rigging ready for operation


• main hatch companionway and safety handrail secure

• gangway tackle ready for operation

• main awning unrigged and edge wires stowed in deckhouse

• gangway stage ballast weight (drum of sand) lashed down

• number two life raft canister rigged for emergency deployment

• pilot ladder inspected and ready for rigging

• safety life rings accounted for and operational.

All gear or other objects liable to move in heavy weather to be securely lashed down onmain deck, ‘tween decks (abaft the fore mast), general purpose space, heads.


Mizzen Watch• mizzen awning unrigged and stowed under main hatch companionway

• mizzen running rigging ready for operation


• MOB safety gear in place and operational

• porthole glass scuttles closed and brass deadlights closed if expecting stormy weather(fig 82, p81)

• number three life raft canister rigged for emergency deployment.

All gear or other objects likely to move in heavy weather to be securely lashed down onquarter deck and cabins, lockers and spaces below the quarter deck abaft the generalpurpose space and lower heads.

Mud pilot• emergency tiller chains cast off and stowed in sail locker

• steering gear tested to ensure fully operational (wheel turned from hard a-port to harda-starb’d)

• ensure that helm indicator has not been knocked out of alignment with rudder

• ensure that emergency steering tackle is accounted for and operational.

1 I/C fire party• ship’s fire fighting and safety equipment accounted for and operational

• fire party members briefed on roles, muster points, etc.

• fire fighting valves closed, tween decks and upper deck

Seaboat Coxswain• sea boat is ready for launching (including all relevant lines)

• outboard engine has been flushed and run

• fuel tank checked for adequate fuel level (minimum 1/2 tank for day sails).

1 I/C shore party (slipping)• gangway wheels are downturned for running

• chains unlocked from berthing lines

• shore party wearing inflatable life vests, standing by to cast off berthing lines.


SlippingBefore he takes the ship away from the wharf, the Master waits to hear the following reports:

• 1st Mate“Ship is ready for sea, permission to single up.”

• Chief Steward“Manifest complete.”

• Chief Engineer“Shore power cable clear and engineering department standing by.”

When these reports have been received, the mate will ask for lines for’d and aft to be singledup. This order will be conveyed to the focs’l along the deck by voice and by radio. Singlingup involves taking in the breastlines leaving just the springs, the headline and the sternline(fig 67, p69). It is important that all passengers be cleared from line working areas and thatsuch areas be roped off.

On hearing the initial orders to single up, the watchleaders will acknowledge loudly, “Singleup for’d/aft, aye” and on completion of the task, report back loudly, “Lines singled up, for’d/aft, sir.”

The next order will be to clear the gangway. The main watchleader will acknowledge themate’s order by calling “Clear the gangway, aye.” The gangway is raised and disengaged fromits stage. The shipboard end is then lowered whilst the shore party haul the gangway clear ofthe ship’s side to avoid damaging paintwork.

While the rest of the shore party ballast the wharfside end of the gangway, one hand slipsthe gangway tackle. Once fully clear, the watchleader loudy reports, “Gangway cleared sir.”The shore party then haul the gangway back on to the wharf, stowing it so as to avoidinconvenience to the public.

The Master will then call for the remaining berthing lines – headline, sternline, fore and aftsprings to be let go as required. The sequence depends on how he wants to manoeuvre theship off the wharf. Hands who are detailed by Watchleaders to work lines must wait for aclear unambiguous order from their Watchleader in working their line.

Your awareness and experience in preparing for sea andslipping is logged on page 93.


Anchor workOur stockless anchor is the ship’s primary working anchor. Itis a requirement that we have it ready to let go (fig 8) whennavigating the harbour in the event of steering gear or enginefailure. When at sea, the anchor is hove into the hawspipeand secured with the Blake Screw Slip (fig 12).

The Mate (or delegated Watchleader) oversees theseoperations. He directs the Engineer (or delegated hand) at thewindlass controls and the brake hand.

Working the anchor is noisy and hands may not hear verbalorders. Thus, the Mate should place himself so that he has adirect line of sight of the anchor and hawse, and of theEngineer and brake hand. He must give loud and clearverbal orders in addition to visual hand signals (see figs 9-11). In response, the Engineer and brake hand shouldacknowledge his orders loudly and clearly as they carrythem out (there is no time to both acknowledge and report).

The Engineer and brake hand should be briefed so that they work together. On the call“Heave away”, the Engineer begins to haul just after the brake hand has eased the brake(both will call their actions loudly “Easing the brake” and “Heave in”).

Likewise, when the Mate calls “Well”, the Engineer ceases hauling as the brake operatorapplies the brake, consecutively reporting (“Well” and “Brake on”).

Fig 9. “Heave away” Fig 10. “Well!” Fig 11. “Ease away”

Fig 8. Anchor AreadyNote the sacrificial strop


Walking out the anchorThe anchor freeing-line hook isconnected to a sacrificial strop that iscow-hitched to the anchor flukes (fig 8). Ifthe strop is missing, spares can be foundin the deck boxes.

The working end of the freeing-line isthen led back to the windlass warpingdrum and prepared for working by anEfficient Deckhand or Able Seaman.

1. The Mate will order “Brake on, castoff the Blake Screw Slip”.

2. He will then order “Disengage bothwindlass dogs” (fig 13).

3 He will then order, “Cast thefreeing-line around the warpingdrum”.

3. He will then order “Port side brakeoff” followed by, “Heave away onthe freeing-line”.

4. The freeing-line hand must workhis line so that the anchor is hauledout of the hawsepipe in a stop-startmanner, 6” - 12” at a time. Thishelps ensure that the full weight ofthe anchor (drawn out of the hawsepipe) does not end up being takenby the freeing line.

4. When the anchor shank swivel has been drawn just clear of the hawse, he willorder “Well at that”, then, “Brake on”.

5. He will then order “Easing the freeing-line, lower away”. This is done by drivingthe warping drum in the opposing direction.

6. When the anchor is hanging vertically, he will order “Well, the freeing-line, passthe Blake Screw Slip”.

7. Hands will then clear and stow the freeing line.

NB: In an emergency, if the anchor windlass is inoperational, the anchor can bedrawn out of the hawse pipe using the anchor deck capstan.

Fig 12. The Blake Screw Slip.

Fig 13. Windlass portside dog disengaged.Positioned for paying out cable.


Heaving in the anchorAt the harbour heads, prior to the ship enteringopen water, the anchor is hove into its hawseand made fast.

1. The Mate will order “Brake on, cast offthe Blake Screw Slip”.

2. The Mate will order “Engage the portside dog, disengage the starb’d dog”.

3. He will then order “Bring the dog to thespline”.

4. When the dog is near as possible to thespline, he will call “Heave in on theanchor”.

5. When the anchor has been drawn in justshort of touching the ship’s hull, he willorder “Avast heaving”.

6. The Mate will then order “On brake, passthe Blake Screw Slip and screw up taut”,followed by “Disengage port side dog”.

When these last orders have been confirmed,the fore watchleader can order hands to standdown.

Your awareness and experience in anchor work is loggedon page 94.

Fig 15. A chain pyramid forms whenheaving in the cable after anchoring.

This is best avoided by having a handstationed next to the chain locker,spreading the chain as it exits the

spurling pipe (also see fig 89, p82).

Fig 14. Windlass portside dog engaged.Positioned for heaving in cable.


Knowing the ropesOverviewIt is essential that crew members know where to findeach and every line, without any hesitation indaylight or in the dark. The safety of crewmates andthe ship can be put at serious risk if an avoidabledelay in dealing with a risk situation occurs throughcrew being slow to identify the correct line orchoosing the wrong line. Someone could be seriouslyhurt if the wrong line is cast off.

If the ship is suddenly laid over (“knocked down”) ortaken aback in a severe squall, her recovery maydepend on immediate action to ease the wind’spressure on the ship.

Ordinary Seamen, Able Seamen and WatchleadersMUST know every line and pin, from stem to stern.

Knowing and understanding the logic of thepositioning of the lines assists in the learning process.But being able to work out where to find a line is notenough on its own – we MUST know them by heart.

In order to understand where the pins lie, you needto know the masts, yards, spars, standing rigging, sailsand lines.

Working alongside experienced hands and gettingpractical learning on board the ship is priceless inlearning lines. To assist we have provided the ship’ssail plan, rigging and pin rail diagrams, followed bysome conventions on line and pin placement aboardsquare rig sailing ships.

In summarising the James Craig induction modules: to set sails we generally haul onhalyards, sheets and outhauls, and to reduce sail, we haul on downhauls, clewlines,buntlines, leechlines, inhauls and brails.

To “know the ropes,” you must have a sound understanding of the ship’s rig and sails (seefollowing pages).


Fig

16. J

ames

Cra

ig m

asts

The y

ards

are

nam

ed a

fter

the s

ails

that

they

carry

(see

the s

ail p

lan

on p

age 3

2.


Fore

Royal

stay Fly

ing jib

stay

Main

stay

Main to

pm’st

stay

Main t’g

allan

t stay

Main ro

yal s

tay

Mizzen

stay

Mizzen

cap s

tay

Mizzen

t’gall

ant s

tayMizz

en ro

yal s

tay

Fig

17. J

ames

Cra

ig fo

re st

ays

Fore

stay

Outer

jib st

ay

Inner

jib st

ay

Fore topm’st

stay


Fig

18. J

ames

Cra

ig b

ack

stay

s

1 2

3 4

5 6

7 8

9 1

0

Mai

n m

ast

Mirr

ors

the

fore

mas

t

1 2

3 4

5 6

7 8

9 1

0

Fore

mas

t

1 - 5

Fore

mas

t shr

ouds

6Fo

re c

ap b

acks

tay

7 &

8Fo

re to

pm’s

t bac

ksta

ys

9Fo

re t’

gall

back

stay

10Fo

re ro

yal b

acks

tay

1 2

3 4

5 6

7

Miz

zen

mas

t

1 &

2M

izze

n sh

roud

s

3M

izze

n to

pm’s

t guy

s

4 &

5M

izze

n sh

roud

s

6M

izze

n to

pm’s

t bac

ksta

y

7M

izze

n t’g

all b

acks

tay


Fig 19. James Craig shrouds (Fore & Main)

Lower shrouds

Topm’st shrouds

T’gallant shrouds

Topm’st futtock shrouds

T’gallant futtock shrouds

The cross trees

The tops


Fig 20. James Craig shrouds (Mizzen)

Mizzen cross trees

Mizzen shrouds

Mizzen

topm’st guys


Fig

21. J

ib b

oom

rig

(Sim

ilar v

esse

l)

bobs

tay

mar

tinga

leba

ckst

ays

(P&

S)

mar

tinga

le

inne

r mar

tinga

le s

tay

oute

r mar

tinga

le s

tay

inne

r jib

boo

m g

uy

oute

r jib

boo

m g

uy


Fig

22. J

ames

Cra

ig sa

il pl

an


Fig 23. James Craig course sail


Fig 24. James Craig staysail

A pattern used when describing parts of the rig begins with theside of the ship, the relevant mast, how high up it is, thenwhat it actually is.

As an example, we could talk about the “portside, main,upper tops’l, brace pendant”.


Fig . Mizzen mast.Note that the Gaff Tops’l is setto leeward of the span but towindward of the spanker.

Fig 25. James Craig mizzen sails


Fore tacks

Topm’st stays’l sheetsFlying jib sheetsOuter jib sheetsInner jib sheets

Clew garnet

Course leechCourse buntsLT clew

LT bunts

UT downhaul

UT buntsTG clewTG bunts

Royal sheetRoyal clew

Royal bunt

Halyard stopper

UT halyardInner jib halyard

Flying jib halyard

Royal halyardTruck flag halyard

Fore course sheets ormain course tacks

Clew garnet

Course leechCourse bunts

LT clew

LT bunts

UT downhaul

UT buntsTG clew

TG bunts

Royal sheetRoyal clew

Royal bunt

Topm’st stays’l halyard

Outer jib halyardGantline

TG halyard

Truck flag halyard

Fore course sheets ormain course tacks

Flying jib downhaulOuter jib downhaul

Inner jib downhaulFore TM stays’l downhaul

Fig 26. Fore deck pins

Fore TGsheets

Main TG stays’lclew/downhaul

Fore LT sheets

Fore TGsheets

Main TM stays’lclew & downhaul


Davit falls

Mizz cap stays’l sheet

Mizz TM stays’l sheet

Mizz TG stays’l sheet

Spanker head inhaul

Mizz cap stays’l halyard

Main TG brace

Main royal brace

Spanker head outhaul

Mizz TG stays’l halyard

Main course braceMain LT brace

Main UT brace

Boom preventer

Berthing lines &spanker sheets

Davit falls

Mizz cap stays’l sheet

Mizz TM stays’l sheet

Mizz TG stays’l sheet

Gaff TS outhaulGaff TS inhaul

Main TG brace

Main royal brace

Mizz TM stays’l halyard

Gaff TS halyard

Main course brace

Main LT brace

Main UT brace

Boom preventer

Berthing lines &spanker sheets

Gaff TS downhaul

Gaff vangGaff vang

Fig 28. Quarterdeck pins

Spanker brails (P&S)

Gaff TS tack

Spanker foot inhaul

Gaff TS tack

Spanker foot outhaul


Mizz TM stays’lclew/downhaul

Fore TG braceFore Royal brace

Fore TG braceFore Royal brace

Mizz TG stays’ldownhaul

Main TG sheet

Main LT sheets

Mizz cap stays’ldownhaul & clew

Main TG sheet

“Rusty” James Craig Ship’s Dogsince recommissioning in 2001

Fig 27. Main deck pins


Fore LT brace

Fore course brace

Fore UT brace

Main tack (at rest)

Main TM stays’l sheet

Main TG stays’l sheet

Clew garnet

Course leechCourse buntsLT clew

LT bunts

UT downhaul

UT buntsTG clewTG bunts

Royal sheetRoyal clewRoyal bunt

Main TM stays’l halyard

Main gantlineTG halyard

Main truck flag halyard

Seaboat lifting falls

Main course sheets

Main TM stays’l sheet

Main TG stays’l sheet

Clew garnet

Course leechCourse bunts

LT clew

LT bunts

UT downhaul

UT buntsTG clew

TG bunts

Royal sheetRoyal clewRoyal bunt

Halyard stopper

UT halyardMain TG stays’l halyard

Royal halyard

Davit lifting falls

Main course sheets

Fore LT brace

Fore course brace

Fore UT brace

Main tack (at rest)

Davit for’d guy

Truck flag halyard


Rig conventionsHere are some of the internationally-accepted conventions that govern the positioning oflines and their belaying pins.

1. The higher the sail, the further aft its lines belay (see note #1, opposite). This providesthe fairest lead for lines and avoids chafe, the sailing ship’s greatest enemy.

2. Sheets for the square sails belay around the mast. In accordance with convention 1,the lower tops’I sheets will be on the for’d side of the mast, followed by t’gallant sheetsand royal sheets being aftermost (see note #2). The reasoning is that a ship on its beamends (knocked down) in a squall will need to let go sheets to reduce the pressure ofwind on the sails. In such a situation, if the sheets were belayed to the main rails, thelee ones may be underwater.

3. Clew garnets, clewlines, leechlines, buntlines and upper tops’l downhauls (the“gear”) are belayed at the main rail amongst the shrouds. Lines controlling the courseare grouped together, next aft is the group of lines controlling the lower tops’l, thenthe upper tops’I and so on. Aloft, the further inboard the source of the line, the furtheraft in the group on deck it will be found. This is why the leechlines and buntlines belayaftwards of the clew garnets, clewlines and downhauls.

4. Halyards belay at the main rail. Convention 1 still applies. In addition, the square sailhalyards belay on opposite sides when you compare fore and main masts. This is acustom that almost certainly comes from the days of fighting sailing ships with largecrews. The same sails on each mast could be hoisted at the same time, by largenumbers of crew running along the decks with the halyard falls. Alternating thehalyards from side to side ensured better use of deck working space. The reasoningstill holds good.

5. The headsail halyards also alternate from port to starboard. These halyards competewith the square sails for space at the mainrail. The lowest headsail is the fore topm’ststays’l. Its halyard belays at the starboard mainrail just abaft of the fore royal lines. Theinner jib is next, being on the port mainrail, and so on.

6. Main t’gallant sheets belay at the main fife rail. Although the main lower tops’l sheetsbelay at the base of the mast to the spider band, the t’gallant sheets belay at the mainfife rail which provides greater working access.

7. Jib and stays’l downhauls belay midships (on the ship’s centre line) and so will befound at focs’l fife rail, fore mast spiderband and the main mast fife rail.

Despite these conventions, in nearly every ship you will find a few lines belayed in nonconforming places. This may be because the lead is such that the line chafes in itsconventional place, or the way the pin rails were constructed is not strictly traditional.

# 1. The order of our heads’l sheets, where they belay at the main rail, does not conform tostandard practice. This is a result of the cut of the sails and our direct lead to the pinsrather than via a lead block set on the anchor deck (which was common on similarships).


# 2. Our royal sheets belay at the main rail rather than at the base of each mast. Thiswas due to the mainstay crowding the fore mast spider band, making it virtuallyimpossible to belay the fore royal sheet. It was decided to belay this line at themain rail for’d of the royal clewline. In order to preserve consistency, the main royalsheet was also belayed at the main rail.

# 3. The order of our main and mizzen stays’l sheets has been reversed as they leadmore cleanly. This lessens the possibility of the sheets fouling each other as thestays’ls are set one at a time.

Your awareness of the ship’s rig is logged on page 94.

BelayingThere are several ‘correct’ techniques for belaying (fastening) a line to a pin.To quickly and safely work the ship’s many lines, it is important that we have aconsistency for the types of belay employed for our various lines.

To pinsBegin the belay leading the line to the nearest side of the pin – whether the line leadsfrom above or from the deck (figs 29-30 ). If a line is vertical it should be taken aroundthe for’d side of the pin. As soon as possible, lay two figure eight turns clockwise aroundthe top of the pin.

Fig 29 a&b. Pins, belaying from aloft, left & right.


To spider bandsTake a full clockwise turn around the dog (see below) which helps clear the working partof the line away from the pin. As soon as possible, begin at least three figure of eightsclockwise around the top of the pin (see below).

Fig 31 a&b. Spiderband, belayingfrom aloft.Initial round turn, followed by startingfigure of eight turns clockwisearound the top of the pin.

Fig 32 a&b. Spiderband, belayingfrom deck.Initial round turn, followed by startingfigure of eight turns anti-clockwisearound the bottom of the pin.

Fig 30 a&b. Pins, belaying from deck, left & right.


To posts and single bittsUse the bollard hitch (see below) when belaying to the samson post or to a single bitt, aswith spanker sheets.

Note, that with square posts (such as our windlass carrick posts), 3-4 turns followed by asingle bollard hitch would suffice.

Fig 33 a-f. Bollard hitch.Also known as lighterman’s hitch or tugboat hitch.

a

d

b c

e f


To staghorn bollardIf line leads horizontally across the deck, take a full turn around the base and then lay atleast two figure of eights around the arms.

If line leads from above, take a full turn around one of the arms followed by at least twofigure of eights

Fig 34 a&b. Staghorn bollard.Line from across the deck.

Fig 35 a&b. Staghorn bollard.Line from aloft.


To bittsWhether belaying heavy berthing lines to deck bitts or tacks and sheets to main rail bitts,haul taut any slack, then take the line outboard behind both bitts then bring it aroundinboard to begin the figure of eight turns.

Berthing lines are worked (surged and eased) from the layout shown fig 36. Crew mustmaintain a safe distance from bitts when working berthing lines. Surging, easing, addingturns or taking turns off can all be done while remaining several feet away from the bitts (seefig 37). This ensures hands and feet are kept safe.

In some cases, taking up slack is best done by taking line off the bitts and hauling directlyfrom the fairlead. To avoid confusion, one hand should be detailed to make fast the line backonto the bitts once the slack has been hauled taut.

To make fast, five or more figure of eights are thrown on. When lines are doubled up on oneset of bitts, the first line (underneath) will only require four figure of eights.

Fig 36. Initial turn on bitts. Theline is worked from this layout.To make fast, three or four figure ofeight turns are thrown on.

Fig 37. Working a berthing line at asafe distance from bitts


Coiling linesWe use a particular method of coiling practically all ourlines (see right), the exception being lower tops’l sheets andfore tacks which are draped over their pin and windlasscarrick posts, respectively.

In belaying to a pin, after the third figure-of-eight turn, acapturing bight is looped over the top of the pin (fig 38). Theline is then coiled on deck starting from the standing end,finishing with the tail.

All lines should be coiled so that they hang at least 6 inches(15cm) off the deck. It is better to do the coils smaller ratherthan larger. If done too big, the coil will not effectively clearthe deck. Such lines will chafe and at greater risk of rot.

The coil is lifted up off the deck and ‘turned around’ so theline leads neatly off the pin and into the coil. While holdingthe coil with one arm, the other hand reaches through to thecapturing bight which is bought through the coil and aroundup and over the top of the pin.

If the capturing bight is belayed simply at the top ofthe pin, the chances are it will easily flip off and thecoil will be lost. Thus the capturing bight should bebelayed not just on the top of the pin, but jammeddown behind the figure of eights as close as possibleto the base of the pin (fig 39).

Fig 40. Lines coiled wellabove the deck.

Fig 39. Securing the coil.

Fig 38. Thecapturing bight.


Safe line handlingInjuries can easily happen while working lines. These include rope burn, being flicked inthe face, bruises, broken bones and crushed fingers and limbs.

The key rules to avoid injuries when handling lines are:

• good line preparation (figs 63-64, p 66)

• keeping the work area ordered

• staying clear of the danger zone – this being the point where lines lead intosheaves, through fairleads or onto pins and bitts, or where bights of lines lie alongthe deck

Critical danger zones include tug boat lines or berthing lines under strain, and the arcthey would sweep if they were to part.

NB: When hauling on the braces for the lower three fore yards be wary not to let thebraces ride up off the top of the pin (figs 41-43).

Fig 41. WARNINGFore braces lead from whipblocks aft, then for’d to thepins.(Photo shows portside forebraces, stern to left, bow tothe right).

Fig 42. DANGER!It is easy for any of thesebrace to ride up off the topof its pin, sending crew andpassengers spilling to thedeck.


Fig 43. SOLUTIONTo avoid this danger, the first hand onthese lines (always a James Craig hand)should just push the line downwards tothe deck, letting those hands behind himdo the hauling on the line.

Effective line handlingGood line handling involves working a line effectively and safely. There are some cardinalrules to good line handling.

• Few lines can be effectively worked by one person. In nearly all cases, two hands arerequired – one for ‘sweating’ and one for ‘tailing’ (covered within induction modules).

• If additional crew are added, they should be assisting in the sweating. Aside fromspecific lines we haul along the deck (eg. square sail halyards and braces) few linesrequire more than one hand tailing.

• Sweating quickly gets most of the job done, but for final tensioning, three burly handsshould together work, jerking the line directly downwards towards the pin. Foradditional tensioning, a handy billy is employed, eg. spanker foot outhaul or maintack (see fig 59, p 61).

Your awareness of knowing the ropes is logged on page 95.


At a loose endEfficient Deckhands, Able Seamen and Watchleaders need to know a range of knots, bends,hitches, splices and whippings (see OTEN Square Rig Training manual). New Entries, DeckTrainees and Ordinary Seamen sailing in James Craig need to be familiar with the followingcommon and useful ropework (also see James Craig FastTrack Induction Modules).

Before making fast a line, hands should ask themselves, what is it for, how tight will itbecome and will I easily be able to release it when ordered.

StoppersA stopper is a line ‘passed’ to temporarily hold a line under load. We have dedicated stopperlines rigged for our upper tops’l halyards and fore tacks.

You must ensure temporary stoppers are strong enough to take the load, eg. it would beunacceptable to use 15mm line as a stopper to hold a 50mm berthing line under load.

Stoppers can be used to hold any line whether it leads up from the deck or down from aloftor if it runs horizontally along the deck. With stoppers used for our upper tops’l halyards, aprotocol is employed for safety:

1. The Mate or Watch Leader will order “Well the upper tops’l” or “Yard home” whensatisfied with the set of the sail.

2. The first hand on the line (called the pin hand) orders “Pass the stopper”.

3. A hand (called the stopper hand) who has been hauling down on the halyard fallpasses the stopper (see figs 44-45). When complete, he orders “Ease to the stopper”,whereby all hands on the halyard allow the line to ease forward, but retain their gripin readiness to resume the strain if the stopper doesn’t hold.

5. If satisfied that his stopper is secure, the stopper hand orders “COME UP!”, wherebyexcept for the pin hand, all others immediately let go, fleeting the line towards the pinhand who makes the belay.

7. On the pin hand’s call of “Turns on”, the stopper hand clears the stopper.

The stopper hand and pin hand must be experienced and capable. Additionally, theWatchleader or Mate should ensure everyone involved is briefed on the procedure as theremay be inexperienced hands hauling on the line.

For temporary stoppers, the following procedure should be generally applied:

1. A Watchleader or AB will order “Pass the stopper”.

2. An ordinary seaman will pass it then order “Ease to the stopper”. If he is satisfied thatthe stopper is holding, he will then call “Stopper is holding”.

3. Work will be done to the line (eg. transferring the fore tack to the capstan) andeventually it will be made fast again.

4. The stopper hand will then clear the stopper, but only on the clear unambiguous orderfrom the Watchleader or AB, “Clear the stopper”.


Fig 44. Upper tops’l halyard stopper.A wide shot showing the halyard ‘fall’stoppered together with one ‘part’ of thehalyard tackle arrangement.This shares the load and reduces thestrain on the actual stopper.

Fig 45 a-d. Uppertops’l halyard stopper.

Start with one half hitcharound the halyard ‘fall’and one ‘part’ of thetackle arrangement (a).

The tail then continuesaround and above thehitch until it comes backaround, when it is fedbelow and under thestanding end (b).

The tail is then jerkedupwards away from thestanding end (c).

A single half hitch ispassed then the tail iswound back and aroundthe lines two or threetimes, ideally with thelay of the rope, and thenheld firmly (d).

a b

c d


BowlineThe Bowline is the preferred option for securing the tail of a linewhile the line is not under load. It is easy to make up, won’t slip andis easy to cast off, even after bearing a heavy load.

Two bowlines are recommended for joining two lines; where suchlines are to have a heavy load applied.

Common whippingOccasionally crew will come across lines with ends that are starting to unravel. Thecommon whipping can be done quickly and without the need for needles and palms.Your common whipping should be reported to the bosun who will have a more secureand permanent sailmaker whipping applied.

Fig 47. Common whipping (a represents oneend, b represents a long working tail).

Fig 46. The Bowline


Round turns & half hitchesWhen making fast a line that is already under load, the round turn and two half hitches isrecommended. Your round turns around a solid object enable you to work the line ifneeded before or after the half hitches are taken off.

The round turn and two half hitches can jam under load if considerable strain will beplaced on the line. If you know this is going to be the case, apply a full round turn to astaunchion or post then lead the tail off to another post or stanchion and make fast withthe traditional round turn and two half hitches. When applying the round turn and twohalf hitches, use a bight for the half hitches (see fig 48). If you must use a very long line,apply your round turn and start your hitches using a bight (see fig 49). Apply your hitchesas in fig 48. It may look bulky but will take a fraction of the time to apply and undo.

Fig 48 a-c. The round turn and two half hitches.When undoing, after the outside half hitch (c) is undone, a tug on the tail (b) will releasethe remaining inner one. The line can now be worked or cast right off (a).

Fig 49. Round turn and two half hitches using a bight.Start your half hitches from this position when working a long line.You will need a generous working bight to do your half hitches.

a b c


Fig 51. Line stowing hitchUsed for hanging heaving lines.

Fig 50. Sheetbend, left.Double sheetbend, right.

Fig 52. Gasket hitch.Used for storing spare lines & tackletails in the deck boxes.

Sheet bendTraditionally, sheets were bent onto the clew of a sailrather than spliced onto it (a bight in the boltropewould protrude out at the clew in the form of a loopand this was the belaying point). On board the ship,sheet bends are used to join two lines, where suchlines won’t come under excess stress.

Stowing hitchThis hitch (left) is used for stowing heaving lines andspare lines that are hung up for storage.

Lines stored in deck boxes should be coiled thengasket hitched (fig 52).

NB: if wet or damp, lines must be hung to dry. Theyshould never be stowed away in a deck box ordeckhead when still damp.


Your awareness of ropework (“at a loose end”) is loggedat page 95.

Pearce purchase hitchThis hitch is used to tension awning side wires, or any similar arrangement that involves twoeyes and a lanyard. By keeping friction to a minimum, it enables a surprising amount ofpurchase.

Fig 53. Pearce purchase hitch.

Small bight through hard eye, b.

Second small bight through hard eye, a.

Tail led through first small bight.

Tail led through second small bight and haul taut.

a b


Working aloftNo one is to climb aloft until he has completed the appropriate induction modules andprovided a doctor’s certificate. At all times crew climbing aloft must be doing so either inresponse to an order (as to furl a sail) or after obtaining the approval of the OOW.

At no time are passengers or visitors to climb aloft. This contravenes our insurance cover andplaces the ongoing operation of the fleet at risk.

Rules for working aloftCrew must remain familiar with the following rules. Please note they are rules and notguidelines.

1. Do not lay aloft without the express permission of your watchleader (or maintenancesupervisor on maintenance days when ship is alongside).

2. Crew climbing aloft, working 2 metres above the deck or working from the t’gallant(uppermost) rail MUST wear a ship’s safety harness.

3. Buddy checks must be performed prior to leaving the deck.

4. No climbing aloft in bare feet. Shoes or boots that enclose the feet must be worn(preferably with a heel to assist when standing on footropes).

5. Use shrouds as handholds when climbing as opposed to ratlines. Do not use runningrigging as a hand hold.

6. When you are working aloft and reach the grey safety static wires, YOU MUST CLIPON. If you wish to ‘clip on’ when not at a safety static wire, use standing rigging orstrong fixed items. Do not hook onto running rigging.

7. Do not lay out onto a yard without checking that braces are taut and that the yard iseither fully down in its lifts or set taut. In the later case, permission to lay out on theyard must be obtained from the Mate.

8. When stepping onto or off a footrope, call a warning to other crew on that footrope,ie. “stepping-on, port t’gallant” or “stepping-off, starboard royal”. Hands alreadyworking the yard will acknowledge, “stepping on, aye.”

9. Do not climb down directly from the upper to lower tops’l yards without doublechecking that you are clipped on.

10. Do not begin loosing upper tops’ls into their gear, if there are hands still working thelower tops’l yard on your side (ie. port/starboard).

11. No walking on top of yards or sliding down backstays and forestays.


Wise advice for working aloft12. Drink lots of water before and after working aloft. Keep hydrated.

13. Work safely when aloft. Do not fool around, show off or push yourself beyond yourcapacity to work safely.

14. When loosing gaskets or casting off gasket coils, loudly call “rope below” beforeletting the line drop. This ensures crewmates below can take precautions.

15. When laying aloft and laying alow, use the weather side, where one exists (eg. closehauled or reaching).

16. Take no unnecessary gear aloft. Anything taken a-loft must be secured by a lanyard.

17. When working the upper tops’l in its lifts, stand on the upper tops’l footropes ratherthan on the lower tops’I yard.

18. Before climbing the mizzen mast, check with your Watchleader that there is no dangerfrom radar or high voltage radio transmissions.

19. Avoid working alone on footropes. Having a shipmate near you, on your side of theyard even doing nothing, helps to keep you up higher against the yard and makes yourwork position more comfortable. If working alone is unavoidable, try to stand near thefootrope stirrups as this will lift you to a more comfortable working position.

20. If you need to spend time aloft waiting for crew mates, preserve your energy: climb into the shrouds to hang on more safely, climb to the tops or cross trees, or lay out to theyardarm where you can swing up and sit on the yard.

Your awareness and experience in working aloft islogged at page 96.

Fig 54. Sheet, downhaul and clew blocks are attached tothe yards (left) while bunt blocks are attached to shrouds(right).When yards are braced around, buntlines are eitherslackened or stretched as the yard moves towards or away from the shrouds. On the other hand,sheets, downhauls and clewlines travel with their yard and are not significantly affected.


Loosing sail“A better sailor thee shall be, furl from windward, loose from lee.”

Loosing sails into their gear involves hands laying aloft to cast off the gaskets securing thefurled sails. The sails do not fully hang down because their clewlines, leechlines andbuntlines still hold the sail up to the yard. When the sails are thus, “in their gear”, they areready to be set from deck.

It is advisable to have two hands working on one side of a yard at a time. This is because thefootropes are tensioned for several hands working together and one hand alone will usuallyfind himself too low on the yard to work comfortably.

Four hands can accomplish the job working in pairs each side of the mast. In this case, theyshould work in the order that sails are generally set: lower tops’l, upper tops’l, t’gallant,royal then course, or as otherwise ordered by their Watchleader.

In light winds the hands should commence casting off gaskets from the yardarms and workin to the mast. In moderate or windy conditions, the square sails should be loosed startingfrom the leeward yardarm, working to windward (fig 55). Thus the leeward pair would startand be working 4-5 minutes ahead of the windward pair. All hands loosing sail at any timeshould be wary of the possibility of the sail blowing back at them.

If the Watchleader does not lay aloft, he should designate one hand to lead the others. Thishand should check that all gaskets have been cast off, and that they have all been properlycoiled. Before sending all hands alow to deck, he should call down to check with hisWatchleader whether sails are to be set and two overhauling hands be kept aloft.

Your awareness and experience of loosing sail is loggedon page 96.

wind

Fig 55. Do not loose sail from windward.In moderate to windy weather, this creates a dangerous flogging parachute.


Setting fore & aft sailsSails are set on the order of Watchleaders, who are acting on the instructions of the OOW.Although hands may hear the OOW’s orders over the loud speaker or conveyed up the deckthey must wait for the clear unambiguous order from their Watchleader; hands may still bealoft, important lines may be unmanned or passengers may still be crowding our work areas.

Before giving the order, as a reminder to new crew, Watchleaders may summarise actionsrequired (eg. “easing downhauls and buntlines, hauling the halyard, tending braces”) butthis should not be mistaken for a call to start working lines. The order for action will beeasily identifiable by a simple description of the overall action, then the words “haul away”– eg. “Setting the main upper tops’l, haul away!” or “Sheeting home the fore t’gallant, haulaway”.

Once sails are set and trimmed, lines that were eased (downhauls, clewlines, spankerinhauls, etc.) should be slightly tensioned to prevent them from flogging and chafing.

Fore & aft sail basics• cast off gaskets

• cross the loosed sail to leeward

• haul taut on leeward sheet to take out unnecessary slack

• cast off weather sheet for running

• cast off and flake the downhaul for running

“Raising the inner jib, haul away”

• heave away smartly on the halyard

• control flog with working sheet but don’t haul taut

• sweat up the halyard till luff is taut

• sweat up the working sheet to trim

• haul taut and make fast on downhaul

• overhaul the weather sheet down and bowse it to the base of the stay with “rotten cotton”to prevent it chafing.

Fore & aft tipsBeware the main and mizzen lowermost stays’ls as they have joint clewline/downhauls. Nomatter how quickly halyard hands haul away, if the down haul is cast off (as we rightly dowith other sails), the clew and sheet blocks plummet to the deck. Thus, on these sails, thedownhaul must be eased carefully so as to keep the bullet blocks well above head height.

When tacking or wearing the ship, the best time to cross fore & aft sails across is when theship is head to wind, or when your sails are sheltered by the square sails.


When weathering fore & aft sails across in light conditions, the lee sheets can be eased andthen cast off before hauling on the weather sheets. In moderate or windy conditions, handsmust firstly haul taut the (loose) weather sheet. Hands on the lee sheets ease their lines whileweather sheet hands haul away. This ensures that control of the sail is maintained as it isworked across to lee. This is especially important if the head-to-wind opportunity has beenmissed and the sails are aback.

When retensioning sheets, turns must be taken off the pin. In light weather, the workingsheets can be “married” (fig 56). In moderate or windy conditions, a temporary stopper linemust be employed as no number of hands can safely hold the married sheets without beingropeburned (fig 57).

Fig 56. Marrying of sheets. A light weather practice.

Fig 57. Stays’l sheet stopper line.In moderate or windyconditions, a stopper isrigged from a pin railstanchion.


Setting square sailsWe have five types of square sails. You must be able to understand the mechanics of thesesails so that you can anticipate and understand what lines need to be tended when orders towork the sails are given.

The basics in setting these sails are:

Lower tops’l• cast off buntlines

• ease away clewlines

• haul away on sheets

Upper tops’l• give t’gallant sheets two feet of

slack

• cast off buntlines

• ease downhauls

• haul away halyard

• ease lee brace

T’gallant• give royal sheets two feet of

slack

• cast off buntlines


• sheet home to the marks (if sheets areover-tensioned, t’gallant foot will chafeon royal braces)


• ease lee brace

Fig 58. Casting off a clewlineoften results in the chain sheet

draping over the yardarm below.Above photo shows the t’gallant

sheet leading draping down over theupper tops’l lift and brace pendant.

The sheet would be almostimpossible to work.

Sheet(from aloft)

Bracependant(heading aft)


Royal• cast off buntlines


• sheet home securely


• ease lee brace.

Course• cast off buntlines and leech lines

• ease away clew garnets

• haul away windward tack

• haul away lee sheet.

Square sail tips:On all square sails – it is necessary to have two hands already aloft overhauling buntlines asthe sails are being set, each working one side of the mast from the shroud buntline blocks.Laying alow, they should check with their watchleader whether particular buntlines needfurther tending. If necessary, they may need to secure a buntline at its shroud bunt blockwith rotten cotton after overhauling through the required amount of slack.

Lower tops’l – sheeting down requires several hands on the line hauling from the decksheave aft and under the mainstay.

Upper tops’l – should not be set with yard braced around sharp up. As the yard is raised thehalyard chain leading into mast sheave severely chafes the mast timber (fig 62, p64).

T’gallant – the first order in setting this sail has to be “Sheeting home the t’gallant, haulaway”. If the t’gallant is not firmly sheeted home, the yard will rise too high and damage theparrel and/or mast timber (fig 62, p64).

Royals – same as above. Also, do not over-tension the royal halyard or braces. The royal yardis a light-medium weather spar. It can be damaged if stressed. Buntlines should beoverhauled before the yard is raised.

Courses – tension up the weather tack before hauling aft the lee sheet. The fore tack istensioned using the capstan while the main tack is tensioned using a handy billy, appliedtemporarily then cleared (fig 59). This tackle is rigged to disadvantage to enable a greaternumber of hands to haul horizontally along the deck.

Fig 59. Main tack handy billy.Note it is rigged to disadvantage which

enables twice the number of haulers to join inon the fall (hauling line).


Setting mizzen sailsSpankerThis sail is hauled outwards from the mizzen mast. The lee gaff vang should be triced(hauled) for’d before setting the spanker, although the sail can still be set if this is not done.

• cast off the brails and head inhaul

• haul away on the head outhaul

• when head is about half way out, begin hauling also on the foot outhaul (whilecarefully easing away the foot inhaul)

• sweat up head outhaul

• tension the foot outhaul using the handy billy

• overhaul slack on the brails using a boathook

Gaff tops’lThis is a fair weather sail that is hauled upwards, outwards and downwards.

• ease the head downhaul

• haul away on halyard (but not taut)

• ease the clew inhaul, haul away on outhaul (but not taut)

• tend foot of sail so it will set to lee of the gaff span (chain)

• tend the tack so that it leads down to windward of spanker.

• tension tack (moderately) and make fast.

• tension halyard, sweating it up for a taut leading edge and make fast

• tension outhaul and make fast

Mizzen sail tipsAlways ensure with Watchleader or OOW that radar and HF radio are not operating beforelaying aloft.

The spanker boom should be sheeted to leeward before setting the sail. This prevents theouthaul and inhaul lines flogging around the helmsman. When sheeting the spanker boomacross to port, ensure that the MOB danbuoy is unrigged.

The spanker boom and gaff spar are connected by the topping lift and will not travelindependently of each other. When sheeting the spanker outwards or hauling it amidshipsthe gaff must follow the spanker boom. If short handed, cast off the appropriate gaff vang soit can run.

The braided spanker foot inhaul and outhaul beckets should be removed before boom issheeted out over the water. To stow, they are toggled around engine control stand.


In setting the spanker, the foot inhaul must be eased carefully so as to prevent flogging.

Tension the spanker foot outhaul using handy billy rigged to disadvantage. The loss ofadvantage is outweighed by a greater number of hands on the line being able to haul moresteadily out from the mast.

In setting the gaff tops’l, if the foot does not already lay to leeward of the gaff span, haul ondownhaul while halyard is made fast. This will lift the foot up and make it easier tomanhandle the sail across to lee.

Your awareness and experience of setting sail is loggedon page 97.

Bracing yardsQuick and coordinated bracing of yards is more than just apretty sight. There are times when the OOW will demandimmediate bracing of the yards: when the ship has to be turnedor stopped quickly.

Effective bracing reduces unnecessary work for the crew asthere is no overshoot and the resulting need to brace the yardsback against the wind. This is important if hands are neededelsewhere to work other lines.

The Watchleader’s call will clearly identify the mast they areworking and what they want to achieve, eg. “Bracing to themarks, sharp on a port tack, let go and haul!” (for fore yards) or“Bracing to the marks, sharp on a port tack, mains’l haul!” (formain yards).

Brace easing hands play the key role in effective bracing. Theywill be controlling the movement of the yards, whether bracingsquare, sharp up or some point in between. In all cases, thecourse yard will always lead the other yards. All the wayupwards, a higher yard will always follow those below it. Thusthe yards come around in a spiral formation.

If this is done neatly the Watchleader should ideally be ableto give one call, “well all yards” and they would stop, alreadyspiralled to take best advantage of the apparent wind.

Fig 60. A healthy catenarywhile easing a course brace.


Bracing tips• As yards are braced around, particular buntlines and

clew garnets will tension up, either port or starboard. Therelevant lines should be eased before bracing.

• The Watchleader will let hands know what is happeningwhen he gives an order to brace yards, eg. “Bracing threepoints on a port tack .. let go and haul” (for fore yards),(“mains’l haul“ for main yards). This enables the easinghands to pay out generously at first and then to tightenup their braces when they approach their target. Toomuch slack would allow the yard to travel past where itwas meant to stop.

• Until a point or two off the desired yard angle, thecourse easing brace should have a healthy sag (calledcatenary,fig 60, p63). There is no sense in holding backthe course as its rate of travel determines the overallbracing exercise.

• The following yards should have enough catenary thatallows them to maintain their ordered position as theyards travel around.

• Watchleaders should detail an Efficient Deckhand orAble Seaman to ease the upper tops’l brace. He canoversee the other easers in front of him, “whispering”and guiding them as their yards are braced around.When bracing the fore yards, he also needs to calldirections back to the fore t’gallant and royal hands atthe main fife rail as their view is often blocked by themain square sails.

• On the Watchleader’s call “Well”, the relevant easinghand makes fast. On the Watchleader’s order “Haul tautand make fast”, two hands on each hauling brace haultaut and make fast. Braces should be taut but not bar-tight.

• When the fore braces are hauled taut, it is importantthat the fore upper tops’l braces are as tight or tighterthan the fore lower tops’l. If not, the braces lie acrosseach other and cause chafe.

Fig 62. Mast damage causedby hoisting a yard too highwhilst braced up sharp.Repairing this damage is verydifficult and time consuming.We must avoid such damage atall cost.

Fig 61. Easing brace “onthe marks”.


• In bracing to marks (sharp up or square), when theeasing hand has reached his mark and made fast, heshould call across the deck, eg. “Fore, t’gallant on themark”. Two hauling hands can then haul taut and makefast. Confirmation should come from their return call,“Fore t’gallant on the mark and made fast.” Whenmaking such calls across the deck, shout loudly andclearly, and you should only need to shout once.

• When bracing bare yards (with no sails set) be carefulnot to brace sharp up. The hoisting yards will be sittinglower and will come up against the shrouds sooner thanwhen hoisted and sails are set.

Taking in sail“It’s not too difficult to set a sail. The trick is in knowing how to takeit in smartly when required.”

Reducing sail (ie. “taking in”, “lowering”, “handing” or “brailing”) generally involves theopposite steps to setting sail. As with setting sail, it is done on the clear unambiguous orderfrom your Watchleader.

Sometimes a squall might hit the ship unexpectedly. In preparing for such situations, everyroutine taking-in of sail provides an opportunity to practise rapid sail reduction.

In addition to effective “clewing up”, a key aspect of rapid sail reduction is the safe andeffective handling of halyards. Whether for squares or fore & aft sails, halyards should bewell prepared for running. Depending on deck space and weather conditions, the bestoptions are neat figure-of-eight flaking, a clover leaf flake (figs 63-64, p66) or a neatlycapsized coil.

In all cases, the hand easing the halyard should maintain a balance between easing awaysmartly and maintaining control over the line.

Before giving the call for action, Watchleaders may summarise actions required (eg. “haulingon downhauls and buntlines, easing on the halyard, tending braces”) but this should not bemistaken as a call to commence action. Their order for action should be easily identifiableby its simple description of the overall action, then the words ‘haul away’, eg. “Lowering themain upper tops’l, haul away”.

Your awareness and experience of bracing yards islogged on page 97.


Fore & aft tipsEasing away on leeward sheets eases the pressure on the sail making it easier to run down itsstay. Sheets should be cast off to run by the time the head of the sail is down near the base ofthe stay.

Square sail tipsBefore taking in sail on a yard braced sharp up, to avoid damage to the mast or lee shrouds,two hands should be sent aft to brace the yard back (more square). Three or four fathoms ofslack can be led into the lee brace, then hauled through via the weather brace. Even twopoints will help avoid damage to the mast sheave hole. Afterwards, when the yard is in itslifts, ensure that the braces are taut and made fast.

Clew up square sails before hauling away on bunts. After a sail has been clewed up and theclewing hands gone on to the next sail, other hands can follow, bunting up.

Mizzen tipsBring in the spanker foot halfway then additionally bring in the head. Although the headouthaul can be cast off to run, the spanker foot outhaul must be eased in a controlledmanner so as to avoid the foot flogging about.

As the spanker is brought in, haul away on the lee brails so as to spill the wind in the sail(but also take up slack on weather brails so that they do not get captured inside the furledsail).

Your awareness and experience of reducing sail is loggedon page 98.

Fig 64. Clover leaf flaking.A good flake for short-mediumlength lines, especially where theyleads upwards. Because this flakedoesn’t take up much deck space, itcan be positioned almost directlyunder its pin.

Fig 63. Figure of eight deck flaking.A good all-round flake suitable for long orshort lines, leading upwards or along thedeck.


Furling sails“A better sailor thee shall be, furl from windward, loose from lee.”

SquaresThe leech is initially brought inboard and on top of the yard so that hands can lean over andtemporarily secure it under their stomachs. On the course, lower tops’l and t’gallant, theclew is captured and lifted up to the yardarm temporarily, using the outboard gasket. Thefoot boltrope is then brought up on top of the yard, again being secured by as manystomachs as possible. Hands then reach down and gather up a couple of feet of sail at a timeeventually coming to the last half metre: the skin that will cover the sail as it is rolled on topof the yard. Sail that has been flaked up is dropped and pummelled inside the skin and thetaut “sausage” is rolled up on top of the yard ready for gasketing. If the sail is furled tightly,there will be less of a ‘bundle’ on top of the yard and it will be easier for hands to movealong the footropes. To the trained eye, it will also look much smarter.

Many gaskets can be done single-handed but the yardarm hand benefits greatly withassistance for the outboard gasket. This one is always difficult due either to heavy clews (seeabove paragraph) or in the case of the upper tops’l, the taut foot boltrope not wanting to layup along the yard.

NB: Before hands lay out to furl the lower tops’l yard, it should be adjusted so that it isparallel to the upper tops’l yard. Also note that if the yards are braced sharp-up, the‘sausaged’ fore and main course sails will not clear the fore and main stays when attemptingto roll the sails on top of the yards.

Heads’lsThe sheets should be cast off. Hands on the downhauls should take up slack as the furlinghands work the hanks down to the base of the stay.

Once taut the downhaul should be made fast. The furling hands then identify the mitre seam(or a fold that runs perpendicularly out from the leading edge to the clew). A half fathom ofsailcloth either side of this seam will form the skin that covers the sail as it is gasketed. Thesail is gathered as well as possible, wrapped inside the skin and a marling hitch (blankethitch) run down the sail from the head to the clew. The final hitch is made through the clewcringle (eye) then the furled sail is made fast. Heads’ls are made fast aftwards curving out tothe jib boom outer guys.

Fore/aft sails aloftHoist the excess bunt of the sail upwards and within the mass of sail hanging from hanks.Find the dirty outer skin and working from high to low, work the mass of the sail into theskin. Pass your marling hitches as you work downwards and secure the furl by belaying thegasket tail to the mast.


SpankerThe brails form the uppermost gaskets, with a spare length of line forming a temporarygasket capturing the bunt of the sail, just above the spanker boom.

Gaff tops’lThis sail is difficult to furl due to limited working space and lack of handholds at themizzen mast doubling. Confident climbers are required to furl it.

A short line (3-4 fathoms), is cow-hitched around the lowermost bunt of the sail as ithangs in its gear. This captured bunt is then hauled upwards and inside and belayed sothat this lower part of the sail can be captured inside the skin. Find the fathom-wide dirtyskin among the outer aftmost folds of hanging sail. This captures the rest of the sail, whichis folded and punched in as well as possible.

Your awareness and experience of furling sail is loggedon page 96.

wind Fig 65. In moderate to windy weather,do not furl sail from leeward.

This creates a dangerous flogging parachute.


Fig 67. Lines prepared forberthing ‘portside-to’.

Fig 66. Safe workingof berthing lines.The key thing is tokeep feet and armswell clear of the bitts.

BerthingPreparation for berthing begins well before the shipnears the wharf. After ascertaining whether she isberthing “port side to” or “starboard side to”, theberthing lines are flaked out along the deck with eyesled through appropriate fairleads and heaving lines benton using a simple generous bowline (with no roundturns).

The gangway stage should be carried for’d to itsappropriate place and awning wires rigged.

Our berthing party of six hands wearing life vests willmuster at the ship’s pilot ladder, rigged by main watchhands (see pilot ladder photo, fig 80, p 80). The harbourtug will take them to the wharf to prepare the gangwayand to take the ship’s berthing lines.

When the ship is in range of the wharf and whenberthing party hands are in place to take them, theheaving lines are thrown ashore. The first priority is thefor’d spring followed by the stern line, and then all otherlines.

It would be poor seamanship to have no chafing gearbut it looks worse to have chaffing gear out halfwaytowards the wharf instead of at the fairlead. Thus, careshould be taken when the ship is berthing that thecanvas chafing gear does not end up out of the fairleadsbeyond reach. Keeping chafing gear well inboard whenthe berthing lines are sent ashore ensures they can becorrectly positioned once the ship has settled at herberth.

Forespring& for’dbreastline

Headline

Aftspring

Aftbreastline

Sternline


Putting the ship to bedCertain tasks need be completed before crew sit down to post-sail drinks:

• two hands to assist stewards empty the rubbish bins and clean the general purpose spaceand the heads

• awnings need to be spread

• floodlights need to be set up (on focs’l, pointing up to for’d side of fore yards; and on topof aft deckhouse and in the aft ship’s boat, both pointing up to aftwards side of mainyards)

• two hands to assist the engineer connect the shore power cable

• ensign, ship’s flag, captain’s pennant and signal flags struck

• boom centred and preventers unrigged

• sails furled and yards squared

• harnesses stowed away

• all lines coiled so they are up off the deck

• porthole scuttles opened (fig 82, p81)

• watch cards collected by Watchleaders and stowed in the chart room

• chafe gear needs to be applied to the berthing lines. If this was not possible when theship was berthing, the relevant berthing lines can usually be loosed one at a time toenable repositioning of the canvas chafe gear. In windy weather this may not be possible.If in doubt, Watchleaders should check with the Mate.

Fig 68. On ourcurved decks, setup athwartships(left), your ladderis sturdy.

Set up in a fore &aft line (right),your ladderbecomes anaccident waitingto happen.


Fig 69 a-d. Belaying the spankerboom sheets when squaring shipfor alongside.This basically involves a bollard hitchon the roller fairlead centre post.Whilst sailing, the belay is a bollardhitch on the aftmost quarterdeck bitts,port and starboard.

a

b

c

d


Spreading & furling awningsA taut awning looks pretty but more importantly, it will flog less, catch less water, stretch lessand last longer.

The rigging of ridge wires and edge wires can begin once the ship has entered shelteredwater.

Main awningWhile steaming up the harbour

• Ensure ridge wire is taut.

• Shackle the throat together andmake fast close to the fore mast.

• Rig edge wires using a PearceHitch (fig 53, p54) to ensure theyare taut.

• Bowse the edge wire up to thegangway gallows above headheight (to enable safe departure ofpassengers once the ship isalongside).

• Haul the bunt of the awningaftwards on the deckhouse.

When alongside and the deck iscleared of passengers

• Haul the bunt of the awningaftwards to the main mast.

• Make fast and haul taut the ridgeaft lanyard.

• Smartly lace the throat together,gathering it to the ridge wire,working from under the awning.

• Haul taut and make fast the for’dclews (corners).

• Haul taut and make fast the aftclews.

Mizzen awningWhile steaming up the harbour

• Rig the awning stanchions, hauling them out astaut as possible to bumpkin doublers.

• Belay the shackle ends of ridge and edge wiresaft to the spanker boom topping lift (ridge wireas high as possible, edge wires as low aspossible and in between the inner and two outerfalls of the gaff vangs).

• Belay for’d end of ridge wire to the tensioningtackle using double sheet bend.

• Tension ridge wire so as to hang a foot above thespanker boom.

• Attach ridge wire lifting bridle to mizzen truckflag halyard and lightly take up slack.

• Belay the edge wires (inside gaff vangs) forwardto the mizzen swifter (for’d shroud) using thePearce purchase hitch (fig 53, p54).

When alongside and engines shut down

• When the quarter deck is clear, spread theawning along the deck, port side.

• Haul the starb’d edge of the awning over theboom so that the ridge lizards lie upwards andare centred on the boom.

• Lower the ridge wire and make fast all theshackles.

• Take up on the ridge wire using spanker footouthaul handy billy and several hands to tensionridge wire as taut as possible.


Your awareness and experience of awning work islogged on page 99.

• Secure the gusset snug around the spanker sailand mizzen mast.

• Haul taut the awning aftwards and make fast.

• Take up on the gaff dressing halyard.

• Haul taut and make fast the for’d clews.

• Haul taut and make fast the edge lanyards eachside of the awning stanchions.

• Make fast all other edge lanyards.

• Apply chafe gear to the gaff vangs.

Furling the awning generally involves reversing thesequence of the above steps.

• Release the bowsing linebetween edge wire and gallows.

• Haul taut and make fast all theside lanyards using awninghitches. Start by making fast themiddle lanyards, port andstarboard. Then start from the aftend working forwards, port andstarboard (this provides moretime for the hands lacing thethroat to complete their task).

Furling the awning generallyinvolves reversing the sequence ofthe above steps.

Fig 70. The Awning HitchNote, that it incorporates a slippery hitch.Tugging the tail enables release underload - important if the awning was riggedslack and has collected water.


MaintenanceSailing on board James Craig is a wonderfully rewarding experience. But the ship does offermore. With regard to maintenance, we have a unique opportunity to learn the skills thatkeep these grand dames of the sea afloat and operational.

Getting involved in maintenance gives you a more intimate relationship with your ship.Shimmying through the crawl-space under our ballast blocks, over and around the fine linesof her frames and stringers; hand sanding woodwork prior to the first coat of varnish thatmagically brings out the fine wood grain; hanging like a monkey, blacking down the royalfootropes; these are the experiences that enrich our relationship with our ship.

Crew also need to acknowledge our individual responsibilities to our ship. There is a sayingamong dinghy sailors, a week in the workshop for one day on the water. If we sail on theJames Craig, we must be prepared to put in maintenance or similar support activity: guiding,shipkeeping, inducting New Entries, etc.

Such hours are logged and go towards the determining of sailing watch bills. They also gotowards our rewards system.

Crew rewards systemEvery six months crew members will be entitled to two free day cruise passes each time theyhave accumulated a total of five cruises crewed PLUS thirty hours of maintenance work orshipkeeping, ie. to qualify for a free pass you need to have done a total of five cruises PLUS30 hours maintenance or shipkeeping duties within six months.

Maintenance hours and cruising credits not availed in any six-month period may be carriedforward into the following six-month period provided at least one free pass has already beenearned in the period.

Free passes can be used during the ensuing six-month period, redeemable on the basis thatspace is available after 4pm on the Thursday but no later than 10am on the Friday prior tothe desired sailing day.

Passes will not be available for use on Premium Cruises such as Boxing Day, New Year’s Eveand similar occasions nor on private charters. On Premium Cruises crew will be able topurchase, once again on a standby basis, discounted tickets on and the cost of these ticketswill be advised to crew beforehand and preference will be given to guests of crew workingon the day/night.


Fig 71. Standard knife andspike set.Note the strands of ‘rottencotton’ used to make fastbuntlines and weather (lazy)sheets.

Crew uniformsAll crew regularly rostered for duty in James Craig are to wear the prescribed uniformwhenever passengers are embarked. The wearing of uniform not only presents a favourableimage of the ship and the Heritage Fleet which she represents, but also encouragesindividuals to strive for professional competence and to have pride in their ship and inthemselves.

The fact that crew and passengers can readily be distinguished one from the other is also asignificant factor in the efficient handling of emergencies, particularly if external assistanceis involved.

Indigo shirt (long or short sleeves) with logo; navy blue cotton drill trousers or shorts; navyblue socks (long with shorts). Authorised headwear includes navy blue or bone hats or caps,and red or navy blue beanies, all with approved logos.

Deck crew shoes may be black, dark brown, or dark blue. They should have non-skid soles,and should cover the toes. For working aloft the shoes must also have a proper instep. Boat’screw are to wear soft deck shoes, choice of colours as above.

A uniform sweater, a James Craig crew fleecy top, or a sleeveless vest (all in navy blue) maybe added if desired.

Deck crew should wear a standard knife and spike set (fig 71).

Note, that when crew are travelling to and from the ship, the carrying of the knife set inpublic is allowable under state law (under the valid recreational pursuit clause).


Crew communicationActiveCrew – is our crew email communication list. By joining the list, you automaticallyreceive updates from our Operations Manager. Individuals can use ActiveCrew to raiseissues among the crew.

JCSE – the James Craig Ship’s Executive is made up of Executive Master, Chief Engineer,Chief Steward, Training Officer, Watchleader representative and crew representative. Thisgroup oversees the onboard operation, crew training and handles decisions relating to theoverall running of the ship.

Operations manager – oversees all alongside operations including maintenance alterations,supply and other operations pertaining to the ship. He also oversees crew organisation,administration and support.

Training Officer - appointed by the Fleet Commodore to oversee James Craig crew learning(induction modules, crew grading and Watchleader training).

Watchleader representative – appointed by the Fleet Commodore to represent Watchleadersand crew at a JCSE level and to promote communication among crew.

Crew representative – appointed by the Fleet Commodore to represent crew at a JCSE leveland to promote communication among crew.

Crew noticeboard – a cork board situated in the bosun’s locker where messages, meetingminutes and other communication can be posted. Managed by the crew communicationrepresentative.

Crew suggestion box – a simple suggestion box enabling crew to easily pass on commentsand suggestions. Managed by the Watchleader representative.

Crew meetings – these chaired meetings are generally held every 3-6 months. They allowface-to-face discussion.

Crew surveys – these are instigated on a semi-regular basis. Results are directed to the JCSEand Operations Manager.

Crew contact listing – this hardcopy printout of crew phone numbers and addresses, isavailable for those of us who want to keep in contact on ship business or for social reasons.Because of privacy considerations, the list is “opt-on”. Contact the Watchleader or crewrepresentative if you want to be included in the next printout, or if your contact details havechanged recently.


HospitalityUnder the Chief Steward a team of up to four stewards looks after the safety, security, andwellbeing of the passengers with the aim of ensuring that, as far as possible, they have anenjoyable experience sailing in James Craig.

The stewards are the main point of contact between passengers and crew, and in carryingout their duties they must take particular care that passengers are kept out of harm’s way anddo not hinder the safe and efficient working of the ship.

Hospitality crew are trained in emergency procedures, and in the event of any shipboardemergency, they have a direct responsibility for the welfare of the passengers.

In addition, the stewards arrange the victualling of passengers and crew, operate as bar staff(being qualified in the responsible service of alcohol), handle the sale of merchandise, andplay a para-nursing role that supplements the work of the Ship’s Surgeon.

Stewarding is a rewarding duty, especially for those who enjoy dealing with the public.Crew can train both as stewards and in other fields, for example, deck crew, and serve inone or other capacity as desired.

GuidingJames Craig is open to the public six days a week. Our guides direct groups of guests aroundthe ship, showing her off and explaining her history. These tours are important and returnmuch valuable income for the fleet.

On board guides play a similar hosting and ambassador role during our day sails for what isa captive audience. Guiding at sea, on our working ship, adds another dimension to thisrewarding experience. Indeed, several volunteers are trained up in both roles and each daysail sees them serving either as deck crew or as guides.

Being a guide can be an incredibly rewarding and enjoyable experience. Guiding hours alsocount towards our volunteer rewards system. For more information contact the FleetEducation Officer.


Wharf 7 informationWharf 7 is a public wharf and we need to ensure the safety and enjoyment of people passingby. This is of special importance in regard to ship maintenance work being carried out on thewharf. Please ensure you get clear instructions and guidance from supervisors beforeoperating power tools or undertaking any work that passers-by might find objectionable (eg.noise, sparks or fumes).

All crew who spend time at Wharf 7 doing maintenance or shipkeeping are advised toobtain their own keycard for the onshore amenities. Please contact the Fleet OperationsManager for more information (see key contact listing).

Crew car parking is available on the wharf and in the Australian National Maritime Museumcar park but on a very limited basis; during the week from early evening onwards, onweekends in the car park. If parking is unavailable, an alternative is the Casino car park.

Wharf 7 is well served with public transport. Ferries run regularly from Circular Quay to thePyrmont Bay wharf. Light rail runs from Central Station to Darling Harbour, stopping nearthe Pyrmont Bridge Hotel. The monorail picks up from the city and stops at Harbourside atour end of the old Pyrmont Bridge. Some “Victoria Rd” buses also service the Pyrmont area.

Ongoing adventureThe James Craig day sailing calendar does not enable us to sample the day-to-dayexperience and learning opportunities of longer blue water voyaging. Those of us who arelooking to gain the fuller experience of square rig sailing should consider a sailing calendarthat hinges on James Craig but involves other ships that offer extended voyage time, many ofwhich may offer paid or unpaid crew positions:

Svanen www.svanen.com.au/index.htmSouth Passage www.staq.org.au/ship.htmlWindeward Bound www.windbound.com/Soren Larsen www.sorenlarsen.co.nz/Enterprize www.enterprize.com.au/R. Tucker Thompson www.tucker.co.nz/Spirit of New Zealand www.newzeal.com/steve/Ships/spiritNZ.htmLeeuwin www.leeuwin.com/


Fig 73. Focs’lShowing anchor deck (a), capstan (b),catheads (c), anchor windlass (d) andforedeck head (e).

Fig 74. Focs’l detailfife rail (a) and

knightheads (b).

Fig 75. Fore fife rail(also known as samson posts).

Ship spaces and deck furniture


Fig 76. Main fife rail

Fig 79. Rigging the pilot ladder.The pilot ladder has several settings, eg ‘tug’, ‘seaboat’, ‘sea level’, etc.When rigging the ladder, your mark straddles thet’gallant rail just inboard (as shown left).Belay lines should take a half hitch capturing theladder side ropes to the manrope stanchionsbefore being led down under the main rail to thetwo fixed bulwark eyebolts for final belay.NB: do not use the floating ring on the main railstanchion as a belay point for the pilot ladder.

Fig 77. Helm indicatorCurrently shows 1 turn port wheel on.

Fig 78. Quarterdeck brightwork. Looking forwards from aft, showing

saloon skylight (a), coachhousecompanionway (b)and sail hatch (c).

Ideally, the coachhousecompanionway is used by

personnel, while the sail hatchis used for moving materials

below or onto deck.a

b

c


Fig 84. Sail locker.Note the emergency steering gear hanging

behind the companionway.

Fig 81. Maintenance locker(beneath Bosun’s locker).

Fig 80. Lower hold (showing backupfirefighting & bilge pump).

Fig 82. Portholes.Includes a glass window called a scuttle

and a brass door called a deadlight.Scuttles are closed at sea, deadlights are

closed in a storm.

Fig 83. Cleaning gearlocker (adjacent toship’s heads).


Fig 89. Chain locker (lower hold)portside, viewed from aft.Note, the tools for spreading chain as thecable is heaved in after anchoring.DANGER: crew should never climb intothe actual chain locker. If working theanchor chain, a hand stands on a ladderrigged up against the outside of the locker.

Fig 88. Engineroom lazarette,viewed fromfor’d.Note the engineroom emergencyescape ladder.

Fig 87. The valves (taps)for our fire fighting

hydrants must be closedwhen not in use.

It is dangerous to have themunknowingly open when the

fire pumps are activated.

Fig 85. Yards aresupported by a truss (a)and halyard tye (b).The wire tye (c) in thisphoto is used tobalance the yard sothat the parrel (d) sitsvertically.

a

b

c

d

Fig 86. RailsThe t’gallant rail formsthe top of the bulwarks(that part of the hull thatextends up above thedeck).The main rail, below it,is supported bystaunchions andstudded with pins forbelaying lines.


Fig 90. James Craig flag points (masts and gaff).

c - Ship’s flag

a - spare e - Ship’s identificationflags (above, right)

f - spare

The ship’s flags

Fig 91. James Craigflag points (mizzenmast spreaders).

e f g h

port starboard

a b

c

d

d - Australian Red Ensign

b - AHF house flag

h - Master’s pennant(Captain Edwards)

g - spare


The ship’s bellsJames Craig has a focs’l bell, set above the anchor windlass, and a quarterdeck bell, set onthe mizzen mast.

Ship’s timeThe bells are rung to mark the ship’s time, with the quarterdeck bell being rung first and thefocs’l bell answering it. The mizzen Watchleader is responsible for ensuring the aft bell isrung on time. The fore Watchleader is responsible for ensuring the for’d bell is rung promptlyin answer.

The beginning and end of each four hour watch is marked by eight bells. With bells beingrung on a half-hourly basis, each watch is made up of

At beginning, 8 bellsat 1/2 hr, 1 bellat 1 hr, 2 bellsat 1 1/2 hr, 3 bellsat 2 hr, 4 bellsat 2 1/2 hr, 5 bellsat 3 hr, 6 bellsat 3 1/2 hr, 7 bellsat 4 hr (end), 8 bells

Our four-hour watches run 0000-0400, 0400-0800, 0800-1200,1200-1600, 1600-2000, 2000-2400.On voyages, our 1600-2000 watch is divided into two smallerwatches (of 2 hours) which gives us an uneven number of watches.This ensures the same hands do not work the same hours day in,day out. These split watches are called the dog watches (ie, theyare curtailed).

AnchoringWhen walking out anchor cable, bells are rung on the focs’l bell,indicating the number of shackles that have been paid out, eg. onebell would indicate that one shackle (90 foot of chain) has beenreached at the windlass. Two bells, two shackles, and so on.


Fig 92. Tacking the ship through the wind.

Tacking the ship

a “Stand by to come about”Helmsman bears off a point to gather way

b “Helms a-lee” (helm eased down)Spanker hauled amidships

c “Lee ho”Helm eased across to leeLet flog the heads’lsStrike main & mizzen stays’lsRise tacks & sheets on the main and forePrepare to brace main yards

d Back the heads’ls“Mains’l haul” (brace main sharp on starb’d tack,possibly “bracing by the wind”, (see page *)If ship loses way then makes sternway, “Helmshard a-weather”

e Weather heads’ls across for new tack

f “Let go & haul” (brace fore sharp on starb’d tack,once main fills)Sheet the spanker to leeSet mizzen and main stays’lsHarden up heads’l sheetsTrim all sails for new tack“Steer full & by”

Depending on the Master, and crewcompetence and numbers.

Vessel should come up to wind rapidly fromapproximately seven points to two points.

Crew may be ordered to “Brace-to the fore yards”, ie.to brace the fore yards back so that they are a-shiver.


a “Stand by to wear ship”Begin brailing spankerBegin handing mizzen and main stays’lsHarden up heads’l sheets

b “Helm’s a-weather”Prepare to brace main yardsRise tacks and sheets on main

c “Mains’l haul” (brace main yards square)Sheet spanker boom across to weatherPrepare to brace fore yards

d “Let go and haul” (brace fore sharp on starb’d tack)Weather heads’ls for new tackRise tacks & sheets on foreRise tacks & sheets on the main

e “Mains’l haul” (brace main sharp on starb’d tack)Set the spankerSet mizzen and main stays’lsTrim heads’l loose, just off the flog

f Harden up heads’l sheets

g “Steer full & by”Trim all sails for new tack

Wearing the ship

Fig 93. Wearing the ship around with the wind.

Your awareness of sailing evolutions is logged on page 98.


A maritime dictionaryAback: sailing; when the wind shifts ontothe ‘back’ side of a sail (eg. for’d side of asquare sail, lee side of a fore/aft sail).

A-cockbill: anchoring; an admiralty anchorhanging from its cat head ready to let go.

Adrift: slang; late, absent.

Ahoy: order; standard hailing cry to attractattention.

All in the wind: sailing; said of a vessel’ssails when going from one tack to the otherand the luffs are shaking. Can also be dueto poor steering when sailing close to thewind.

Anchor’s aweigh: anchoring; cry indicatingthat the anchor has broken clear of thebottom.

A-shiver: sailing; a sail that has the windblowing directly across it, and if anything,is slightly aback.

Avast: order; to stop or pause in anyoperation.

Back: sailing; to purposefully trim thesquare sails so that the wind is on their foreside – or with fore/aft sails, so that theweather sheet is working.

Beam ends: sailing; state of a vessel that haslisted to such an angle where her deckbeams are almost vertical and she is unableto right herself. This may be caused byheavy seas or squalls or by her cargoshifting.

Bear a hand: order; exclamation generallymeaning to assist.

Belay: order; meaning stop or to secure aline around a belaying pin.

Billboard: anchoring; steel or iron plate ortimber board fitted to receive the flukes of astocked anchor when it is hoisted andsecured.

Bitter end: anchoring; inboard end of theanchor cable. To pay out a rope until thebitter end is to pay it out till there is nomore to let go.

Black down: rigging; to apply a coating oftar to the rigging in order to preserve it.

Board: order; to haul taut on the courseweather tack when close hauling, eg.‘Board the main tack’.

Bone: sailing; the foam at the stem of a shipcaused by her motion through the water.When foam is very heavy the ship is said tohave a “bone in her teeth.”

Bowsprit cap: rigging; iron fitting at the endof the bowsprit, with a hoop or ring to takethe jib boom.

Box off: sailing; when the ship has come upinto the wind due to windshift or poorhelming, to purposefully back the headsailsand fore mast sails so that the ship’s headbears off with the wind.

Brace in: (brace back) sailing; to brace ayard so that it lies more athwartships.

Brace pendant: rigging; length of chainattached to yardarm to which a yardarmbrace block is attached.

Brace to: sailing; in tacking or wearing, tobrace a yard around so that the sail ismarginally aback, the wind partly strikingits forward side.

Brace up: (brace sharp) sailing; to brace ayardarm so that it lies closer to the fore andaft line of a ship.

Bristol fashion: slang; very efficient, neatand seamanlike.

Bucko mate: slang; the brutal mates ofAmerican merchant ships of the late 1800s,early 1900s, renowned for driving theircrews hard.


Bumpkin: rigging; small boom or outriggerprojecting either side of the ship to take thebrace blocks.

By the wind: slang; penniless.

Cap: rigging; the fitting that holds an uppermast running through one hole, firmlyagainst the top of a lower mast which fits inthe other hole.

Cape Horn fever: slang; a malingerer’sfeigned illness in bad weather.

Cat: anchoring; to hoist an anchor by itsring from the hawse up to the cat-head sothat it hangs there ready to let go or forfishing it inboard and onto the anchor bed.

Chafing board: rigging; piece of timberpositioned to prevent chafing.

Chapelling: sailing; putting the ship’s headthrough the wind without bracing her yards,through careless steering or a suddenchange of wind.

Cheeks: rigging; flat timbers or iron platesbolted either side towards the top of a mastand projected forward to form a bracket tosupport the heel of an upper mast.

Clear hawse: anchoring; when a ship islying to two anchors and the cables leadaway to their anchors without crossing orfouling.

Clew iron: (spectacles) rigging; fittingconsisting of 3 or 4 metal rings used at theclew of a sail to take the sheets, clew linesand other ropes.

Close-hauled: sailing; when the ship issailing close into the wind – ie. withweather tacks boarded as far forward on theweather side of the ship.

Come up: order; for hands to drop the linethey have been holding, fleeting it towardsthe hand at the pin.

Cross his bows: slang; to interrupt andannoy someone.

Cross-trees: rigging; timbers laidathwartships at the top of a mast. Supportedby the cheeks and trestle trees, they carrythe framework of the top and increase thespan of the shrouds.

Crossed hawse: anchoring; conditioncaused when a vessel lying to two anchorsis swung around by wind or tide so that theanchor cables become crossed.

Cut of his jib: slang; the characteristicmanners of a crew member.

Donkey’s breakfast: slang; a mess,something very badly performed.

Doubling: rigging; the overlap where twomasts join, ie. the top of the lower mast andthe bottom of the upper mast.

Drip: slang; a complainer, usually with nojust cause.

Ease away: order; slacken a rope or tacklegradually.

Every inch of it: order; to hands hauling ona rope to take up any vestige of slack.

Fid: rigging; square section of wood or ironinserted through a hole in the heel of thetopmast and which rests on the trestle treesupporting the mast.

Fish: anchoring; to hoist the flukes of ananchor aft and upwards after it has beencatted in preparation to stowing it.

Gooseneck: rigging; the connecting trussbetween yard to parrel that allows multi-directional movement.

Gunnels under: slang; overloaded withwork or with drink (drunk).

Hand-over-hand: order; to hands to haul incontinuous and rapid motion, by alternatingone hand in front of the other along therope.

Handsomely: order; to do somethingcarefully and gradually.


Haul taut: order; for hands to take up theslack on a rope.

Haul: order; for hands to begin heaving ona particular rope.

Hauling: sailing; to sail with the windbefore the beam.

Heave and hold: order; pull vigorously andhold onto any gain.

Heaving ahead: anchoring; advancing theship by heaving in on a cable secured to ananchor some distance ahead.

Heel: rigging; the lower end of a mast. Thelower mast heel rests on a step, but that of atop mast stands on a fid.

Heel: sailing; when a vessel leans over toport or starboard due to wind pressure.

Hounds band: rigging; metal band roundthe upper part of a mast to which theshrouds are attached.

Hounds: rigging; projections on either sidethe head of an upper mast

In irons: sailing; said of a vessel when herhead is to the wind and she will not pay offon either tack.

In stays: sailing; situation of a vessel undersail with her head to the wind as she isgoing about from one tack to the other.

Lay aloft: order; for hands to climb aloft,usually to loose or furl sail.

Lay alow: order; for hands to climb backdown, to lower yards or to the deck.

Lay in: order; when working on the yards, tomove inwards along the footrope towardsthe mast.

Lay out: order; when working on the yards,to move outwards towards the yardarms.

Lee ‘fore’ brace: order; to haul on theleeward fore braces to sharpen up the sailsand sail closer into the wind.

Let go and haul: order; given for the foreyards to be braced around.

Let go: order; cast off a berthing line orother rope, eg. ‘Let go the brails’.

List: sailing; when a vessel leans over toport or starboard due to shifting cargo orballast.

Long stay: anchoring; when the anchor iswell away from the bows and the cableleads away from the hawse angling outtowards the anchor.

Luffed: slang; caught or detailed for anunpleasant task.

Made mast: rigging; mast made up of two ormore poles slotted together.

Mainsail haul: order; given for the mainyards to be braced around.

Make fast: order; to secure a line.

Martingale: (dolphin striker) rigging; shortiron spar pointing downwards from the endof the bowsprit, spreading the martingalestays and countering the upward pull by theforestays on the jib boom end.

Mast bands: rigging; metal bands round amast fitted with lugs to take blocks.

Missing stays: sailing; said of a vessel whenit is tacking and fails to complete themanoeuvre, often because of too light awind.

Money for old rope: slang; very easy job.

Old man: slang; affectionate nickname forthe master of a merchant ship irrespective ofhis age.

On a bowline: sailing; close-hauled andwith the leeches as taut as possible.

On the right tack: slang; taking the rightapproach.

Paddy’s purchase: slang; derogatory term fora rope lead that increases work rather thansaves it.


Parrel: rigging; a leather-lined metal collarwhich slides up and down the mast. It formspart of the truss which attaches a yard to itsmast.

Pay off: sailing; said of a ship’s head fallsaway with the wind when tacking orwearing ship.

Peggy: slang; nickname for a seamandetailed to clean the mess.

Pipe down: slang; keep quiet.

Raise tacks and sheets: order; given whentacking to raise the course clews, thusallowing that yard to be more easily bracedaround.

Rally on: order; encouragement to heavewell and heartily.

Ranging cable: anchoring; laying out ananchor cable in order to examine it forweak links, rust or other defects.

Reach: sailing; to sail with the wind on thebeam.

Roundly: order; to carry out an orderquickly.

Running: sailing; to sail with the wind abaftthe beam.

Sail close to the wind: slang; to take achance, especially with authority oraccepted shipboard standards.

Scandalise: sailing; to deliberately set aship’s yards in disarray with sails hanging intheir gear. It was a traditional way ofmourning the dead.

Scope: anchoring; the length of cable runout when a ship rides to anchor.

Scotchman: rigging; piece of leather orwooden batten placed over standing riggingto prevent chafing.

Scuppered: slang; frustrated or defeated.

Shackle: (shaykil) anchoring; a standardlength of anchor cable – 15 fathoms (or 90feet). A joining link indicates the end ofeach “shackle”.

Sharp up: sailing; when the yards arebraced as far forward as they will go. Theship is then ‘sharp up’ by the wind.

Sheerpoles: rigging; metal bars lashedhorizontally across the shrouds just abovethe dead eye blocks to prevent twisting.

Sheet home: order; haul on the sheets andfully extend a sail.

Shellback: slang; old sailor who spins well-embroidered yarns of his sea experiences.

Short stay: anchoring; when the anchor isrelatively close to the ship and the cableleads downwards towards it.

Shorten sail: sailing; to reduce the sail areaof a vessel underway by reefing or furling,or both.

Spreaders: rigging; extensions on each sideof the cross-trees to spread the t’gallant androyal backstays.

Stand on: sailing; to continue on coursetowards the land, or towards any otherdestination.

Swallow: rigging; the slot cut out of a mastor spar to take a sheave.

Swing: anchoring; movement of a ship fromside-to-side at anchor due to wind or tide.

Tail on: order; lend a hand in hauling on aline.

Take in: sailing; to lower or reduce sail.

Three sheets in the wind: slang; drunk.

Tide rode: anchoring; when a ship is swungto her anchor by the tidal current, thus withher head pointing into the tide.


Trend: anchoring; the angle (from the ship’scentre line) at which an anchor cable runsaway from the ship

Trestle trees: rigging; two strong pieces oftimber place fore and aft, resting on thecheeks at the head of a mast. Those on thelower mast support the cross-trees, top andtopmast. Those on the topmast support thecross-trees and t’gallant mast.

Trice up: order; to haul blocks or tackle outof the way and secure them temporarilywhile performing a particular operation, eg.‘Trice up the vang tackle’, (while setting thespanker).

Tricks: slang; watches on duty.

Truss: rigging; (“aka goose-neck”) the metalarm that secures the yard to the mast.Course yard is trussed and supported by achain sling. Lower tops’l is trussed andsupported by an iron stay. Raising yards aretrussed and supported by halyard tyes.

Up and down: anchoring; condition of thecable when it is vertical and the anchor isdirectly under the bows of the ship.

Veer: anchoring; to slacken a cable so thatit may run out.

Walk away: order; haul on a rope byholding onto it and walking away with it.

Walk back: order; walk back towards apulley or tackle while holding onto its fallthus easing the load.

Weather ‘fore’ brace: order; to haul on theweather fore braces (eg. in order to squareup the yards).

Weather anchor: anchoring; in a shipcoming in to anchor, the anchor on itsweather bow.

Whisker booms: rigging; iron spars whichproject from the cat heads in order tospread the jib boom rigging.

Whistle up a wind: slang; to indulge in vainhopes of achieving something.

Wind rode: anchoring; when a ship isswung to her anchor by the wind, thus withher head pointing into the wind.

Wrung: rigging; term used to describe amast bent or strained out of its naturalposition by badly set up rigging.

Yardarms: rigging; the outer ends of a yard.

(Yard) quarters: rigging; the distancebetween the middle of a yard and thehalfway point out towards the yardarm.


Experience logs

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The following experience logs contain activities in black, blue and red text.

• Ordinary Seamen are expected to be signed off on all black text activities.

• Efficient Deckhands, Able Seamen and Watchleaders are expected to be signed off onall black items and all blue text activities.

• Deck trainees, Ordinary Seamen, Able Seamen or Watchleaders who are additionallysigned off on all red text activities contained in the Working Aloft and Maintenancelogs will be given the additional classification of Topman.

WARNING: Deck Trainees and Ordinary Seamen must not attempt any blue text activitiesunless supervised by OOW, Watchleader or a properly delegated hand.

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WOO

)yzal(tolipduM

tolipduM

esruocssapmocotreetS

yb&llufreetS

pihskcathguorhtreetS

pihsraewhguorhtreetS

Name

GNIPPILS/AESROFGNIRAPERPytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

seitudaes-erphctawerofebircseD

seitudaes-erphctawniamebircseD

seitudaes-erpnezzimebircseD

seitudytraperohsebircsed-gnippilS

ytraperohsdael-gnippilS

senilgnihtrebeldnah-gnippilS

serudecorpyawgnagebircsed-gnippilS


Name

GIRS'PIHSEHTytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

sraps&stsams'pihsehtemaN

sliass'pihsehtemaN

gniggirgnidnatsmoobbijehtemaN

gniggirgnidnatstsamerofehtemaN

gniggirgnidnatstsamniamehtemaN

gniggirgnidnatstsamnezzimehtemaN

KROWROHCNAytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

etaM

rohcnaehtnignivaehrofssaldniweraperP

rohcnaehttuogniklawrofssaldniweraperP

ekarbetarepO

pilswercsekalBesaeleR

pilswercsekalBylppA

gnikrowrofenilesaeler-rohcnagiR

murdgniprawnoenilesaeler-rohcnaehtkroW


Name

DNEESOOLATAytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

reppotsagnissapetartsnomeD

)otgnicaf(enilwobetartsnomeD

)yawagnicaf(enilwoBetartsnomeD

sehctihflah2nrutdnuoretartsnomeD

thgibnosehctihflah2nrutdnuoretartsnomeD

hctihgniwotseniletartsnomeD

hctihecahcrupecraePetartsnomeD

dnebteehsetartsnomeD

gnippihwnommocetartsnomeD

SEPOREHTGNIWONKytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

snoitnevnocgniggirebircseD

snipehtemaN

nipdemanynaotdnahruoytupyletaidemmI

snipotgniyalebetartsnomeD

sdnabredipsotgniyalebetartsnomeD

drallobnrohgatsotgniyalebetartsnomeD

stsopotgniyalebetartsnomeD

senilfogniliocetartsnomeD

senilesoolfogniwotsetartsnomeD

gnildnah-enilevitceffefossenerawaebircseD

gnildnah-enilefasfossenerawaebircseD


Name

GNILRUF&GNISOOLytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

)hctihteksag(teksagagniwotsetartsnomeD

teksagagnissapetartsnomeD

sliasllagnisoolfossecorpehtebircseD

sliastfa/erofllagnilruffossecorpehtebircseD

sliaserauqsllagnilruffossecorpehtebircseD

sliaspotreppu&rewolgnikrowniseussiehtebircseD

TFOLAGNIKROWytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

nempoTrofstnemeriuqerlanoitiddaeraderniseitivitcA L/W

selurtfolagnikrowemaN

esruocnoelbatrofmoC

sliaspotnoelbatrofmoC

stnallag'tnoelbatrofmoC

slayornoelbatrofmoC

nezzimnoelbatrofmoC

asrevecivdnal'spotrewolotreppumorfbmilC

ssurt/kcenesoogssorca,rehtoehtotdrayhcaefoedisenomorfbmilC


Name

LIASGNITTESytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

sliastfa/erofgnittesfossecorpehtebircseD

sliaserauqsgnittesfossecorpehtebircseD

reknapsgnittesfossecorpehtebircseD

l'spotffaggnittesfossecorpehtebircseD

sliastfa/eroffognittesehtetartsnomed&ebircseD

sliaserauqsfognittesehtetartsnomed&ebircseD

reknapsehtfognittesehtetartsnomed&ebircseD

l'spotffagehtfognittesehtetartsnomed&ebircseD

SDRAYGNICARBytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

gnikrowrofsecarberaperP

gnicarbrofsdrayeraperP

sdnahgnisaedaeL

skramotsdrayfognicarbetartsnomed&ebircseD

skramneewtebsdrayfognicarbetartsnomed&ebircseD

WOO

WOOybdetseuqersasdrayehtlaripS


Name

SNOITULOVELIASytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

LW

sredroleehwlanoitidartebircseD

WOO

pihsgniraewnisredrodnaspetsebircseD

pihsgnikcatnisredrodnaspetsebircseD

kcabamorfgnirevocernispetsebircseD

LIASGNICUDERytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

sl'syats&sl'sdaehfonignikatebircseD

reknapsfogniliarbebircseD

l'spotffagfognidnahebircseD

layorfognirewolebircseD

tnallag'tfognirewolebircseD

l'spotreppufognirewolebircseD

l'spotrewolfognidnahebircseD

esruocfognidnahebircseD

sl'syats&sl'sdaehfonignikatetartsnomeddnaebircseD

reknapsfogniliarbetartsnomeddnaebircseD

l'spotffagfognidnahetartsnomeddnaebircseD

layorfognirewoletartsnomeddnaebircseD

tnallag'tfognirewoletartsnomeddnaebircseD

l'spotreppufognirewoletartsnomeddnaebircseD

l'spotrewolgnidnahetartsnomeddnaebircseD

esruocgnidnahetartsnomeddnaebircseD

WOO

liasfonoitcuderdiparycnegremeetartsnomeddnaebircseD


Name

KROWGNINWAytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

L/W

gninwanezzimfognidaerps&gnilrufehtebircseD

gninwaniamfognidaerps&gnilrufehtebircseD

gninwaretfaniamfognidaerps&gnilrufehtebircseD

gninwad'roffognidaerps&gnilrufehtebircseD

hctihgninwaehtetartsnomeD

hctihesahcrupecraePehtetartsnomeD

KROWECNANETNIAMytivitcA ybdengiS etaD

nempoTrofderiuqereradernismetiesehT nusoB

sduorhskcottuftnallag'tevoba,gniggirgninnurfonwodgnikcalB

sduorhskcottuftnallag'tevobamorf,liasgnidneb&nwodgnidneS

riahcs'nusoBehtniylefas&ylbatrofmockroW

james craig crew handbook

Documents

initial crew handbook

james craig ships executive

executive master james

james parbery

ships flags84

ships bells85

ropes ships rig

square sails62