Clarity in Cleats
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D E C K H A R D WARE Midship cleats are often mounted on the toerail where they are backed and Clarity in reinforced by the thick solid fiberglass at the hull-to-deck joint. Although only two bolts secure the cleat, the usual loads Cleats on a spring line will align with the bolt pattern. A breast-line would not. Note that using an eyesplice here defeats a key advantage of a cleat: allowing a line to be cast off under load. The concept of a cleat as a securing mechanism goes back to the 1400s, when antecedents to modern horn- type belaying cleats began to arrive on the scene. Eventually iron and bronze cast renditions were bolted to timber deck planking that incorporated ad- ditional under-deck reinforcement and load-spreading backing blocks. Today, in a era of stiff, light, foam-core Are boatbuilders taking this essential decks, there’s a need to carefully con- sider how energy is dissipated around piece of deck hardware for granted? cleat attachment points. For one thing, n average, a sailboat that’s used 60 yet most essential piece of hardware. higher-density “infills” are necessary Otimes a year actually spends only For centuries, timber-built craft re- in regions where bolts secure a cleat to about 6 percent of its annual cycle un- lied upon one or two parallel vertical a cored deck. Some builders avoid this derway. During the rest of the time, it’s posts, often call “bitts,” that passed extra effort by placing cleats near the either tied up, moored, anchored, or through the deck after being fastened toerail, where the core is eliminated and hauled out for maintenance, and when to the keelson, floor frames, and deck the two fiber re-inforced plastic (FRP) tallied up, this time can total as much beams. Lines were secured to these skins of the deck have been brought as 94 percent of the year. That means “Samson posts,” a nickname that allud- together. This can be an adequate ap- that cleats (and docklines), rather than ed to pillars that only Samson was able proach as long the laminate is thick the person at the helm, will likely be in to tear down. The trend to secure these enough or backed with a reinforcing control of your sailboat’s destiny when line-handling bitts to major structural (load-spreading) plate or extra units of the worst squall lines and cold fronts components of the vessel was based FRP, and shoulder washers are used. batter the fleet. upon function rather than fashion, and In addition to the structural issues From this data, we can draw two im- it stemmed from the huge tension loads involved, there are concerns over line portant conclusions. The first is that we that could be imparted by docklines, leads and the need to make cleat use as all need to spend more time underway, tow warps, and anchor rodes. Bitts, safe and efficient as possible. It’s easy to Photos by Ralph Naranjo and the second underscores the impor- along with the spoon-bow sloops and lose sight of how much energy a cleat tance of the cleat as an elegantly simple, schooners that sported them, have all must handle. In addition to steady-state but disappeared from the line loads (normally in shear), there are waterfront, but the need a variety of angle and load oscillations for secure points to attach associated with surging line loads. Fluc- the cleats that usurped the tuations in the intensity can be linked to role of the Samson post are tidal rise and fall, along with force mul- as important as ever. tipliers such as gusts and boat wakes. Seiching, for example, is a low-fre- quency sloshing akin to what happens This heavy-duty bitt on in a bowl of soup that’s held in shaky the Coast Guard Rescue hands. The net effect of such outside 47 cutter is also found on forces is to accelerate a tied-up ves- many oceangoing yachts. sel, adding a tension oscillation to the The bitts can accommo- docklines or anchor rode. In many West date multiple turns and Coast harbors, submarine canyons en- thick-diameter lines. hance this large-scale undulation, and 8 MARCH 2010 WWW.PRACTICAL-SAILOR.COM D E S I G N D ETAILS Race-boat Alternatives he object of a racing boat is to keep moving, not sit Tstill, so it’s no real surprise that cleats aren’t a high- priority item. Aside from adding weight, cleats are notori- ously effective at snagging sheets and guys, pushing them further down the list of “must haves” on a good racing boat. In fact, some racing boats we looked at for this article did not even have cleats on the foredeck to take an anchor or bowline. The weld on this eyelet (right) is not designed to take the loads in the direction of pull of a dockline. Also, releasing the line under load will require a knife. Other makers, however, found folding designs and pop-up cleats (far right) to be a fair compromise. But corrosion and grit soon take the “pop” out of pop-up cleats. For cruising boats, PS still recommends the no-nonsense fixed cleats, always at the ready when you need them. seiching can greatly increase the wear and hardware and securing methodol- this meant on the transom rather than and tear on both lines and cleats. ogy were sound enough to do the job. the deck itself. The result was a new set Cleats are the lynchpin in keeping a In a few cases, such as with the “flip- of point loads on the hull skin, plus a vessel where it belongs when conditions up” horn cleats found of the luxury very awkward perch for line-handlers. deteriorate. Recognizing their impor- line of Oyster Yachts, there were true This lackadaisical approach to cleat tance, we sent Practical Sailor Techni- design innovations. But we also noted placement and the growing trend in the cal Editor Ralph Naranjo to the recent that some of the other hide-away cleat race-boat fraternity toward eliminating Annapolis and Miami boat shows on designs had to cope with water drainage “cleat clutter” altogether, occasionally a mission to scrutinize the amount of and less-than-robust support structure, resulted in docklines being tied to pul- attention designers, builders, and bro- compromises that may not pay off in the pit stanchions, chainplates, and even kers have been placing on these crucial long run. Even worse, some designers stays and shrouds! components. On his checklist were bul- and builders seem to have dubbed cleats It seemed that less and less concern let points such as hardware positioning, passé, substituting hard points such a was given to the ergonomics of handling fastening means, and most importantly, rings and eyes as alternatives for line at- a line on a cleat. It’s understandable that how the cleat handled the job at hand. tachment. A few builders seemed to be a foredeck crew in the midst of a spin- He also looked to see whether the cleats placing cleats wherever they could find naker peel doesn’t want obstructions in (and chocks when used) were large room to stick them. And in some cases, the middle of their “court,” especially enough to accommodate appropriate sized lines and anti-chafe gear. And finally, if a storm was in the forecast, how would the “doubling up” of dock- lines be handled? These cleat-focused show visits re- vealed more than we initially antici- pated: They highlighted that in many cases, a seafaring tradition lives on, The Sparkman & Stephens-designed yawl Manitou, the “floating White House” sailed by John F. Kennedy while he was president, sports a tradi- tional Samson post. Passing through the deck and tying into the stem below, the Samson post is engineered to withstand heavy anchoring and mooring loads. PRACTICAL SAILOR MARCH 2010 9 D E C K H A R D WARE 1 2 3 Picks and Pans ones with lethal horns eager to snag 1. The four-bolt cleat on the custom S&S a lazy guy or sheet. But from the op- Palawan VI takes snubbing loads from the posite point of view, a crew adjusting anchor in a location that is easy to work. docklines in a rough, gale-swept harbor needs easy access to securely mounted 2. A pop-up cleat and a open chock hardware. keep the decks clear. But sharp bends at A growing concern is that many the chocks invite chafe, and tight cleats manufacturers seem more concerned impede doubling of lines for a storm. with how cleats and chocks look, rather than how they work. The most impor- 3. Big bitts and a hefty winch cleat stand tant consideration is whether or not a ready to accept multiple lines or rodes. deck cleat carrying a full load can be handled without potentially sacrific- 4. The Friendship 53’s chocks and cleats ing fingers. are elegant, but leave little room for Sheet-handling cleats in the cockpit fingers or chafing gear. belay lines that have been load damp- ened via turns around a winch drum. 5. The hawsehole on the Cabo Rico 56 Just the opposite is true with a deck allows room for big lines and chafe gear, cleat. The energy contained in a stretch- ing bow or spring line goes directly to a 4 but leading sternlines to a winch can bend the winch’s spindle, or worse. cleat. The load in the line is only slightly abated by a partial or full turn around the cleat, and when a crew member has a line in “hand,” good cleat placement allows a quick wrap to be taken without any appendages having to be placed in harm’s way.