Shackle ?

[captainbob]

I am building a gaff sail yawl and on the sail plan, which is also the rigging diagram, it has the word "shackle" at the top of the gaff.  Is the topping lift attached to the line looped around the end of the gaff with a metal shackle, or is there a special knot called a shackle, or . . .? 

 

Curious minds want to know, and I do too.

 

Bob

 

[russ]

Bob:

That is the gaff halyard to which you refer.

 

As for the shackle, I have not seen a shackle used like that, nor am I aware of any knot with that name. I would think there would be stop cleats on the gaff to hold that seized halyard line in place.

 

Russ

[JerseyCity Frankie]

Its probably a metal shackle in my opinion. The standing end of the Peak Halyard would have an eye spliced into it (probably with a metal thimble within the eye) and this is schackled to the end of the gaff. The gaff would have to have an iron band at its end at the point where the line terminates in your plan, and this band would have an eye. The shackle would connect the halyard to the spar at this point. Have you got another drawing of the gaff showing a band at that point? Incidentally if there is a shackle here, there will likely be shackles all over the rig, wherever blocks are attached or where other lines originate in the rig. I agree with the guy above that there is no common knot called a "shackle".

[captainbob]

As you can see the top of the mast is finely detailed with bands around the mast and rings holding the blocks to the bands.  There is no band shown at the end of the gaff to mount anything to.  If I forget about the word shackle and tie the end of the halyard to the gaff, what knot should be used? 

 

Bob

[russ]

Bob:

I have seen the halyard seized around the gaff and stop cleats used to keep it from running back along the gaff.

 

Russ