hog ring plier is then used to crimp the U into a C shape, through the hog’s nostrils. Te purpose is to keep the hog from burrowing. Te pliers and rings are available in
stainless steel at most marine stores. When crimped around a bungee card, to form a loop for example, the com- pressed ring buries itself below the surface of the bungee cord and tightly fastens them together. Now on to build- ing the sail centipede. We need some measurements before
we can start. Measure the distance from the mast to whatever you are going to connect with on the end of the boom. Next decide how many centipede legs you want to go around the sail/boom. At each of those locations, measure the distance around the sail and boom. You may also want to place a small piece of blue masking tape at each of these loca- tions for future use. Terminate the end of a long piece of
bungee cord with a hook. I prefer to use plastic hooks designed for making DIY bungee cords. This hook will attach to your connection at the end of the boom. Attach the hook to the boom end and stretch out the bungee cord along the top of the sail and around the mast. Stretch the bungee cord slightly. You want it under some tension but not bar-tight. Overstretching bungee cords tends to break the rubber strand under the bungee cord cover and leads to premature failure. Note where the free end of the bun-
gee crosses the stretched bungee and mark. Tis is where the mast end hook will be installed. To attach the central bungee cord, stretch it around the mast and hook it over the taut bungee. Cut enough lengths of bungee cord
to equal the number of blue-tape tick marks on top of the mainsail. These should be long enough to form a loop in one end and pass around the mainsail/ boom. Form that loop using a hog ring to secure it. It should be large enough to allow a wooden toggle to pass through. A word about those wooden toggles.
You could spend the time and cut them to length from a dowel, then sand them to shape. A better solution is to look up “wooden toggles” on Amazon. You will find dozens of different designs and in different quantities. Typically, they are 2" long and 1/2" in diameter. Select one
56 ABOVE—Your own sail centipede, customized for your boat.
ABOVE—Loop ends, toggle ends and hook ends, all the pieces you’ll need to make your own sail centipede.
you like, hopefully it will have one or two holes drilled through the middle. Tread the free end of a short bun-
gee though the loop. Stretch it tight enough to hold the mainsail securely on the boom and mark the spot where the free end passes though the loop. Tis is where you will locate the toggle. Ideally, your toggle will have one or two holes. Feed the free end of the bungee through the hole(s) and tightly wrap it
around the toggle and fasten in place with a hog ring. Position the toggle/loop at the bot-
tom of the boom and lock the short bungee onto the central bungee with a hog ring. Do the same with the remain- der of the bungee cords. At the finish of this project, you will
have a custom sail centipede optimized for your particular boat. Not a bad weekend project! •SCA•
SMALL CRAFT ADVISOR
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