Gaff Rig Article Index for
Gaff
Website Links For
Rig
 

Information About

Gaff Rig




Gaff rig is a Sailing rig in which the Mainsail is a four-cornered Fore-and-aft Rig ged sail controlled at its Head by a Spar called the ''' Gaff '''.

A sail hoisted from a gaff is called a gaff rigged sail. Any mast may carry a gaff rigged Course Sail .

Gaff rig remains the most popular rig for Schooner and Barquentine mainsails and other course sails, and Spanker sails on a Square Rig ged vessel are always gaff rigged. On other rigs, particularly the Sloop , Ketch and Yawl , gaff rigged sails were once common but have now been largely replaced by the Bermuda Rig sail.

On larger gaff rigged vessels, the gaff is hoisted by two Halyard s:

  • The Throat or main halyard lifts the end closer to the mast, and bears the main weight of the sail and the tension of the Luff .

  • The peak halyard lifts the end further from the mast, and bears the Leach tension.


On such rigs, a triangular fore-and-aft Topsail called a Gaff Sail may be carried between the gaff and the upper mast.

On smaller vessels, the gaff is raised by a single halyard running on a wire Gunter . On these rigs the gaff may be very nearly vertical, and a topsail is never carried.