"sherwindu" wrote in message
...
All these horror stories makes me wonder. I have used snap shackles for
35 years
and never had the slightest problem. Yes, I know how to tie a bowline,
but untying

one on a bouncing fordeck could be a challange. If you grab the sheets
back from
the clew and pull them in instead of grabbing for the shackle, you should
be safe
enough. To be fair, I should mention that I only sail a 22 footer, so I
can't
speak for
boats with larger foresails.


Seems to me that it's easier to untie a bowline on a decent size line than
it would be to try and undo a shackle. I don't know if a larger boat would
be harder or easier, as far as that goes. But, when it's cold, trying to get
your gloved hands on a small shackle seems difficult to me.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com