Lazy Jeps

Various sailing hardware companies such as Harken, Lewmar, Schaefer, etc. produce Lazy Jack kits that sell for $200 to $300 (Lazy Jacks make "flaking" or folding your main sail easier as you drop the sail). Once you have been around and used Lazy Jacks, you realize that there is absolutely NOTHING to them. So why on earth would anyone pay an inordinate amount of money for something you can make yourself for about $40?

Enter "Lazy Jeps."

First off, who the hell is Jack? I don't know Jack (no pun), I don't like Jack, and Jack is probably some tofu eating, PBR hating sissy that has no place on my boat.

I'm not sure where I was going with that. I'll try and stay on point going forward.

After being appalled at the prices of these kits, I hunted around the Internet and BINGO! Harken was nice enough to publish the manual to their small Lazy Jack kit (for 21' to 28' boats) which conveniently gave a parts inventory and directions on where to place the hardware on your boom and mast. I drew the fancy diagram using Paint one night when I was, um, not doing much. Here are the parts and approximate costs for MY Lazy Jep kit:

-100 Ft. of 1/4" braided nylon and polypropylene rope (Home Depot - $12)
-2 Harken Micro blocks (West Marine - $8 a piece)
-5 Stainless Bimini eye straps (Marinepartdepot.com - $10)
-1 cleat (Free - I had an extra)
-12 1/2" #10 sheet metal stainless screws (Home Depot - $3)

And that, Ladies and Gentlemen, is a "cost effective", do-it-yourself Lazy Jep kit!