Fig. 123.—Grommet.
Gaskets are made of braided cordage in the same manner as sennit, and are used for confining the sails when furled to the yards. They are called arm gaskets when used at the ends of the yards. Bunt gaskets are used in the middle of the yard to hold the bunt of the sail, and quarter gaskets between the middle and extremities of the yards.
A Flemish eye (Fig. 122) is a form of eye made without splicing. Unlay one strand at the end of a rope, and bring the two other strands, just as they are, against the standing part, so as to form an eye of the size required. Lay up the unlaid strand in the intervals in the rope from which it has been taken, but in the reverse way—that is, begin at the end and keep on laying it round until it comes down the standing part and lies along with the other strands. The ends are then tapered, marled down, and served over with small stuff.
An artificial eye is the end of a rope unlaid, and the yarns of which the strands are composed are separated. The yarns are now hitched round a piece of wood the size of the proposed eye. They are then marled, parcelled, and served over.
A grommet (Fig. 123) is a ring of rope made by carefully unlaying one strand from a rope and cutting it off. All the turns must be left in it. Form a ring by laying one part over the other, taking care that the turns coincide with one another. Pass one end round and round, in the lay, until all the intervals are filled up and the ring is complete. The two ends are secured as in a long splice, first with an overhand knot, and then by dividing the strands and passing half of them under the standing part, and cutting off the remainder. Grommets are used for stropping blocks, handles for chests, snorters for the heel of sprits, etc. They are very often parcelled and served to make them look neater. It is easier to make them if the rope from which the strands are taken is laid up hard.
Fig. 124.—Selvagee.
Selvagee (Fig. 124) is a number of rope-yarns fastened together. To make it, drive two nails into a piece of board at a sufficient distance from one another to form the size of selvagee required. Wind rope-yarn round these to form the desired thickness, and marl them down with spun yarn. They are used to form a neat stropping for blocks, or to go round a spar to which a hook is to be fixed. Fig. 125 shows how a selvagee is employed for fastening a block to a rope. The middle of it is placed against the rope, and the bights passed one over the other until they come close to the rope, when the hook of the block is inserted.
Fig. 125.—Selvagee fastening Block to Rope.