Boating bullseye reinvented after 50 years

Hothouse Product Development Partners has enabled Spinlock to reinvent a yachting essential, the bullseye rope-control guide, which, until now, had remained unchanged for 50 years.

Hothouse Product Development Partners has enabled Spinlock to reinvent a yachting essential, the bullseye rope-control guide, which, until now, had remained unchanged for 50 years.

The sleek, new Spinlock Bullseye can be attached with one easy fixing, enabling boat-builders and DIY sailors to fix the device in half the time compared to traditional types.

Hothouse applied its design skills to the Spinlock project to both modernise and improve the bullseye, in order to make the task of rigging as simple as possible.

Once attached, the Spinlock Bullseye can be adjusted to the angle of the rope to provide guidance.

This neatly maintains and individually directs sailing ropes.

At the same time, the sleek form of the bullseye helps prevent line snagging, tripping and crew injury.

The benefits of Spinlock Bullseye, have been formally recognised by the industry at the Marine Equipment Trade Show.

This Spinlock group of practical, yet intriguingly simple devices is equally suited for use on yachts or dinghies, racers or cruisers.

"We designed this with both appearance and labour-saving in mind", commented Peter Bessey, Senior Partner at Hothouse.

"Our idea was developed until we arrived at a product that was functional, easy to fit and straightforward to manufacture.

We also ensured that the design would suit the modern boating environment and sit well with Spinlock's high-performance range of products".

Made from high-strength reinforced plastic, the bullseye design includes an integrated elastomeric gasket, providing both water-sealing and angular locking functions.

Hothouse built ease-of-manufacturing into its design and implemented a full snap-together assembly, without tools or additional fastenings.

The fully assembled device can therefore be economically transported in bulk to commercial users for rapid application and require minimal packaging for retail point-of-sale.

The Spinlock Bullseye is most suited for applications where ropes are required to run for a distance between two fixed points, typically across coachroof or foredeck.

It provides an excellent compact solution for guiding a range of line diameters and can also act as a deflector around obstructions.

The bullseye comes in four different sizes and is now available from yacht chandlers and boat stores or direct from www.spinlock.co.uk.

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