A Spinnaker Dousing Sock (also known as a spinnaker sleeve or snuffer) is an essential piece of safety equipment for shorthanded sailing. It allows a single crew member to safely hoist and douse a spinnaker in any conditions — simply pull the sock down to deploy the sail, and pull it back up to douse it quickly and safely.
Our socks are manufactured from durable, UV-resistant ripstop nylon with reinforced head and tack rings. Available in 20 sizes to suit spinnaker luff lengths from 8.2m to 24.5m, fitting both symmetric and asymmetric spinnakers. Choose your preferred outer and inner tube colours to match your boat’s colour scheme.
Features
- UV-resistant ripstop nylon construction
- Reinforced head and tack rings
- Smooth-running internal halyard system
- Suits both symmetric and asymmetric spinnakers
- Available in Grey, Red, White, and Black for both outer and inner tubes
- 20 sizes covering luff lengths 8.2m – 24.5m
Sizing Guide
Select the size that matches your spinnaker’s luff length. If your luff length falls between two sizes, select the next size up.
| Sock length | Spinnaker luff | Our asymmetric spinnaker |
|---|---|---|
| 8.2 m | up to 8.2 m | Size 00 (27 m²) |
| 8.7 m | up to 8.7 m | Size 0 (31 m²) |
| 9.4 m | up to 9.4 m | Size 1 (37 m²) |
| 10.1 m | up to 10.1 m | Size 2 (43 m²) |
| 10.8 m | up to 10.8 m | Size 3 (50 m²) |
| 11.5 m | up to 11.5 m | Size 4 (57 m²) |
| 12.3 m | up to 12.3 m | Size 5 (64 m²) |
| 13.1 m | up to 13.1 m | Size 6 (75 m²) |
| 13.8 m | up to 13.8 m | Size 7 (83 m²) |
| 14.6 m | up to 14.6 m | Size 8 (94 m²) |
| 15.5 m | up to 15.5 m | Size 9 (106 m²) |
| 16.4 m | up to 16.4 m | Size 10 (118 m²) |
| 17.4 m | up to 17.4 m | Size 11 (133 m²) |
| 18.4 m | up to 18.4 m | Size 12 (148 m²) |
| 19.4 m | up to 19.4 m | Size 13 (165 m²) |
| 20.4 m | up to 20.4 m | Size 14 (183 m²) |
| 21.5 m | up to 21.5 m | Size 15 (204 m²) |
| 22.5 m | up to 22.5 m | Size 16 (223 m²) |
| 23.5 m | up to 23.5 m | Size 17 (243 m²) |
| 24.5 m | up to 24.5 m | Size 18 (265 m²) |
Each sock length matches the luff of one of our asymmetric spinnakers. On every Sails.Online asymmetric and symmetric spinnaker page you can tick Add a dousing sock: we pick the sock length for that spinnaker and you choose the tube colours.