Best knots to use?

My boat, for example: painter is tied with a bowline, the forestay doesn't have a permanently attached lanyard so the lanyard gets passed through several times to obtain a fourfold purchase and the free ends are then tied with a reef knot.
The jib halyard is tied to thejib with a sheet bend. Gaff jaws: simple piece of lanyard and a reef or bow (shoelace style) see http://forum.mirrordiscussforum.org/node/259 . Figure-of-eight as stoppers on all free ends of running lines. My clew is shackled to a slide in a rail, so no knot at all. The slide controls the tension on the foot of the sail. The mast lacing of the luff is finished with two half hitches. As I sail single-handed most of the time, I tie the ends of the jibsheets together with a fisherman's knot - then you cannot lose the end - which can be embarassing in a knockdown squall.
But one should definitely use the knots you are most comfortable with.
There has been some discussion on this sub-forum on related topics. Have a browse through them when you find time!
Enjoy the sailing!
Gernot H.

P.S. for those who are a bit rusty: the elementary knots are shown on http://www.iwillknot.com and http://www.animatedknots.com for instance, with sequential pictures on how to tie them. There are also loads of youtube videos of people demonstrating knot-tying, for example I immediately got 20 hits when I entered "tying a bowline" in the search box there.

I'm going to need to know the answers to some of those too when I get a new hull.

"What is the best knot to tie to forestay lanyard onto the bow?"

I've been without a Mirror for a long time (well, I have every part of one except for the hull) and have forgotten which knot we used. I've just checked a book that should contain the answer, but it doesn't bother to say. I don't remember there being a second end to tie it to, so a reef knot wouldn't work.

"Should I tie the clew onto the boom (after attaching it to the outhaul)? If so, what's the best knot?"

My boom has a rail. If yours doesn't, it may be that you should add a loop round the boom. The modern rig has a band (plastic perhaps) that goes round the boom there instead of using a rail, so it can doubtless be bought somewhere, but a loop of cord would probably work well enough.

"What's the best knot to use for tying the luff rope to the mast?"

My sister always attached that and it's only now that I realise I don't know which knot she used, though I often untied it. Whatever it was though, it would be the same knot as you need for your loop at the far end of the boom.

"Best way to tie the gaff jaws to fit onto the mast?"

Mine has a piece of elastic with a disk on the end which just slides in through a slot on one side while being permanently attached to the other, so there's nothing to tie and it saves time when rigging the boat. The book shows a gaff with a hole on both sides rather than having a slot on one side, but it talks of a piece of elastic and again doesn't bother to explain how it's tied through it.