[Rhodes22-list] Forestay Wire Size Upgrade

[Roger Pihlaja]

Bob,

When I upgraded my roller furler from the stock GBI unit to a Harken Unit 0,
I increased the forestay wire size from 5/32" OD up to 3/16" OD.  I made
this upgrade because 3/16" OD was the largest wire size that would fit the
Harken Unit 0 and the differences in cost, weight, & windage were
negligible.  There was a significant upgrade in safety margin as the max
tensile breaking strength was increased by about 35%.  Just make certain the
end fittings use the same size pins as you have now.  Before you make this
change in wire size, be certain your OEM roller furler can handle it.  My
guess is that it will not be able to work with the larger wire OD.  There
probably won't be sufficient clearance for the mechanism to turn easily.

It is rare that a wire rope will simply fail W/O any warning in the middle
of its length, especially in light air.  Most the time, progressive wire
rope degradation or imminent failure can be detected by inspecting the wire
visually & running your hand or a cloth along it.  Single strand failures in
a wire rope usually show up as curled "meat hooks" that you will feel with
your hand or will snag a rag.

It is especially important to inspect the fittings at the ends of the wire
rope.  Look for tiny cracks &/or discoloration (usually rust or black in
color) in the fitting or the wire near the fitting.  If you see any cracks
or discoloration; then, immediately take the piece to a rigging shop or just
simply replace it.

Your post implies you suspect your forestay was somehow getting repeatedly
kinked just below the bottom of the furling drum as a result of the
trailering process.  If this is the case; then, you need to change your
trailering &/or mast stepping procedures.  In thousands of trailering miles
& dozens of mast steps since 1987, my forestay has never been kinked as a
result of trailering or mast stepping.  If your forestay was getting
repeatedly kinked in the same spot, this would be very bad for the wire.
Upgading to a larger wire size will do little to fix this problem.
Stainless steel wire rope is not very tolerant of kinks.  So, if your
trailering &/or mast stepping procedures are causing the forestay to be
kinked; then, figure out some other way accomplish the same task W/O kinking
the wire.

Good luck, Bob!

Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium


----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Keller" <r22yankeeclipper at hotmail.com>
To: <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Sent: Sunday, June 01, 2003 11:32 PM
Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Frigging Rigging


> While sailing today on a rather calm day on Lake Hartwell, my latest
> calamity was that my forestay broke.  Yep, it broke off right at the
bottom
> of the furler drum.  Could have been worse because Roger R shinnied up the
> mast (amazing thing to see) and tied a line just above the spreaders which
> we secured to the bow cleat to keep the mast from going too far.
Meanwhile,
> Rummy was mixing drinks below, oblivious to the goings-on up above.  We
> motored back from Big Water and dropped the mast.
>
> Looks like the forestay was bent too many times, possibly from trailering,
> and it finally gave way.
>
> It was recommended to me to upsize the forestay to 5/16" (by the same
people
> who told me to pull my diamondboard  down all the way unti lit is
> perpendicular to the boat!).  Does anyone have experience or knowledge of
> using a slightly larger stay?  Any problems to be aware of?  Sounds like a
> good idea to me, but I wanted to check the list to see if anyone has done
> this before?  Thanks.
> Bob K
> s/v Yankee Clipper
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Add photos to your messages with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*.
> http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail
>
> __________________________________________________
> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
>