In the 5 years of cat sailing I've done (average 25 outings per year) I've had 2 broken bridals, 2 broken shrouds and one failed or loosened main shackle. Three of those years I've had two cats on the water. On all occasions, excluding the shackle. I don't ever recall pulling off two pieces of wire, it's always a single frayed wire on one end. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I conclude that these are not actually breaks in the wire at all, but a failing at the swag. No? If one one wire in the cable were to work free and slip though, this would allow room for others to follow suit. I've never had any failures when the standing rigging was replaced by me. I really like the standing rigging that I've purchased from Murrays with the stainless steel ends on the shrouds. Murrays catalog says that the swagging is done hydraulically. Do you guys feel that hydraulic swagging is more reliable than with a swagging tool? I believe doing it yourself with two swagging points would probably resolve any doubt.
I think most of you would agree that new standing rigging is a must; the frustration of a demasting and damages to boat and sail are too high.
Just fishing for various opinions....TIA
Jim Z, P16, H14
If your swages are slipping then they weren't done correctly. Hand or hydraulic swages are meant to accomplish the same goal. The swage material gets mushed into the induvidual wires withe enough force that they essentially weld together. Its should't be possibel for them swage to come appart. I haven't had my rigging break on me yet, (I have been judicious about replacing it), however my understanding is that most breakes happend due to fatigue and/or corrosion normally near the swages. The reason, because the dissimilar materials that make up the swage and wire itself attract corrostion and those are thehighest stress areas that tend to move around (become fatigues) and get kinked.
My understanding is that it shoudln't matter if they are hydraulically swaged or had swaged, if done correctly the swaged connections shoudl be stronger than the wire itself. However, you are pretty much garunteed that the hydraulically swaged connections will be done correctly by someone who knows what they are doing, the hand swaged ones not so much.
D.
Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2
If the hand swages pass a go-no-go gauge, they should be just fine and not necessarily any better than a hydraulic swage. They fail at the swages for the reasons mentioned above, is simply most common to fail at a connection.
I like the hydraulic ones better for a cleaner fitting but never assume Murrays doesn't have some monkey making them in the back.