Tying off a deadeye lanyard?
 

I have been thinking through the idea of using deadeyes and lanyards instead of turnbuckles and hit a snag.

Say you have run the lanyard to a winch to get the shroud tension just right. Now, how do you take the lanyard off the winch to put in the final hitch without the lanyard slipping?

Firstly, you may find in some of Brion’s work and in Harvey Garret Smith’s books deadeye information. Second, a San Francisco rigger who goes by the internet name of Clyderigged has lots of experience and has shared on the WoodenBoat Forum a nifty tool for setting up deadeyes. http://www.woodenboat.com/forum/show...hlight=deadeye

The simple part is you don’t tension to a winch off to the side some place. You tension pulling up.

The deadeyes I’ve meddled with all have three holes in the eye on the stay and the eye on the chainplates. The three holes on the lower eye and two of the three on the upper have the in-facing edges relieved fro a smooth turn of the lanyard. One hole in the upper eye is relieved on only one side as the other accepts the stopper knot.

The lanyard is rove from the first upper eye hole down to the first lower eye hole, back up to the second and down to the second, up to the third and down through the third, and then brought back up to be secured by a hitch around the stay above the upper eye. It’s not exactly a block and tackle as the friction is huge and you can’t just winch it taught.

The two ways I’ve used and a third I’ll mention for tensioning are:

Fleet a tackle or comealong to the stay and to the lanyard tail. Haul it up.

Use a heavers hitch on your mallet which can find the top of the upper eye as a fulcrm.

Get Clyderigged’s pictures of the the trescool tensioning tool he made and uses.

With all of these, you take some tension and then sweat each part of the lanyard between eyes in turn to send that tension into the whole. Keep taking up a bit at a time till you’re happy. It only takes a little hand tension to hold that while you get your tensioning tool out of the way and make the hitch.

G’luck

Really easy Gashmore......This is for the Colligo Dux set up....If I have an assistant, and I am in port. I take the tail and attach it to the halyard. Better than a headsail winch as you get the force going in the direction of the tail. Make sure you start all the the lashings at the top dead eye. The tail then runs up on after the last pass through the bottom deadeye. When I get the tension I want, I pinch off the lashing tail with a thumb and finger. It does not require anymore force than that. And I have the assistant release the halyard winch. Then lash up the tail.
If I am alone I use a small pair of vice grips. I pinch off the tail down low, and release the halyard myself. Then tie up a few hitches and release the vice gripes. Works really well. I have done it out at sea, it pretty lousy conditions.
Instructions on the lash up. I know it is not traditional to hitch it this way, but it has worked really well. I have also used bare hands when the leeward side looks to slack, between the slick Dyneem lashings, and the polished deadeyes of Colligo, their seems to be just the right amount of friction and slickness...:-)
http://www.colligomarine.com/docs/mi...ie_ver_1_1.pdf

I'm hesitant to recommend something I actually do because it goes against some grain - I was always taught when doing fine-tuning with a modern rig under sail never to tighten the leeward (slackish) turnbuckles. Rather, take a half turn on the weather side and then tack.

However a couple of summers ago I retuned a schooner with deadeyes and found that trimming the lee side by hand with frequent checks that I was keeping the mast in colum and the truck centered worked out about right, leaving the rig appropriatly tight when the mast was unloaded, like sails down, and allowing the lee shrouds to be just unloaded but not flapping about Fresh Breeze (Force 5, a bit under 20 knots average).

Works without special tools or guages and makes you one with the boat.

Ian, I have googled every possible direction and cannot find this tool? Any leads when I might dig up a photo or description? Thanks


Get Clyderigged’s pictures of the the trescool tensioning tool he made and uses.

very cool
 

Hi Jack,
The woodenboat site photos are broken.
You might find the tool in his photoalbum:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/squarerigger/page2/

BTW, "trescool" = "very cool" in sometimes French, Canada. I have no idea how an Aussie uses the term. :)

Cheers, Russ

Russ L's reference is great - shows the thing in use but I didn't see a clear shot of the thing itself. Try contacting him directly.

This tool is really necessary for setting up a large rig at the dock. I don't think you really need that much umph on a boat under 20 tons. I've been happy using a mallet and a heaving hitch or, as I hesitantly mentioned because it goes against the orthodoxy I was taught, just setting up by hand from the leeward side.

G'luck

Thank you gentlemen. I was over thinking the problem.

BTW. I am putting the finishing touches on my report on a year of testing a piece of 9mm Dynex Dux under more or less controlled conditions and will post it on my web site soon. I am within a hair of Colligo's figures for both elongation and creep. Also had an accelerated UV test done on some fiber by a real lab and the result was pretty impressive.

The next problem is that Rutu has composite chainplates so I will have to figure out some toggles that fit the distributors.

Glenn

Composite Chainplates
 

Where did the design for these chainplates come from?
Does anyone know where I would find information to replace the stainless (broken) waterstay chainplates on my small trimaran with fiberglass chainplates?

Thanks Folks...

Composite Chainplates
 

Where did the design for these chainplates come from?
Does anyone know where I would find information to replace the stainless (broken) waterstay chainplates on my small trimaran with fiberglass chainplates?

Thanks Folks...