Putting tension on shrouds
 

Hi Again,
This is my third email on shrouds and I want to thank everyone for the great responses. I have now serviced all 10 shrouds and 20 deadeyes on the schooner. The deadeyes now look great using a wall knot with a crown on top then whipping the 3 strands back together for a button on top of the crown and finishing the lanyard replacements with a cow hitch. Thanks again for the great knot combo recommendations. I think I can do them in my sleep now. I seem to have one last problem which is back to my original email and that is no tension on the shrouds, they are very loose. As I was servicing each deadeye and replacing the lanyard, I tried with both feet on the bulwark, leaning back and hauling, cursing etc but no significant increase in tension. I then rigged a block to the lower deadeye with a line attached to the upper deadeye, hauled on that, tied it off, rove the lanyard but when the block line was released the deadeyes would relign ( I could not get the exact deadeye alignment angle using the block) and we would be back to a floppy shroud with maybe some slight improvement. Am I missing something here or do I need to rent a come-along type device? I don't have slack in the shroud but there is no tension.
Thanks
Bob

There were some interesting ways to set-up lanyards discussed in some previous Puzzlers... can't seem to find the link to the Puzzler archives, though.
A come-along is pretty dandy for this application, just judiciously apply a rolling-hitch, midshipman's hitch, or prussik to the shroud well above deck to give you a place to attach the hook. When setting-up, treat the deadeyes and lanyards to a thick application of what-sluch-you-have; Vaseline, tallow, Crisco, with a touch of linseed oil... a gooey mess now, but eases the movement of the lanyards very considerably, and preserves in the long run.
A note of caution: traditional rigging, properly set-up, typicaly shows far less tension than modern rigs. Depending on your exact application, "tight, but not tensioned" might be just perfect; don't overdo it.

Old wheel
 

Hello,
As you might imagine, this is not exactly a wheel that needs reinventing; but it is one of the wonders of traditional work that its refinements are so easy to lose, living, as they do, in peoples' hands.
Start with the arrangement in the 'Marlingspike Sailor', with a tackle on the shroud. One crewmember, outboard, sweats on the lanyard part coming from the knot. A second crewmember then sweats on the next part, inboard, just as the first one releases their load (without letting go, or they'll fall in the water). And so on, until the tackle can take up what is gained. Repeat before jamming a cone of wood, with a groove down one side for the rope, into the last hole, from inboard. Release the purchase, hitch the lanyard to the throat (a Ring Hitch that starts by crossing the face of the upper deadeye), remove the plug, and go on to the next shroud. You'll probably make several rounds before the shrouds are evenly tensioned.
And no, the same tuning principles apply here as for any other boat. I have too, too often heard people say that you should tune traditional boats slack. The favorite rationale seems to be that, if it is a wood boat, a too-tight rig will cause the boat to hog. Interestingly, slack-tuned boats are at least as likely to hog. Also, of course, powerboats hog. No rational connection here, unless you are extremely overtensioned, and frankly this is hard to accomplish with deadeyes. And a slack tune makes for poor performance and big shock loads.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss