Double braid splice problems

[seawolf]

To all those experienced splicers that have gone through the grief.
No matter what I seem to do, I always have a problem with the last 1/2 or inch. It seems that I run out of slack, even though I believe my measurements are correct.

I am practicing on sta-set by New England Ropes. 3/8 and 1/2 inch.
Does anyone find this rope a little more difficult than that of other brands to finish home the splices?

My first splices were really bad and I had the problem of bunching up the core at the end and being able to go no further or having to much slack in the cover at the eye.

The last two practice sessions, one on each size went a little more smoothly as I was being careful not to bunch the core up. It seems I can get just pass the cross over and my slack runs out. Leaving a 1/2 to 1 inch to get to the bury strand for sewing the throat.
I have been following the instructions in Brion's video regarding mesaging the rope.
I just seem to run out of slack.
I will try beating the line at the taper with a rubber mallet along with mesaging and snapping.
I have to admit the video makes it look pretty easy, and I thought if I am having this much trouble maybe I am missing something.
Thanks.
Bob
Any recommendations welcome.

[tryan1956]

Hi Seawolf. I'm no expert but I have a couple thoughts. First, you _can_ do this. For me, beating and snapping are satisfying but massaging is more effective. You'll probably need to use every trick Brion shows us in his video. Is the core bunching up where it goes over the cover? That needs to be pretty tight. Are you using a strop to get all the loose cover down to the splice? Massage the splice, then try to get the cover up 1/16 of an inch, repeat. It might take a half hour of more the first few times. Once the crossover is completely in the cover the last little bit is easy.

[Clyde Jenkins]

I've had the same problem and here are some suggestions to get you through.

1. Cheat. Move your butterfly knot 2-6 feet further away from the splice. This will give you some more slack cover to work with.

2. Hitch your butterfly knot to something sturdy. I have a bail attached to a stud in my garage. I use a carabiner to anchor the loop of the knot to the bail. You want to be able to put tension on the line when you milk the last bit of cover home.

3. Work in order. Massage, snap, massage, snap, (repeat several times). Then milk cover slack from the knot, put tension on the line pulling from the eye you're splicing (really lean on it), milk cover over the crossover. Repeat in this order. Brion says don't work up a sweat, but I do and I have.

4. Wear a glove on your milking hand. I use an old sailing glove.

5. Up until the point where you stitch the cover yarn the splice can be carefully disassembled. You're already taking care with the measurements. Take care that the crossover is very smooth. Use the core yarn stitching to flatten the section where the cover is inside the core.

Usually Sta-Set splices with few problems. I have come across samples that were very stubborn. Keep at it. Practice will yield results.

Clyde

[seawolf]

Thanks for the tips Clyde.
It seems each splice is getting a little better.
Glove is a good idea, as my last practice splice gave me some blisters.
I think some of my problem was allowing the core to feed into the cover while milking rather than keeping the core tensioned enough and just bringing up the cover.

[Brion Toss]

Hello,
Sorry to hear that you are having difficulty. Good on you for persevering. Precisely what taper are you using?
Also, I'm glad to hear that you are preventing slack in the core, so it doesn't bunch up against the crossover, but are you also keeping the slack out of the eye?
Fair leads,
Brion Toss

[seawolf]

Brion,
I won't give up until I get it right. I can get four practice spices on a 12' length of rope.
I can usually get this at 1/2 price for remnants off of spools.
I am using the taper that you show in your video. The cover has groups of three strands and I am taking out 6-8 strands at the four locations with a unravel and taper on the end section.
The last splice went home a little easier but I will still have to snap it to get the last 1/8 of an inch of core in and then the remaining cover to the marking strand. And I did get a bit of cover bunching up opposite the core. I skewered the core and cover and pulled the slack back out.
I am improving considerably on the steps leading to the final milking and have that routine
down pretty good.
I think my problem on the last step is somehow trying to feed the core into the cover while taking up slack and this tends to allow the core to start to bunch. Instead of keeping the core and cover connection stretched tight and just feed the cover over the core.

I think this may be like many new skills. You seem to struggle until it all falls in place and you get the right feel.

I was hoping to get into one of your splicing classes, but I do not see any on the horizon.
A great excuse for a trip up to Port Townsend.
Thanks for continuing to give support.
Fair winds.
Bob

[Brion Toss]

Hi again,
Yup, you are on the right track. Work at keeping that slack out. And try 9 yarns at each juncture. We've found, subsequent to making the video, that it makes getting home a bit easier, and results in even stronger splices.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss