8mm 7x7 galivanized standing rigging for 32ft ketch?

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Rhum,

You sneak in a few questions so here goes... hopefully I won't miss any:

1) I would suggest looking at Dynex Dux for shrouds and getting rid of the wire completely. It saves weight, can be replaced underway if need be, is lighter, easier to work with, and I personally hate the way galvanized stuff looks/feels. On the other hand I am highly prejudiced in favor of this stuff so YMMV. However I feel it is a much more cost effective rigging solution than other options, and havs the added benefit that you can cary a spool of the line down below in the event a repai is needed. Plus the weight savings up high help keep the boat on its feet.

2) I would agree that galvanized wire under some size gets pretty crappy. The problem is the lack of area for the finish to apply, and the amount of material scratches remove. It is just harder to do a good job on small detail parts. I don't know that I would put this point at 8mm, but I do think of it as a sliding scale thing, the smaller it is the worse the galvinazation.

3) Going up a size adds a lot of weight up high on the rig which is always detrimental. It also will add a good amount of drag to the boat. It may also be problematic finding fittings that match your chain plates in the larger size of the wire.