J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum One Design Class Rules Synthetic Lifelines?

Jeff - great link! Thanks.

Re: splicing - I agree. Doing brummel splices in single-braid dyneema is really easy.

Also - you'll want to check out the Johnson Marine Catalog (pg 14) here for the replacement fittings that work with synthetic lifelines. http://www.csjohnson.com/marinecatalog/s00014.htm

This replacement is a great winter project to do in the colder (or wetter) climates.

- Jeff

Thanks for the link. I will go with the 316 wire. The link you sent for Johnson recommends that the Dynema be replaced after 3 years, which makes it much less cost effective.
I'll use the push in locking grommets, which are a hard nylon.

What did it cost to weld tubes into the stanchion holes (per stanchion or total)? Who does that kind of work? A rigging shop?

Steve - I had tubes welded in the stanchions for Rhapsody along with other machining work I had done so don't know the allocation of costs just for the tubes. There was $22 of material (stainless tubing) and I anticipate about 2 to 3 hours of labor spent on this for cutting the tubing, welding, grinding and polishing. I used a local machine shop that was recommended to me. You can check the labor rates in your area, but I would expect it to run $55 to $95 per hour for a skilled machinist.

With wire lifelines, I used plastic grommets from McMaster-Carr, which I shimmed using electrical tape. When a couple of pairs came loose from the stanchions, small cable ties held the pair in place. Total cost around 15 bucks with shipping and cable ties...

http://www.mcmaster.com/#cable-management-grommets/=p9wxwp

When I clicked the link, it took me to the category, not the item, so here are the item order numbers you can search for.

5269T23 3/16" wire hole
5269T24 1/4" wire hole

So 'Push-In Locking Grommets', are they one per hole or one per side of each hole in the stanchion?

0ne on each side of the stanchion, but you get 100 for $5.00 so there are plenty.

I bought 3 stainless steel bolts - sorry I don't remember the size (metric). they were just a bit larger than the hole in the stanchion so that I could not push them thru. I thru drilled the bolts slightly larger than the diameter of the lifeline, stuck a tap in the stanchion. The tap cut just enough of a thread to allow the bolts to go in. I screwed the bolts into the stanchions and put a nut on the backside

Working on another project and ran across the tap used to thread the stanchions. Bolts were 14mm. Lots cheaper than welding tubes through the stanchions.