Shackle failure?

[catsailor]

Seen 'em on tethers, too. It's been said; Inspect the action.

Uh oh. Thread drift and debate warning!

 

[catsailor]

Wanted to give an update on this.

I ran my mountain climber nephew up the stick in his mega-buck climbing harness. Verdict on why the shackle released? The tether was pulled into the sheave of the pulley and when the halyard got snug, it put enough tension on the tether to cause it to release.

So, no more tether for you! Replaced it with a smaller split ring. All good after several hoists!

Now THAT is a good bit of advice. I've never heard that explanation and thank you for sharing.

I have had spin shackles pull off the tack when the tether snagged on a turnbuckle; my cure there was to go with longer but slippery tethers (cable ties), but that would potentially make the masthead risk worse.

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I doubt you'll find many experienced sailors that have NOT had a spin shackle release either due to a tether snag, mechanical failure, or because it was not properly closed. I've enjoyed all three.