Wool without the "Fleece"

[Joe Carson]

Alright, I've searched the archives. I am replacing all sheets, halyards and ropes on my '78 Hunter 27. For everything except the dock lines, I'm thinking 3 strand double braided poly - 1/2" and nylon 1/2" for the dock lines. I would just love to get a bulk spool at a reasonable price but cannot find a source. Any help? I've contacted Samson and Southern Ocean directly but they only sell to dealers.

 

[Doug T.]

Confused

The terms three-stranded and double-braid appear to be a contradiction in terms.Also, when you say "poly", I hope you mean polyester and not polypropylene. Most polyprop rope is very vulnerable to UV degradation. It's also lousy to handle.1/2" line is also very thick for a 27' boat. Easy to handle (if the right material), but make sure it fits through all of your blocks and sheaves -- especially the masthead sheaves. The orginal sheaves on the H27 of that era were for wire/rope halyards and were sized for the wire, not the rope. Also take a look at your winches. Can you actually fit four turns of 1/2" line around them without running into problems? Try it out with a short length of line.Do you have a specific type rope in mind? The link below is for Sampson's list of 3-strand lines. Which one are you proposing to use?

 

[Steve Dion]

I agree with Doug.

My preference is Sta-set line. If you have wire/rope halyards you have another problem. It is a good time to swap out sheaves and go all rope. The size line for your size boat is 3/8-5/16". There are more disadvantages to going to larger line than just the price. 1/2" is an overkill and will probably not work very effectively because of winches, sheaves, turning blocks etc.PYACHT and JSI usually have very good prices on Halyards, sheets etc. The more you buy the bigger the discount. It is cheaper to buy what you need than purchase a 600' spool anyway. The other advantage is that you can color code the lines if you are so inclined. Talk to these marine stores, they will set you up with what you really need. They can also weave eyes or what ever other services you may need if you cannot do it yourself.