halyard knot or splice

Knots are fine. They allow you to end-for-end the line easily and to cut out the worn

ends.

Knot strength is not so important; halyards are sized for stretch, not strength. However, a figure 8 is a bit stronger and more secure, though you may have to untie it with a knife after time.

I've had splices jam in the masthead, so I am not much of a believer. I only splice where bulk is an issue. A figure-8 is 75% line strength. A bowline is more like 65% but is easier to untie.

Rope to chain is a good one to know, if you have a windlass.

Stay set is fine for halyards, but not for anything else.

Imperial88 said:

I need to replace the halyards on my san juan, Currently they have bowline knots holding the shackles on the end...should i do this with the new rope or learn to splice? Looking at using New England Rope sta set 3/8.

Also, my mast is 29ft tall, how much extra rope should i have for haylards...main and jib. I was thinking an extra 5ft..63' for main. Havn't measured out for jib yet.

Looks like as of now the best deal if i buy rope is from sailnet, other option is to order pre spliced halyards from defender...R&W industries is the manufacturer
Pre-spliced Halyards

Thanks
Zach

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I've tried to use retired halyards for dingy davit tackles and the like. It is too stiff and snarls a lot.

Just make sure you have enough extra to trim the top 2" once or twice - there is often a lot of wear on the halyard pulley.

You may also want to "think about" the following:

Might I want to lead the lines to the cockpit in the near future???
​

If so, add the extra that it will take, It is kind of nice to be able to drop the sails from the cockpit if everything goes south, all of a sudden.

Rik

Splice it. Easy enough to do yourself, and you can use smaller line so it won't jam in the masthead. And once you learn a few splices, you can really save yourself a lot of money instead of paying for riggers.

That being said, certain lines are harder to splice than others. How tight the cover is and what type of braid the core is, along with the diameter. For instance, ultra-lite from sampson cannot be spliced in 3/16th (parallel core), in 1/4" it has a braided core, but the cover is so bloody tight I haven't been able to do it on multiple attempts. The 5/16th cover feels much softer and flexible and you can probably splice it. All the same exact line, just different sizes. So read carefully. Personally, I'm not a fan of sta set. Better options available.

I've had pretty good luck with AmSteel halyards. They are pretty simple to splice, and if you do a cover splice on them, they are really easy to handle (and much less slippery). I've replaced my wire/rope halyards with this and have been very happy.

Double bowline

When I replaced my mainsail, the new one was just enough "taller" that my halyard eye splice's tail jammed in the block. I chose to cut off the splice and tie a "double bowline" instead - this is one where you form a double bight in the standing end, rather than a single bight. (If you prefer the "rabbit-round-the-tree" analogy, then the "rabbit hole" is formed of two loops of line instead of the usual single loop.)

This knot is rated at about 75% of line strength, and the double loop makes it more secure. But I have to admit this "belt-and-suspenders" move ... I seized the free end to the eye with sailmaker's thread, and stitched through the seizing to make ultra-sure of it.

WhatTheFoley said:

I've had pretty good luck with AmSteel halyards. They are pretty simple to splice, and if you do a cover splice on them, they are really easy to handle (and much less slippery). I've replaced my wire/rope halyards with this and have been very happy.

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I'm another fan of amsteel. Used it to make twings, lashings, loops, soft shackles, spin sheets, pole lifts, etc. When my halyards get to ratty to continue, I'll cut off the bad part double end it and splice some amsteel to it. Bingo, a new halyard for $20. Love the stuff.

If your shackles are tied on anyway... why not forgo the shackle altogether and tie the halyard to the sail? Same strength rating, less weight aloft, no headbanger on the end of the halyard when you 'lose' it, and you'll get real good at tying compact bowlines quickly!

Another thing to consider is that a bowline + shackle is going to limit how high you can raise the sail before the top of the bowline hits the masthead. An eye-splice and shackle should be able to go higher. Just a bowline can go higher still. And there are other ways of attaching a halyard to the sail the leave the line unobstructed all the way to the cringle.

You could use a buntline hitch on the shackle if you don't want to get the line spliced. I use it on my wire/rope halyards. There is a nicopress loop in the wire end to attach the rope halyard.
The only knot Brion Toss uses on a bosun's chair!

The Buntline Hitch