[manatee]

I don't know what they are*, but 25% have failed. Give me a solid hand-turned eyesplice and lanyard any day.

Another case of "Why isn't this stuff tested better?" --
doesn't anyone have a rigger on their boat any more?

Clipper Race: current race halted and diverted to Hong Kong

*Also know as stretching screws and turnbuckles -- I was going for a joke there -- see the ?

 

[paulk]

They may have riggers, but how would he attach the end of a rod to a tang without the 20 ton press?

 

[manatee]

They may have riggers, but how would he attach the end of a rod to a tang without the 20 ton press?

That's my point -- if you can't fix it or bypass it while in the middle of the ocean, it probably doesn't belong on the boat.

No details on the exact kind of failure, so we'll have to wait and see if it's bad design, bad materials, bad manufacturing or improper use.

"One thing we would like to add is, once you have made two or three practice splices, splicing wire is not much more difficult than knitting. To make a splice in 5/16" diameter 7X7 wire takes about 30 to 35 minutes once you have some practice. The cost savings are amazing, the longevity and dependability, as discussed in our Storm Tactics DVD make spliced ends definitely the gold standard for offshore cruising boats."

-- Lin and Larry Pardey

 

[DJR351]

Looks like a serious bit of kit.....

 

[capt vimes]

the skipper from Derry~Londonderry~Doire is talking about fatigue...
Clipper Race - Skipper Report -
if this is true there are only two possible reasons:
badly manufactured, especially the material (316 steel i guess) or
wrongly dimensioned...

we had once a broken forestay on a charter boat but there the chainplate broke due to a very fine fracture sustained month earlier by another crew doing a stupid docking... you could see the fracture line on the broken chainplate and the resulting corrosion inside the material very clearly which all together was not visible without magnifying glasses or something from the outside...

 

[killarney_sailor]

I think these boats are identical so if three of them broke after x thousands of miles the others could not be trusted so the organizers of this race/rally acted prudently. I assume that the fitting was under-speced, something I know a bit about after suffering failures with my tangs that hold up lowers.

Also splicing small diameter wire is a different thing than splicing wire (if it is wire and not rod which I suspect this is) of the size used on boats this size.

 

[mad_machine]

I am surprised that they use solid rod rigging. I thought most of that was proven unreliable years ago?

 

[knuterikt]

I am surprised that they use solid rod rigging. I thought most of that was proven unreliable years ago?

You will find rod rigging on lots of performance/racing boats, think they have a somewhat shorter expected service life than wire.
But unreliable if done properly - don't think so.

 

[manatee]

You will find rod rigging on lots of performance/racing boats, think they have a somewhat shorter expected service life than wire.
But unreliable if done properly - don't think so.

Not so much unreliable as unpredictable. Unless you inspect it with a gazillion-dollar X-ray machine, you cannot see fatigue & failure building in it. It's like the Apha-Echo-3-5 unit in "2001: A Space Odyssey" -- it is 100% operational until it fails -- then, you're in a world of hurt.

Maybe they should think about using something like Dyneema -- at least you can see it fraying, and repairs should not require 20-ton machines, just a marlingspike & a few special fids.

 

[killarney_sailor]

You don't need to x-ray rod to see if there is a problem. You can do it in the field with dye penetrants - fairly easy process. Now this is not the same as saying that they should be using rod rigging. I think that replacing the forestay at sea if you had roller furling would be a major undertaking with any material would be a chore, which is not the same jury-rigging with some Dyneema.

 

[overbored]

I am going to guess that they use wire on all their boats. very big wire and not easily spliced sea. and they said it was a problem with the bottle screw so why would it matter if it was wire or rod. their head sails are all hank on and no roller reefing