Page 224 - The Complete Rigger’s Apprentice

more of a problem for stainless steel than atmo-
spheric corrosion. On modern vessels, particularly
fin-keelers and multihulls, high initial stability and
inelastic sails translate into hard “shock-load” con-
ditions every time a puff of wind hits the sails, so,
fatigue-resistance is an even more valuable virtue.
Finally—and this is most important to cruis-
ers—there are the linked virtues of ease of inspec-
tion and replacement. By periodically lifting the ser-
vice from a sample or two, you can see right into the
splice to check for evidence of corrosion or fatigue.
If something has gone wrong, you don’t need a
multi-ton press or an expensive screw-on fitting to
fix things—just a marlingspike, a rigging vise, and
the skill to use them.
It is only fair to warn you that the level of skill
required to produce a proper 1 x 19 splice is quite
high. Structurally, it is actually simpler than a 6 x 7
Figure 6-39. The old 6 x 7 wire rope (left) has given wire splice, so figuring out where to tuck the strands
way to 1 x 19 (right). will be easier. But 1 x 19 wire is much stiffer, and
easier to distort or kink while splicing. So it’s up
sailing craft. Unfortunately for riggers, wire evolu- to you to get to know the wire as much with your
tion also increased stiffness, intricacy, and the need hands as with your head. Practice until you can turn
for precision in measurement and fabrication. With out consistently smooth, strong splices.
the development of mechanical terminals, particu-
larly swages, a lot of riggers breathed sighs of relief. Materials and Tools
Today, splices in 1 x 19 wire are rarely seen, and so Thirty feet (9 m) of ⁄4-inch (6.5-mm)-diameter
1
most sailors, and even many riggers, assume that 1 x 19 stainless-steel wire rope will be enough for a
the stuff is impossible to splice. few practice splices. You’ll also need about 15 feet
(4.5 m) of ⁄32-inch (0.8-mm) annealed stainless
1
Why Splice? seizing wire, either single- or multi-strand construc-
1
Nevertheless, if you want to use 1 x 19 wire because tion, and a ⁄4-inch (6.5 mm) solid-bronze thimble.
of its structural advantages of low windage and elas- This last item (Figure 6-40A) is designed to accom-
ticity, there are some strong, practical arguments for modate 1 x 19 wire. The thimble’s wide radius suits
splicing it. First of all, there’s cost: True, if you pay 1 x 19’s bend-resistant nature, and its solid mass
a professional to do it, the price of a 1 x 19 splice will stand up to extremes of loading, yet it is still
is going to be higher than that of a good mechani- thin enough to fit into the jaws of the appropriately
cal terminal. But if you do the work yourself, you’re sized turnbuckle.
only out of time and the cost of a thimble and a few A rigging vise clamps the wire around the thim-
simple tools. ble while the splice is made. In a pinch [the author
Another advantage is fatigue resistance: Because assures that this gripping phrase is an intentional
a splice is flexible along its entire length, there are pun—Ed.], you can cobble one out of Vise Grips
no fatigue-inducing hard spots, like the point where and blocks of wood, but a model like the one shown
a flexible wire enters a rigid fitting. North of the in Figure 6-41B will be faster, surer, and easier, and
tropics, fatigue resulting from cyclic loading is even will enable you to handle a variety of wire sizes.

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