Effing eye splice!!

[Oscarpop]

Can I get some advice please before I chuck all my toys out of the pram

I am trying to get the last stage of an eye splice completed using braid.

New 10 mm braid. Have a Marlowe splicing kit with Feds and splicing needles.

I have now spent the best part of an hour trying to get the sheath of the eye threaded back into the line .

It's the last stage before whipping line.

I have tried using the did the expand the sheath, tried a hammer, tried making the bit in threading as tapered as possible.

Can't get the bloody thing through .

Many thanks

 

[paul.norton]

Several films on Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=double+braid+eye+splice&oq=braid+eye+splice&gs_l=youtube.1.0.0i5l5.7024.20559.0.31858.16.16.0.0.0.0.50.694.16.16.0...0.0...1ac.1.11.youtube.R4TU_18HODE

This listing is for double braid but there are also listings for single braid.

Paul

 

[pvb]

I can only sympathise, as I recently made my first-ever eye splice in doublebraid. It took 3 goes and about 3 hours! I may pay someone to do the next...

 

[lpdsn]

I can only sympathise, as I recently made my first-ever eye splice in doublebraid. It took 3 goes and about 3 hours! I may pay someone to do the next...

Mark the inner braid where it first comes out of the outer braid. Then make the splice a little way up from that, so the point where the outer braid goes inside the inner braid will definitely pull back in. You need a bit of tension as you milk the outer braid back over, easier to do if you have an assistant.

 

[Norman_E]

Some braid on braid ropes splice reasonably easily. I have done 16mm English Braids for my genoa sheets and it was not too difficult. I tried a Liros braid on braid rope and it was just impossible to complete the splice because the outer could not be expanded enough. Check the rope manufacturers website for the specification of your particular rope. If it does not say "easy to splice" you are probably on a loser.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I found that tying it to something firm and jerking it sharply worked eventually. I nearly pulled the side off my shed though. There is a you tube video showing a similar technique on the New England Ropes site.

 

[wilkinsonsails]

pPull it back out again and ease some more outer down to give you more slack.Rig up a purchase so you get it taught and wack it .
Jerking and wacking works too.
Cindy

 

[rhumlady]

Just watched the New England ropes video. That makes much more sense than any of the explanations in books and magazines.

 

[winsbury]

Some ropes just cant be done, but Marlow is usually okay, they have a series of videos on their website, make sure you follow the correct one for your type of rope. Having a really secure post to pull adainst is essential and I usually find wearing gloves and having a bit extra sheath available to milk helps a lot, any excess spare can be worked back down and cut off the far end if necessary.

 

[CreakyDecks]

Seem to be articles about this in every issue of PBO!

 

[Talulah]

I found life much easier once I bought a set of Selma needles instead of splicing needles with eyes.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/1607...ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=83&ff19=0

 

[AntarcticPilot]

I've mastered this one, but it usually costs me a fairly scorched hand from "milking" braid at the end - it is quite hard on office soft hands! Also, it really matters that you tied a knot 2-3 metres away from the eye before starting, to limit the amount of movement of the outer braid over the inner. Otherwise, you have to start milking the braid at the other end of the rope.

Finally, it is very hard - and can be impossible - to splice old braid; the flexibility and elasticity you needd to acheive the "milking" will be much less than new rope.

 

[DaveS]

I've mastered this one, but it usually costs me a fairly scorched hand from "milking" braid at the end - it is quite hard on office soft hands! Also, it really matters that you tied a knot 2-3 metres away from the eye before starting, to limit the amount of movement of the outer braid over the inner. Otherwise, you have to start milking the braid at the other end of the rope.

Finally, it is very hard - and can be impossible - to splice old braid; the flexibility and elasticity you needd to acheive the "milking" will be much less than new rope.

Totally agree with all of this. I once spent most of a crossing of the Minch failing to complete an eye splice in old braided rope and eventually literally pulling off patches of skin. (I wish now I had thought of wearing gloves as recommended above). Repeating the exercise with new rope could not be described as trivial, but was do-able as opposed to impossible.

As one who has thought about acquiring a set of hollow fids, but been put off by the high price, I almost fell for the ebay links above (hint: click on the options box to see what's actually being offered as opposed to the headline).

 

[Norman_E]

Set of 5 Selma fids a bit cheaper here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Set-of-5-...and-Rope-/261110758354?_trksid=p2054897.l4276
I have a set that I bought a few years back, and paid just a bit less for. My only issue with them is that they are made from flat stainless steel rolled into a tube, rather than cut from solid drawn tube, with the result that strands of braid can get caught in the slit where the two sides join.