Life expectancy of rigging?

[Seagreen]

Stainless Steel rigging wire. How can you tell if its past it?

I have an opportunity to re-rig so I either change for new ss wire, put a service (parcel and serve with marline) on the old stuff, which hasn't really ever been stressed, or change to galvanised wire and service. I intend to put a service on the wire anyway, I just need an opinion of whether the 'old but looks fine' wire can cope.

BTW, I intend to put a service on the shrouds as the boat suits (see avatar) and it would also be easier to add ratlines to access the crosstrees.

 

[William_H]

SS wire life

Most of the failures I have seen of SS 1x19 wire has been at the entrance to the swage. This seems to be the susceptible part being under the pressure of the swage. The wire does not seem to fail in the middle so much. The life of SS wire seems to be around 20 to 25 years before failure. I would recommend a replacement time of 15 to 20 years. This is regardless of use or load. In fact I wonder if old ss wire still on the makers reel might be suspect. Certainly galvanised wire is less liable to unexpected failure like SS.
regards olewill

 

[Tranona]

Stainless Steel rigging wire. How can you tell if its past it?

I have an opportunity to re-rig so I either change for new ss wire, put a service (parcel and serve with marline) on the old stuff, which hasn't really ever been stressed, or change to galvanised wire and service. I intend to put a service on the wire anyway, I just need an opinion of whether the 'old but looks fine' wire can cope.

BTW, I intend to put a service on the shrouds as the boat suits (see avatar) and it would also be easier to add ratlines to access the crosstrees.

Long thread on life of rigging at the top of this page.

Galvanised wire has long life if coated, and probably more appropriate for your boat.

 

[alahol2]

Stainless Steel rigging wire. How can you tell if its past it?

I have an opportunity to re-rig so I either change for new ss wire, put a service (parcel and serve with marline) on the old stuff, which hasn't really ever been stressed....

Would not parcel and serve on stainless wire be just asking for crevice corrosion?

 

[Mistroma]

+1 on possible corrosion. If the thin Chromium Oxide layer is worn off and not renewed then stainless corrodes. Beter to just let air at it.

I once saw a 26,000 litre stainless tank turn into a collander in under 6 months. No one had considered that it was always kept full of a salty slurry. Constant stirring wore off the surface layer and it couldn't form again as it was under water.

I'd say best to let the air get at the stainless.

 

[vyv_cox]

Would not parcel and serve on stainless wire be just asking for crevice corrosion?

Yes, I would agree with that. As with all corrosion issues, keep the water out and it won't happen. I advise warming the upward facing swages with a hot gun, then applying something that will resist water, e.g. lanolin, grease, Waxoyl, etc that will hopefully flow down inside.

However, the main cause of failure in the wire itself, particularly adjacent to the swage, is fatigue. See the other thread.

 

[vyv_cox]

+1 on possible corrosion. If the thin Chromium Oxide layer is worn off and not renewed then stainless corrodes. Beter to just let air at it.

I once saw a 26,000 litre stainless tank turn into a collander in under 6 months. No one had considered that it was always kept full of a salty slurry. Constant stirring wore off the surface layer and it couldn't form again as it was under water.

I'd say best to let the air get at the stainless.

That is a very special case. The chromium oxide layer on stainless steel normally forms in microseconds, including under water to any depth that we are likely to be interested in, where aeration is plentiful.

Stainless steel and strong chlorides do not get on. I know of a case where a manufacturer inadvisedly replaced a mild steel flux tank with stainless steel. It failed in less than 24 hours.

 

[Seagreen]

I've heard that well served galvanised wire is far better than stainless steel. It did concern me that a service on stainless wire would possibly trap water with disastrous results. Still researching.

 

[wotayottie]

Stainless Steel rigging wire. How can you tell if its past it?

I have an opportunity to re-rig so I either change for new ss wire, put a service (parcel and serve with marline) on the old stuff, which hasn't really ever been stressed, or change to galvanised wire and service. I intend to put a service on the wire anyway, I just need an opinion of whether the 'old but looks fine' wire can cope.

BTW, I intend to put a service on the shrouds as the boat suits (see avatar) and it would also be easier to add ratlines to access the crosstrees.

Simple answer ( and I worked at a stainless wire producer) is that you cannot tell unless you see broken strand in which case its obvious. Usual place of failure is where the wire gets bent repeatedly ie coming out of swaged fittings. Particularly if not articulated with lots of swivelly things. Highly unlikely it will ever fail due to load alone. So in your old banger you are if anything more at risk because slack rigging of the sort you have on old boats allows more movement of the mast and fittings and more bending of the wire.

What on earth do you want to "service" the wire for? Thats sort of thing went out with oakum, stockholm tar and baggywrickle. Pure sentimentality about the past and irrelevant today. But in any case, you should never cover stainless wire which relies on lots of fresh air to remain stainless. Without that air it can corrode every bit as badly as ungalvanised mild steel. Plus adding ratlines to slack rigging will cause the rigging to bend repeatedly and to fatigue eventually.

If you really want to go old, then go with old materials.

 

[Seagreen]

The intention to service the wire war really about keeping the look of the vessel genuine. She actually sported galvanised rigging with deadeyes till the 1980's at least, so it would be authentic (if hard work) to re-instate them. However, I don't have a limitless budget so I was wondering if I should bother at all, just service the existing wire, or replace and service. I want to add ratlines, more for ease of servicing all the blocks at the crosstrees than for show, and this is a lot easier to do with serviced rigging.

 

[wotayottie]

In your position and particularly if you intend to climb up the rigging, I would re-rig and do so with galvanised to keep the old style of the boat. I would use bottle screws however - using dead eyes would be like using flax sails . A bit too authentic for real sailing.

 

[charles_reed]

As William H says - all the failures I've seen are at the swage, curiously on the lower side of upper swages, which most can't examine carefully.

Lulu, who rigs most of the Open 60s reckons "Once round the world, or 16 years, whichever is the less". He' also vouches for the superior qualities of galvanised wire - no work hardening, just rusting (in time) and 1/3rd the price of 316.

 

[Seagreen]

I've landed on serving some galvanised wire, but keeping hard eyes for big bottlescrews, rather than turning deadeyes. That's far more work than I feel like doing, but serving the wire is do-able. And it'll get the ratlines on over the winter. All this dependant on how far up the refit list this particular project gets.

 

[wklein]

Definitely worth changing it. I would go galvanized as long as your willing to slush it frequently (as its a wooden mast just do it at the same time as varnishing). Talurit it with 7x7 wire and it won't cost much at all if you do your own service.
Parcel over the talurit to build it up to a steady taper and serve over.

 

[NigelCraig]

Simple answer ( and I worked at a stainless wire producer) is that you cannot tell unless you see broken strand in which case its obvious.
.

Sorry if this is a bit off topic, but I have amongst other floating things, a Solo dinghy with one broken strand poking out of one of the s/s shrouds, just above the swage. Do you think I can put off replacing it for a few months or is it in imminent danger once one strand goes?. These are not under tension except w/w shroud when sailing.

 

[winsbury]

Dinghy shrouds, especially on a smaller boat one like the Solo are not expensive ( £30 - £40 per set on my Wayfarer so probably less for you ) and being light weight compared to yacht rigging combined with the inevitable mass of tacks and gybes done during short course dinghy racing and often being used as hand holds while hiking they take quite a bashing. If one strand has gone the rest are probably also be suffering from stress, compared to the cost of a new mast / deck / step etc should the worst happen I would just replace the shrouds.

 

[NigelCraig]

Dinghy shrouds, especially on a smaller boat one like the Solo are not expensive ( £30 - £40 per set on my Wayfarer so probably less for you ) and being light weight compared to yacht rigging combined with the inevitable mass of tacks and gybes done during short course dinghy racing and often being used as hand holds while hiking they take quite a bashing. If one strand has gone the rest are probably also be suffering from stress, compared to the cost of a new mast / deck / step etc should the worst happen I would just replace the shrouds.

Thanks for the advice- not really cost the issue but time taken for someone to make up a new one the same (bewildering variety of Solo masts, all slightly different rigging).
Is it usual to replace both shrouds at the same time, or all standing rigging for that matter?

 

[William_H]

Dinghy shroud

The thing a bout a dinghy shroud is that if it lets go completely it will just lay the mast down in the water with hopefully no damage done to mast step or sails. So yes you could risk it. It is just that with keel boats the multiple stays means if one fails the mast will be destroyed. So not worth the risk. just my opinion olewill

 

[ukmctc]

As your survey is every 7 years for insurance purposes, surley the rigging will be checked every 7 years and renewed as required?

 

[charles_reed]

As your survey is every 7 years for insurance purposes, surley the rigging will be checked every 7 years and renewed as required?

As, pointed out, stainless rigging gives no prior indication of failure and there is no certain means of non-destructive testing. No surveyor in their right mind would vouch for stainless rigging.
My insurers required one survey, on the boat's 20th birthday, to ensure that they were insuring for its true worth - though the surveyor did pick up out-of-date LPG flexible piping and some dry powder extinguishers, he had nothing else on which to comment except double clips on all seacock hoses.