Removing all lines off the boat - recommendations?

[peter2407]

I fancy taking all of the lines off the boat to give them a wash and check for any wear. Some questions:

What size of mousing line
I will do a line at a time and try to tie the two ends of the mousing line together and use gaffer tape to mark which is which with a permanent marker (apparently the term should now be "sharpie" - who knew?)
Method of attaching the mousing line
What to do with for example the end of the main halyard that has a "folded bit" (term?)
Cool wash, cold wash, detergent, softener?

Any comments to improve the above gratefully received. All the sails are off the boat and with Quay Sails for a fix/service/cut/bin.

TIA

 

[westhinder]

If the hayard has an eye spliced into it, so much the better. (a Flemish eye?) just tie your mousing line to it with a bowline. I use 3mm mousing line, which is plenty strong enough.
If there is no eye provided, I use a rolling hitch, if that's the right name, to tie the mousing line to the hayard and I cover the knot with insulating tape to give a smooth surface.
Gentle washing program, 30°, standard detergent, no softeners, extra rinse cycle and a good spin, then carefully remove any kinks and hang to dry before you put them away or return them to the boat. I think it is better to put a number of lines together in the machine, it is more efficient and economical.

 

[Poignard]

I put mine in a pillow case. A couple at a time.

For messenger lines I used 4mm, because I had some. Anything too small might get jammed between the side of the masthead sheave and the housing.

 

[peter2407]

Westhinder - thank you. Having googled flemish eye, that seems to me to be a standard splice. What have is 'a flat eye' or "squashed eye" the reason i am concerned is that took a bit of a tug to get it through the deck line management kit, and it may therefore get properly stuck in a mast head sheave. I am wondering if I should just cut it off and make it like the others, so mousing line sown/taped on to regular round lines?

 

[knuterikt]

I fancy taking all of the lines off the boat to give them a wash and check for any wear. Some questions:

What size of mousing line
I will do a line at a time and try to tie the two ends of the mousing line together and use gaffer tape to mark which is which with a permanent marker (apparently the term should now be "sharpie" - who knew?)
Method of attaching the mousing line
What to do with for example the end of the main halyard that has a "folded bit" (term?)
Cool wash, cold wash, detergent, softener?

Any comments to improve the above gratefully received. All the sails are off the boat and with Quay Sails for a fix/service/cut/bin.

TIA

Is this a "folded eye" also called a reeving eye Just tie your mousing line into the eye

I prefer to use some whipping twine (or thin Dyneema) sewn onto the end if no reeving eye.
Fishermans eye is a secure knot

 

[peter2407]

Thank you. Thats the chap.

 

[knuterikt]

Thank you. Thats the chap.

The reeving eye is made to make reeving easier - they tend to get a little bit snug through clutches but I would not be afraid to use it to pull the halyard out, the eye was probably used the get the halyard in when new.

This reeving needle is used to pull the rope through clutches, made of a large cable tie and a piece of thin Dyneema

 

[single]

And for mouse lines, i find this cheap and handy- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/550-Paracord-Parachute-Cord-Lanyard-Desert-Survival-Type-III-7-Strand-Core-100FT-/301136422574?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&var=&hash=item461d2126ae

 

[ghostlymoron]

Do you have a flat eye in both ends of your halyard? If not, pull it out the other way.
If you use thin mousing line, make sure you keep I taut when you pull it or it can get stuck down the side of the sheave. Then you'll have to climb the mast.

 

[vyv_cox]

I remove all my halyards, six in all, every year. Originally I bought a 200 metre roll of 6 mm polypropylene from a farm supplier, cut into 30 metre lengths this lasted 15 years or more. It then began to deteriorate, dropping blue fibres all over the deck. I replaced it two years ago with line about 3 or 4 mm diameter, typical Greek stuff bought by weight. That is fine for the job.

I attach the mouse line to the halyard very simply, using galvanised soft iron wire, although thin stainless would be almost as good but work hardening kills it eventually. The wire stays permanently on the mousing lines, pushed through each rope and hooked together. Very quick, simple and secure, it only takes an hour or so to do them all.

 

[oldvarnish]

And for mouse lines, i find this cheap and handy- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/550-Paracord-Parachute-Cord-Lanyard-Desert-Survival-Type-III-7-Strand-Core-100FT-/301136422574?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&var=&hash=item461d2126ae

useful. thanks

 

[knuterikt]

Do you have a flat eye in both ends of your halyard? If not, pull it out the other way.

What you call a flat eye is a reeving eye, it's not load bearing and the purpose is to have an easy & safe attachment for mousing lines that is not increasing the bulk of the rope - far better than strings & tape IMHO.
I would expect that there is a normal splice in the other end of the line.

Splicing instructions here http://www.neropes.com/Splicing Guide Individual Splices/Reeving_Eye_Splice.pdf
From the instructions,

Note: A reeving eye is a non-load bearing eye,which allows a halyard to be used as a messenger line for its replacement.

 

[KellysEye]

It is possible that an eye won't go through a sheave, what I did is sew a mouse line to the bitter end.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I asked the question because I don't use hard eyes on halyards anymore. I tie direct to the sail with a halyard knot.
Might try a reeving eye at the free end though.

What you call a flat eye is a reeving eye, it's not load bearing and the purpose is to have an easy & safe attachment for mousing lines that is not increasing the bulk of the rope - far better than strings & tape IMHO.
I would expect that there is a normal splice in the other end of the line.

Splicing instructions here http://www.neropes.com/Splicing Guide Individual Splices/Reeving_Eye_Splice.pdf
From the instructions,

 

[lw395]

I use 6mm rope from the pound shop for mouse lines, after a few issues with thinner stuff going off the sheaves and fraying over a winter.

 

[jac]

One thing that no-one has mentioned is that you need to keep at least 1 ( ideally 2) lines up the mast just in case.

This year My genoa halyard has decided it won't go back - fairly simple matter to go back up with main halyard ( and the recently replaced spinnaker halyard as backup) and have a look from bosuns chair but if I had removed all the lines and couldn;t get masthead lines back in I would be facing either a very agile rigger or more likely a crane.

 

[johnphilip]

I put mine in a pillow case. A couple at a time.

For messenger lines I used 4mm, because I had some. Anything too small might get jammed between the side of the masthead sheave and the housing.

Been there, pulled the reefing lines out of the boom and the mouse lines jammed in the sheeve that slides within the boom. Dismantled boom and found the nylon "wheels" that the sheeve carrier runs up and down the boom on were missing, giving lots of friction when trying to let out a reef. Unwanted job led to useful improvement.

 

[peter2407]

One thing that no-one has mentioned is that you need to keep at least 1 ( ideally 2) lines up the mast just in case.

This year My genoa halyard has decided it won't go back - fairly simple matter to go back up with main halyard ( and the recently replaced spinnaker halyard as backup) and have a look from bosuns chair but if I had removed all the lines and couldn;t get masthead lines back in I would be facing either a very agile rigger or more likely a crane.

A very good point, thank you.