Soft shackles, who uses them, what for?

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Neeves

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Soft shackles appear to be very fashionable. Forum are full, well occasionally, of threads on how to make them. They are topical here as there is a thread on use of dyneema, from which the soft shackles are made, as an anchor shank shackle replacement and 2 members mention they use soft shackles for their snubber.

I confess we have not found them useful.

We have perfectly adequate stainless shackles securing blocks, like spinnaker blocks, mainsheet blocks and snatch blocks. We use shackles between sail headboard and halyard of which 2 halyards are 2:1 purchase. Our furlers are designed to take a shackle pin. We did try a soft shackle for our bridle (snubber) but the 6mm chain we are using make this far too fiddly - and we find a bridle plate (a fancy hook) easy to use. Our sheets are one piece, sewn together in the middle to hollow dyneema tape, and then cow hitched. When reaching we do add an extra sheet, which is actually permanently attached and we move from side to side, dependent on which tack we are on - it is attached with a bowline.

So - we have alternative dedicated methods to secure two items together, well proven to us, we don't find fault with our existing shackles.....

I can see where a soft shackle would be used - but cannot see what is wrong with stainless shackles (we do not race, we are weight conscious, but not to that extent) - and if we replaced the perfectly good stainless shackles - what on earth would we do with them?

As I mentioned on another thread

Soft shackles seem like an invention looking for a role in life, certainly on a cruising yacht (if I was told they were developed by DSM - I would not be surprised)

So - what are we missing, apart from not following fashion. If they are so good - why are they not on every Benny, Jenny and Swan (maybe they are and I'm unobservant)

Jonathan
 
I use one to attach the topping lift to the aluminium boom end fitting. I used to have a s/s shackle there which rattled and was also wearing the fitting.
 
I use one to secure an aluminium abseiling ‘figure of eight’ gadget to my boom. The dyneema soft shackle is a lot kinder to the aluminium than a stainless one. (The ‘figure of eight’ has a rope wound through it from port to starboard and takes the sting out of a gybe, accidental or otherwise).

Soft shackles are kinder to painted surfaces, such as outboard lifting lugs.

They’re also quieter in situations where stainless ones tend to rattle.
 
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I use one to attach the genoa sheets, which are made with eye splices on the ends. That avoids having a heavy metal shackle or having bulky knots which can get snagged against the shrouds when tacking.
 
I have two sets of four, with low friction rings and a few odd ones onboard. I use one set of the ones with low friction rings for the cruising chute tack line. The soft shackles go around the bottom of some stanchions and lead the tack line back to a cockpit winch, i can then control the sail from the cockpit.

I could use blocks, clamping them around the stanchions, but they would either be permanently fitted and rattling around, or a real pain to fit/remove. The soft shackles take seconds to fit/remove, don't make any noise and don't risk damage to the GPR toe rail or side decks.

They serve a useful purpose in this application, but i'm not rushing to make a stack of them to replace stainless shackles elsewhere on the boat.
 
I use them to attach spinnaker and barbour hauler blocks to the rail on the deck to avoid damaging the anodising. I find that having them on the forward pair of blocks is useful if I want to adjust the position as it saves taking pliers forward to release the shackle pins. I also have a pair on the blocks to the genoa fairleads as Goacher messed up the sizing of the genoa & i have to fit blocks onto the cars to get a different leadout & shackles would not fit. I carry a couple of spares as an emergency hanging on the cabin steps as they would fit a wide range of situations if needed quickly
 
Norman_E said:
I use one to attach the genoa sheets, which are made with eye splices on the ends. That avoids having a heavy metal shackle or having bulky knots which can get snagged against the shrouds when tacking.
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+1 for that. We have a babystay on which any other form of sheet attachment which I have tried hangs up when tacking. Eye splices on sheets + dyneema shackle = much easier faster and more consistent tacks.
 
We have an optional inner forestay, takes the storm jib, on a Highfield lever. We leave it permanently in place. It would allow hang up of sheets.

I sourced some dyneema hollow tape. Inserted the sheets from either end, leaving about 150mm empty. I sewed each sheet into the ends of the tape with dyneema fishing line. The empty 150mm of the tape is cow hitched to the sail - very low profile (because there is, basically, no profile) no hang ups. No splices, no 'knot' in the soft shackles, no special skill needed to make the shackles (having done both, sewing is easier than making a soft shackle). Not are original idea - we used nylon hollow tape on our X99 in 1990, Dyneema is stronger and smoother than nylon.

Downside - we have a one piece sheet.

Both our genoa and screacher, Code Zero, use the same concept.

We use the same dyneema hollow tape in areas of high abrasion.

Jonathan
 
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The couple of soft shackles I have aboard have been emergency spares as I too do not feel the need to replace perfectly good stainless shackles. So far the only time I have used one, was when the shackle joining the gennaker to its sock had worked loose and the pin disappeared. It was quickly replaced by a soft shackle that will probably stay there.
I can imagine more replacements if existing shackles were to give up the ghost.
I would be worried about chafe though, so I would be checking them much more regularly than stainless shackles which are mostly fit and forget.
 
We use lots of them. They have different advantages and drawbacks compared to stainless steel shackles so are not a direct replacement, but in many applications the advantages outweigh the drawbacks. As always, use the best tool for the job.

One major advantage is that they don’t produce dissimilar metal corrosion. So if attaching, for example, a block to an aluminium fitting, a soft shackle will help keep the fitting in good condition. As well as being lighter than stainless shackles they don’t rattle, which helps when trying to sleep off watch.

However, thinking about soft shackles just as replacements for stainless steel shackles is too limiting. Once you start using them there are many applications that are not obvious and where a stainless steel shackle would not work. They can be made much longer than a stainless shackle so can be used to attach things to large objects where the restricted throat size of a stainless shackle would not work.

They can also be used where their strength is not needed, such as securing a shore power cord to the pier and boat so that it cannot fall in the water, or hanging unused lines or objects in the lazarette.

If you are substituting a stainless steel shackle, check the working load of the soft shackle is suitable. Generally this not an issue, they are often (but not always) as strong or stronger than an equivalent 316 shackle that will fit, but this depends on the application. Chafe and UV degradation of the soft shackle are factors to take into account. We often oversize the soft shackle for the strength required, as there is no weight, and little cost penalty in doing this.

If you make your own soft shackles they are less expensive than an equivalent stainless shackle. Making your own also allows you to use the newer designs that are easier to open and close, as well as significantly stronger.
 
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I use them a lot, for so many purposes I don't think I can name them all off hand. I find them fantastically useful, much easier and quicker to put on or take off than metal shackles, and without the danger of getting whacked by one.

Jib sheets to clews
Staysail sheet to clew -- allows the sheet to be quickly detached to use for other purposes.
Barber haulers
Lifting gear
Halyard extension
Outhaul attachment
Attaching the weight to the end of the Jordan Series Drogue
Just all kinds of things

Note that they are more useful on boats with a lot of Dyneema running rigging -- because knots don't work well in Dyneema. Our boat has almost 100% Dyneema running rigging now, and I splice loops in all of it. You need soft shackles for attaching dyneema lines to anything.

Dyneema soft shackles fit well into a boat which uses dyneema for other stuff -- low friction eyes with dyneema strops, spliced single braid dyneema, etc. And if you are splicing dyneema anyway then making soft shackles is a doddle.

I use low friction eyes with dyneema strops for a lot of things, including my blade jib sheet leads, barber haulers, lifting gear (I keep one permanently attached to the end of my boom), dinghy lifting, pole guys -- you name it. Last year I had a jib car track pull out of the deck (!), in the middle of the North Sea. I had a spare low friction eye and strop handy and I was sailing again in 5 minutes -- literally. They are just fantastically useful.
 
noelex said:
. . . However, thinking about soft shackles just as replacements for stainless steel shackles is too limiting. Once you start using them there are many applications that are not obvious and where a stainless steel shackle would not work. They can be made much longer than a stainless shackle so can be used to attach things to large objects where the restricted throat size of a stainless shackle would not work.

They can also be used where their strength is not needed, such as securing a shore power cord to the pier and boat so that it cannot fall in the water, or hanging unused lines or objects in the lazarette. . ..
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Indeed!!

This is an important point. They are not merely substitutes for metal shackles at all.

The more of them you have around, the more uses you will find for them. They are so light and so cheap, that the very same item which can safely lift 5 tonnes (or whatever), can be used for something absolutely trivial like holding the cover on my instrument pod (real case), tying up shore power cords, whatever.

I also like that I make them myself -- I really like that Dyneema has put real rope work back into our lives, instead of just buying stuff at the chandlery. Brings us closer to the process.
 
Agree with most of the above - dyneema is a must have onboard imho. Get some off ebay and few minutes to make a shackle of whatever length you want. Weight saving aren't just for racers, a bag of half a dozen spare shackles weighs next to nothing stashed close to the cockpit compared with same WLL stainless.
I use some 5mm dyneema spliced into the end of the jib sheets soft shackled into the clew so next to no weight on the clew in light airs plus doesn't get caught on the inner forestay. Simple and tidy connection for an anchor snubber. Various other uses you wouldn't really guess until you have some onboard and take a little while to learn how to splice and make a soft shackle. Splicing is simple, tidy and really strong!
Also great for on the run repairs, pull a little apart into strands then mix in with epoxy for a get you home really strong fix.
Not that I ever get near those expensive boats but there does seem to be much more dyneema installed on new builds these days.

What's not to like?? :cool:
 
Dockhead said:
I also like that I make them myself -- I really like that Dyneema has put real rope work back into our lives, instead of just buying stuff at the chandlery. Brings us closer to the process.
Click to expand...

I feel the same about them! As for applications in Belle Serene:


  • Low friction ring (LFR) to shackle on bow roller, for cruising chute tack line
  • LFR through mainsail reefing eye to steel ring. Times four, for low-friction twin slab reefing
  • LFR around Cunningham eye & sail luff, for 2:1 purchase on Cunningham
  • ditto around mainsail clew eye, for 2:1 purchase on clew outhaul
  • LFR to side deck padeyes for cruising chute sheets. (This also avoids the clattering of a steel shackle on the side deck in low airs.)
  • securing LFRs to genoa track for a 6:1 dyneema purchase on genoa sheet, giving same cockpit control of genoa sheeting angle as an expensive roller-bearing adjustable genoa car
  • attaching overhand knot in centre of genoa sheet to the genoa clew. (Means no dangerous heavy weapon potentially knocking me out if in trouble on the foredeck)
  • connecting bowlines of two thin cruising chute sheets to the chute's clew (ditto, and allows me to leave tidy minute bowlines in situ while being able to disconnect sheets from the sail)

So really my purposes are about attaching LFRs, avoiding hard shackles clattering on the deck, and replacing heavy weaponry that attaches sheets to sails.

As has been said above, uses for soft shackles are not limited to when you need the massive strength, or the very low stretch, that they provide. And dyneema is so much easier to splice with than regular rope, because it’s coreless.

I make my own, using a technique that avoids the need for the difficult-to-remember button knot, and happens to be stronger too.
 
BelleSerene said:
I make my own, using a technique that avoids the need for the difficult-to-remember button knot, and happens to be stronger too.
Click to expand...

Linky??

I use the double diamond knot, takes a few plays over morning coffee to get the hang of but quick after that ( and a quick look at the diagram :) )

cak305cev305z305.jpg
 
Most of what has been mentioned.
I also find them eminently useful for attaching snatch blocks wherever they are needed to whatever happens to be handy.
If they have already been mentioned and I missed them, my apologies.
 
Try again, without the ad blocker on.

On the big boat:
Attach the soft eyed jib sheets to the sail's clew, doesn't hang up on the babystay like bowlines.
Tack on the heavy weather jib.
Attach blocks to the aluminum toerail without the toerail getting chewed up.
Attach the kicker blocks to the mast without the aluminum link plates getting mangled.

On the little boat:
Jib sheets.
Spinnaker pole up and down hauls.
Mast ram connections.
All the trailer tiedowns.

IMHO they're one of the best sailing inventions of recent years.
 
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