Standing Rigging

[jusw]

Treble C is now 20 years old and whilst that's not very old, I suspect her standing rigging is original.

Certainly the previous owner didn't change it and neither have I so that's the best parts of 10 years.

I know people talk about a 10 year life, but is that an absolute figure? She has had a fairly easy life and is generally in really "good nick" - She lives on a mooring April - December and is lifted out just after my "traditional" Xmas sail.

What I need is some advice on whether I should take the plunge or "just keep my eye on it" - if I do take the plunge, what sort of cost would I expect? She is a Hunter Horizon 27TK has a forestay, "twin" stays at the side and an adjustable backstay.

Any advice will be appreciated.

JuSw

 

[Tranona]

Simple. When it is out of the water, get the mast down and get a condition survey from a professional rigger. He will pick up any obvious issues and advise accordingly. The alternative for peace of mind is spend the £800-1000 and replace it all!

There is no reliable way of testing so a visual inspection by an expert is as good as any way of assessing if it needs replacing.

 

[rjp]

Simple. When it is out of the water, get the mast down and get a condition survey from a professional rigger. He will pick up any obvious issues and advise accordingly. The alternative for peace of mind is spend the £800-1000 and replace it all!

There is no reliable way of testing so a visual inspection by an expert is as good as any way of assessing if it needs replacing.

If you are going to have to take the mast down to inspect it it might be as well to replace it while you are at it. I suspect any rigger or surveyor, if they knew it was 20 years old, would cover their backs and suggest replacement anyway. I would think £800 would cover it if you shop around (plus stepping and unstepping the mast).

John

 

[William_H]

Rigging

Yes definitely it needs to be replaced. The cap shrouds and intermediate shrouds are the critical ones.
Start by going up the mast to the spreaders and disconnecting the intermediate shrouds.
Take these to a rigger and get identical replacement and refit. If you look at the position of the turnscrews you might want them a little loinger or shorter just to bring the range to the middle of the turnscrew hoever beware the new cable may stretch a little.
Next replace the cap shrouds one at a time. Use a halyard attached to the side deck to substitute for the removed stay. You may have difficulty disconnecting the cap shroud form the end of the spreader. If it becomes too hard lower the mast.
The forestay should be replaced although not normally so critical as the jib luff and halyard will tend to back up the forestay The backstay is less critical and last to replace.

No you can not test or usefully inspect stay wires. They are inclined to let go suddenly without warning and usually with loss of mast. I seen several go this way though more often on smaller 26ft and 22ft boats. The life seems to be dependent on calender time not the amount of abuse or otherwise they get.

The cost of replacement is much dependent on the type of end fittings. If they are roll swaged screw section of turnscrew then this is a lot more expensive than simple eye swage with thimble.
good luck just do it, olewiill

 

[Moscowman100]

Consider getting your chainplates checked/pulled at the same time as replacing the rigging. My 20 yo original rigging was OK when replaced (although some fittings were getting very tired). However, the plates were a horror story!

 

[PetiteFleur]

I agree with checking chainplates, particularly if they are of the 'U' bolt variety - I tried tightening one of the nuts on a previous boat as it looked as though it had been leaking - however it promptly snapped off, so I inspected all six of them and they ALL had severe crevice corrosion and would not have lasted much longer. Replaced with Wichard which were an exact replacement.

 

[bendyone]

Cost of the 2 cap shrouds on my hunter this year was £160, my plan was to replace a bit of the rigging each year.
I guess the lower ones would be about £50 each the forestay £80 and the back stay £40 So for all around £400 max. at that cost if you are not sure of the age replace them.

 

[carise]

Went through similar thinking re re-rigging: once you have the doubt in your mind, just get it all replaced- not that expensive in comparison to a lot of other boat related tasks. It also gives you the opportunity to check/replace all those other niggly bits and pieces.

Can recommend a decent rigger if you are having problems.

 

[Gin]

I know people talk about a 10 year life, but is that an absolute figure?
JuSw

You should also check the terms and conditions of your insurance policy for some insurers specifically insist that standing rigging is replaced every 10 years- one assumes that the loss of the rig if this hasn't been attended to would compromise or even negate an otherwise valid claim!

 

[Koeketiene]

A lot depends on the quality of the original.
Guapa's 25 years 'old' this year - I have reason to believe the standing rigging is still original (neither me or the 2 previous owners had it replaced, so that's 15 years at least). Had it surveyed by a professional rigger - he said it still looked 'good' to him.
The insurance OTOH now insists on having it replaced - they've treated us fairly when we needed them, so not about to argue. Having it replaced this winter.

 

[PeterGibbs]

Treble C is now 20 years old and whilst that's not very old, I suspect her standing rigging is original.

What I need is some advice on whether I should take the plunge or "just keep my eye on it" - if I do take the plunge, what sort of cost would I expect? She is a Hunter Horizon 27TK has a forestay, "twin" stays at the side and an adjustable backstay.

Any advice will be appreciated.

JuSw

After 20 years' service I think you can take the view "this rigging owes me nothing".

So the only question is how long will you keep this boat? If some years, then why not enjoy the peace of mind and get it replaced - cheapest is just remove the gear and have it replaced length for length. Expect a charge in the £7-800 bracket for cable and all fittings, plus installation, although this you can do yourself.

If your bottle screws are pretty well down to their last threads taking up slack, then the new shrounds will have to be shorter than the present ones to get back to original length. When removing them, be sure to mark them so the rigger can accommodate this.

Finally, if you don't replace the rigging and have an "incident" you will get no mercy from your insurer! And anyone buying your boat in the future will want recognition in the price that the rigging is past its sail-by date!

PWG

 

[milfordman]

If it is 20 years old, then replace it all. For peace of mind if nothing else. I did mine last year, it was also 20 years old with no visible signs of wear or deterioration. I used Uk Rigging of Grimsby. I was very satisfied with the price and service.

One other sugestion, I would recomend that you check that the rigging is correctly set up and tensioned. Then you will be able to ensure the new rigging screws are set to mid point when set up.

I replaced the rigging with out dropping the mast. One piece at a time.

All the best.