replacing running rigging on a sailboat replacing running rigging on a sailboat

It is very flexible and easy to handle, and is still the line of choice for most applications on cruisers and club racers. If the baseplates, for example, are leaking, water will penetrate the deck, making the surrounding deck core mushy and weak (if a core exists) and possibly compromising supporting bulkheads and structures belowdecks. The screw threads and locking nuts need regular cleaning and some light greasing to prevent corrosion. It's about a days worth of work. Cleat the halyard and pull it to the tape mark on one side . Most masts have integral sheaves, which are rarely serviced except when the mast is unsteppedoften only at five-year intervals. I have got quotes for sails for my 40' boat and they range from $8k for a jib and a main and I replaced the standing rigging on my boat. Whether you want to replace aging and questionable rigging, be able to handle a wider range of weather conditions, or add sail trimming upgrades for more speed and better pointing to windward, this ebook will show you . With a spare mechanical end fitting, wire and the proper tools, you can replace a stay pretty much anywhere. Every time I think Ive seen it all, my people outdo themselves and serve up the unexpected. One part of sailboats and yachts that must be inspected, maintained, or even replaced when necessary is the standing rigging. This way you can cut the wire roughly to length and have a rigger swage the tops, fit them in place yourself and terminate the lower ends to suit. I would think at the first notice of a few broken strands in more than two of the wires. Its always advisable to unstep the mast every few years to check it over thoroughly at ground level, so this is an obvious time to consider replacing the shrouds and stays, particularly if the forestay is to be replaced, as removing the furler without damaging it can be a tricky task. Check your spreaders, chainplates and turnbuckles for cracking, fatigue, missing cotter pins/rings, etc. Wendy Mitman Clarke is currently between passages. Winter storms and ice can damage the hull and mast as well. But Malizia is far from the only team struggling to keep their boat in good read more, Get your ground tackle setup right, and youll sleep much easier while youre cruising. They aren't even worn enough to require end-for ending yet. If line is properly taken care of, it can last many decades. You should be mechanically inclined, he says, and the way to find that out is if I start talking all this technical jargon and you decide whether youre suited to handle that at all.. Inspect any integral reefing sheaves or bearing wear or UV degradation. How the rigging has been tuned is also part of a boats story. They might have swollen, so the new will appear to be a smaller gauge. Cruising World may receive financial compensation for products purchased through this site. The former requires someone with a swage machine to fit terminals, the latter you can fit yourselfwith care. I recently sailed on a boat that had rust around the wire/swage on all the shrouds. Your boat will need bottom paint roughly every 2 years (could be longer, but to be safe, let's keep it at two). Check out my guide on standing rigging here! Any line that you have to handle such as jib sheets, halyards and mainsheet should be about half inch (12mm) diameter for a good grip, and jib sheets and mainsheets should be one of the softer feel products. Please try again. The golden rule has always been never to work on a rig with the boat out of the water. Replacing your old worn out or damaged standing rigging is a crucial requirement to insure your safety and the safety of others. Labor total: $1,000 on average If you have (reasonable) evidence that the PO replaced only the worst sections, it's safe to assume that the rest of the rig is getting ancient and failure prone. Ensure swivels are working and remove any shackles. The total maintenance cost for a small daytripper will average around $1,600 per year or $133 per month. This process . A Bonnier LLC Company. Hardwood would be best but we used epoxied plywood and it was adequate. The mast stayed up, but it sounded like a gun shot and was scary as hell. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. Marine sailboat supplier of running rigging - halyards, dock lines and halyar=ds shackles. The Netherlands A dormant maneuver has both ends fixed at each end. For each diameter of rigging wire your boat requires drill a hole that size near the corner of the block. It definitely needed to be replaced. [advertisement] Take this opportunity to check out your spars as well. Here's the average cost to shrink wrap a boat. I agree with a general average of 20 years for replacing the standing rigging. For an average 40-foot boat, Cockerill estimates about $100 per foot to re-rig with wire rigging ($4,000), as well as the round-trip cost to haul and launch the boat and unstep and step the rig (an additional $2,500 or so). If the existing is frayed and faded - then a decision should be made to contract a rigger, preferably to x) inspect and give a written report on the condition of all the running rigging; to y) provide a written quotation to supply and fit new line; to z) provide a written quotation to replace sheeves and other running rigging components with new. I should have changed mine sooner than I did. These carry a good deal of compression load, so check their roots for damage and make sure the spreaders arent bent in any waythey should exactly bisect the angle of the shroud. Do a few turns on one side before going to the other and applying an equal number. You want a reliable boat, which means you'll fix anything that needs fixing immediately. The running rigging consists of the halyards, sheets . The diameter of the sheets and halyards will depend on what fits the blocks that you have. Deep cycle batteries (which are best for household functionality) need replacing every 4-6 years and will cost roughly $600. The biggest thing we like to have is the history of the boat: what kind of boat it is, how its been sailed and where has it been sailed, says Jay Herman, owner of Annapolis Rigging. ImproveSailing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. PACESHIP PY26 Sailboat details on sailboatdata.com. You should have the boat itself (the hull), the dagger board, the rudder and tiller, your mainsheet, both mast pieces, boom, boom bang and sail in one place. By taking on the labor yourself, youll probably save as much as $2,000 on the re-rigging cost, he says. Much depends on where it is manufactured; Herman and other riggers say the best wire today is coming from South Korea through a manufacturer called KOS, making wire to military specifications. Cleat the jib off on the port side of the mast and the main on the starboard. The idea is you come on deck with this small canvas bag and make it happen, Cockerill says. Aside from the relative cost differences between rod and wire (rod is more expensive), what also makes a switch pricey is having to significantly modify the mast to accept the different rigging. The Down Haul consists of a line attached to the mast end of the boom. Although rod rigging is more common on racing boats, many well-known cruising-boat builders, such as Valiant, Bristol, J/Boats and Hinckley, have rod-rigged models. Skilled marine technicians charge from $75 - $150 per hour. Sta-Set X is an ideal. Since then I've enjoyed sailing very much - and I've never been afraid of the water again. On this site for example someone posted the specs for a Catalina 27 and they were bang on and agreed fully with the specs I got from the Catalina owners association. These products sell from $1.00 to $2.50 per foot. But if you want the good stuff, need more fire extinguishers, plan on spending more like $600. Swaging is a strong and durable way to attach end fittings to wire rigging. If you live on a boat in a location where it falls below freezing temperature (good luck!). Let's go over each type and break down which costs to expect exactly. The warm trade winds in the West Indies were calling; time to go sailing. Perhaps a rogue cotter pin sticking out of a turnbuckle. Installing the new standing rigging is simple for a trailer sailor after the mast is unstepped. Winterization is an often-overlooked cost, but it can be one of the largest expenses each year. Parts total: $600 on average First, its easier to fix in remote places and on your own. Look for cracks, corrosion and worn clevis pins or shackles, removing any tape and replacing cotter pins and split rings where necessary. Read more on the lifetime expectancy of marine diesels here. If you carry a life-raft you'll need to replace that every 12 years as well. The easiest way to prevent line from chafing all the way through is to simply look at your line. Don't forget that this site will also replace your rigging. Before re-tuning the rig the mast base, turnbuckles and stay fixtures should be inspect. Whether youre buying a used sailboat thats new to you or youve owned your boat for decades, the standing rigging is what keeps the mast in place, and thus requires particular attention. Many products featured on this site were editorially chosen. I'll explain how below. This is some excellent information! Researchers have announced the discovery of the wreck of the schooner barge Ironton in Lake Huron, sitting upright with masts and rigging still intact and with the lifeboat that could have saved her crew still lashed to the ships stern. Now is a good time to give it a quick spray with some track lubricant as you descend. Standing rigging supports your boat's mast. One thing all the riggers I spoke with expressed emphatically was that stainless steel needs oxygen to create a fine film of oxidation that protects the metal. Have a feel for any rough or sharp edges, especially cotter pin ends that might chafe lines or sails. For instance, Madden says, he recently had a customer whose 46-foot cutter had a rigging failure at six years. The actual total annual cost is $3,000 to $7,000, due to other recurring costs like docking and insurance fees. The former need careful scrutiny and often sustain damage from misalignment. Shrouds and stays should be replaced in pairs, applying just enough tension to support the mast with you climbing it, but not tuned to sail. However, they generally cost more than a swaged fitting; Herman says while Hi-MODs newer mechanical fittings are definitely more user-friendly to assemble, theyre twice the cost of a swaged fitting. Some riggers will recommend swaged fittings for the mast end of the rigging and mechanical fittings at the deck level: Corrosion is less prevalent at the top of the mast, and you can more easily and regularly inspect mechanical fittings at deck level, where theyre frequently subjected to salt water. There is no hard and fast rule for when to replace your running rigging. Whether you are setting up the hardware for a trapeze or trying to create the perfect mast rake before a big race with your tension guage, we at MAURIPRO Sailing will meet your Rigging needs. When we brought our Oday 25 home ,I knew judging from the lack of care the previous owner shown the rigging might also be suspect. You can see that the chafe is only occurring on one side of the line, the side that comes in contact with the sheave. No signs of corrosion or stray strands anywhere. First, check for cracks (usually longitudinal), particularly if the terminal looks misshapen or the stay is misaligned in any way. Write the diameter near the hole with sharpie. If your running rigging has seen better days, now might be the time to replace it. Then the swager is used to compress the fitting so tightly that the wires merge into a solid piece of stainless steel and cant pull out (right). Both are located in the U.K., and the products are distributed in the U.S. through vendors like Hayn, West Marine, Defender, and local chandleries and riggers. Running Rigging & Cordage to Order . You should be able to get the specs off the internet. There is minor chafe on all sides of the line and along the entire length. By taking on the labor yourself, you'll probably save as much as $2,000 on the re-rigging cost, he says. Start at the bottom, working your way up from the lowers, to the cap shrouds and finally the stays. As for sources of wire and fittings, there are many, including major chandleries and vendors, like West Marine and Defender, as well as some private riggers, like Annapolis Rigging and the Rigging Company, which will work with you to define what you need and help you source parts and materials. For that reason, its difficult to give an accurate estimate of the cost of making the switch, even for an average 40-footer. Free shipping on $90+! Yes, doing it yourself will theoretically save money. The mechanical fasteners are great in that you can terminate and then look inside to be sure its formed correctly, so you do have a way of inspecting your work, Madden says. The average price of a used cruising sailboat is between $10,000 and $100,000. Probably the trickiest will be the forestay and backstay, as these carry the greatest loads, although all the standing rigging can be loosened to some degree when at rest. Most engines will last you about 20 years, depending on the amount of use and whether you use it properly. I'm the owner of ImproveSailing. The latter is very important, as its a common cause of weakness, so wherever possible ensure stainless steel fittings are insulated from an aluminum mast. Learn all about the dangers of failing to winterize here. How Much Does it Cost to Dock a Boat for a Year? The installation of the engine will cost a few hundred to a couple of thousand dollars. Another factor in your DIY decision-making process is simple: peace of mind. There are some obvious answers to this one for instance, if your wire rigging has broken strands or if its suffering from candy-striping, i.e., rust-colored streaks swirling down the wire. Every sailboat has an Out Haul and a Down Haul. Read more on the cost of antifouling your boat. If you use your batteries extensively, they will most likely need replacing after 3-4 years, for example, for liveaboards or full-time cruisers. At least once a year, at the beginning or end of the sailing season, you should visually inspect all of your running rigging and look for signs of wear. Copyright 2023 Cruising World. It's also called antifouling paint because it helps to protect your hull from weeds, barnacles, and so on. 34' Bermuda Sloop rig will cost you about $3,000 - $5,000. My belief is that you should be replacing your sailboats standing rigging every 10 to 15 years. But this time frame also is variable, depending on the boats purpose and use. The interval of longterm maintenance will increase dramatically in these conditions. This was most likely caused by something sharp and pointy that poked through the cover and caught on the core. For all remaining running rigging, you can use polyester double-braid rope. Its best to slacken them off, giving them a few turns each way and removing any clevis pins for close inspection before re-tensioning the shroud or stay and then locking it off with new split rings or cotter pins. That said, some sailors prefer wire over rod for a number of reasons. Best Price Opti Running Rigging Sheets Halyard Line Sailboat Kit 100% Original + FREE Delivery discount activity gsmsharmaji.com, US $174 sail ties Lower Spirit Halyard 1 ea and shock cords One of the best ways to improve an aging Opti is to overhaul and replace all the running rigging Upper Spirit Halyard 1 ea, Free shipping on all orders . For instance, for an offshore bluewater boat, Madden recommends 10 years, and for a serious coastal cruiser, more like 12. In a tropical area, or high sunshine location, you should replace the running rigging every six to eight years. A lot of new boat owners overlook the maintenance costs of sailboats - and maintenance can get pricey quickly. Replacing Running Rigging on an Older Sailboat, a bowline or other knot in a high tech line reduces the breaking strength by up to 80%, for jib sheets you must increase the line size to account for the reduced strength more $$$$, an eye splice is required to attach a shackle to a halyard. The sails, rigging, and engine will be less critical if you won't take her out very often. Now is a good time to install all new cotter pins or rings to leave no doubt as to the integrity of your connections. Before you contemplate the task of renewing your standing rigging you need to thoroughly inspect all components at close quarters to find out exactly what needs to be replaced and what items can be safely transferred to the new rig. we have provided rigging services and have specialized in running rigging. I cant understand why they wanted 75 feet for the main as I still have 25-30 feet even when the main sheet is eased all the way. Read more about the cost of replacing risers and manifolds here. Let's hoist the sails and get started! Run the shrouds and attach them to the deadeyes on the hull. After that, you'll need to change them out. That's why I've calculated the average maintenance costs for four different types of boat below: Your specific maintenance cost will vary depending on what type of boat you have and how you'll use it. Splices should be made by a professional, high tech line is very difficult to cut. Your subscription could not be saved. The latter may indicate two things: one, that its simply surface rust, which you should be able to polish off, or two, that as the wire was being manufactured, a strand might have picked up some contamination during the process and is compromised, which is cause for concern. Wire rigging is generally less expensive and easier to handle. This small cruiser is well built, easy to handle and relatively economical to maintain. A smaller loop is a makeshift chainplate attachment you can attach it to a neighboring chainplate and attach the stay to it. Inspect the area around tang plates and toggle fittings for cracks, preferably using a magnifying glass. Either way, Jimmie Cockerill, co-owner of the Rigging Company in Annapolis, recommends that for a sailboat with wire rigging, the mast should be pulled and all fittings and wire visually inspected every five to six years. Turns out that owning a boat is pretty affordable. Assuming you have decided to replace the rigging wire as well as a number of other components, the first decision is whether to do it with the mast up or down. [1] 2. Not all maintenance is as important. These boats have less moving parts and less critical parts. The total maintenance cost for a bluewater cruiser will average around $3,225 per year or $269 per month. The worst-case scenario, of course, is that the chainplates pull right out of the deck, with catastrophic consequences. Replacing the mast is uncommon, but if you're unlucky and get demasted, it will need to be fixed. You will most likely also need (or want) to replace toggles and cotter pins, even if you keep the turnbuckles. I'll explain each line item in detail later on. If youre thinking of buying a used sailboat its probable that your final selection will be a boat that is a few years old and the halyards, mainsheet, backstay, jibsheets and other running rigging will probably look a little old, dirty and frayed. The Estimated Costs of Replacing a Jibs and Genoas Sails for boats measuring 42' to 50' can cost around $5,500-$9,000 Sails for boats measuring 36' to 42' can cost around $4,000-$7,000 Sails for boats measuring 32' to 36' can cost around $3,000-$5,000 Sails for boats measuring 24' to 32' can cost around $2,500-$4,000 Its when the leeward side starts flopping around that youre asking for trouble., Stainless steel has a finite number of cycles essentially, movements, whether fore and aft or side to side. Clean and lubricate them, then refasten them, and remember to mouse them with new galvanized wire and tape over the ends to avoid chafe. Listing Results for Sailing & Rigging and ENG1 Medical Certificate in Marans, Levallois Perret and Cap D'Agde Replacement of the rigging components is more frequent and based on inspection. Seems like a lot for a 40' boat. Complete, illustrated 16 page instruction guide to get your new DragonForce 95 rigged, setup and on the water! (This is true anywhere there are stainless fittings by the way, so be wary of putting too much tape or tight-fitting covers on them.). From knowing the parts of the sails to understanding the need for tension, I'll go over everything you need to know about rigging sails. Most people starting out will get a smaller size boat and use it for day trips and weekend trips. Many boat owners are reluctant to replace their running rigging, and for good reason, it can be expensive! Regardless of what fittings you currently have the choice for multi-stranded wire rigging is between swaged terminals or mechanical fittings. A swaged fitting is a terminus thats attached using a machine called a swager. It's a good idea to replace wire running rigging with high-modulus rope, but the reality is that in most cases we can't because many masts that were designed for wire have sheaves that are: Grooved for wire. We are a proud supplier of Yale Cordage. Consider this a half inch diameter Samson Tech-12 (12 Strand Technora) line has an average breaking load of 33,000 pounds. Replacing electronics won't be very important - however, your batteries will need to be replaced more often. You can also use sacrificial covers to protect halyards from clutch damage,. For instance, the Rigging Company makes a spare-stay kit that can accommodate either wire or rod rigging repairs, Cockerill says. We're looking for writers! Do this by placing a wrap of tape 3 up from the upper chainplate pin hole on each upper shroud. I'm on Lake Michigan. Read more on boat engine replacement costs here. Masthead sloop, single spreader, 2 cap shrouds, 4 lowers, r/r forestay, single backstay. Usually the owner's manual gives you the specifications of all the running and standing rigging. However, what you'll actually pay really depends on the type of boat you have and what you do with it. All rod rigging terminates in a cold head, which accommodates the end fitting or is encapsulated by the end fitting. Redoing the running rigging on a cruising sailboat involves measuring, measuring and measuring. JavaScript is disabled. Specific Gravity is 1.38, so it does not float. This is a perfect example to illustrate why a thorough, yearly inspection of running rigging is important. Running rigging varies between vessels that are rigged fore and aft and those that are square-rigged. Theres such a safety margin in rigging. Normal rigging knives and hot knives are almost useless, all turning blocks and sheaves must have a diameter of at least 8 times the line diameter, old sheaves, turning blocks and other hardware will probably not be strong enough for high tech line, high tech line can cost up to $10 per foot. How exactly do you determine how much line you need for a given size sailboat? If you're hoisting the sail on land, make sure the bow of the boat is pointing towards the wind. Likewise, if you are re-rigging your sailboatboat, use the opportunity to check your chainplates (easily the subject of another article entirely), since thats one of the most common points of rigging failure. If you go DIY, you will be limited to mechanical end fittings unless you hire a rigger to swage your end fittings. As you work your way down the mast, take a glance at the mainsail track to see if its in good condition and well secured. To be more precise, the highly tensioned stays and shrouds that support the mast are known collectively as standing rigging, whilst the rope halyards, sheets and other control lines come under the heading of running rigging.