Looking at replacing main and jib sheets. What's the favorite cordage among cat sailors out there?

Same here, I just got a used H20 and the barber hauler, jib sheet adjustment line, mast rotation and the downhaul are all red. I don't want to frustrate my crew. I'm thinking the Yalelight (Spectra core with Polypro cover) light weight (2.3lbs per 100 ft for 5/16 dia.) they float and do not absorb water. Any thing I'm not thinking of??

The poly covered lines are nice for jib sheets, especially in light air due to their light weight and the fact that they do not get water logged. The down side is that the poly covering tends to frey after a few seasons, especially at the cleat. Also, if you must make a wiping action to uncleat the line, the line may not have enough weight to snap free of the cleat. This has supprised me a few times.

Got a response on the old forum in favor of Yale's Vizzion. Reading the specs, it sounds good (but don't they all sound good at the manufacturer's pages). It's a real problem when you can't get your hands on the stuff to give it a look and feel. (All that the local West Marine stocks is New England Ropes Sta-Set.)



Until a few days ago, I thought I'd go with Samson Trophy Braid, but when I received the order, I was not impressed. Granted, it's cheap, but I'd rather spend a bit extra to get good performance. The things I'm looking for in a line are a good "hand", durability, good cleat holding, and a range of colors to help make sense of the spaghetti on my deck. Jim makes a good point about the weight of the line, though. Those water-soaked sheets do pop out of the cleat pretty easily. And, a heavier mainsheet does tend to lie on the tramp in a well behaved manner.

I've come to like Yale light for the mainsheet. It runs through the blocks nice, but can be rough on hands if you don't have gloves (but who doesn't wear gloves...). One problem I have when the main sheet gets water-logged and heavy is that when I'm on the wire, it wants to fall down between my hand and the boat, eventually getting caught in a wave and paying out off the boat into the water. Non-water soaked Yale Light has been much easier for me to control this with. After a season or two it starts to soak water too, though. Also, when new, it's a little stiff, and though that seems a little weird it helps keep the tangles and rat's nests down. My jib sheet is flexible and water soaking and I hear lots of complaints from my crew - it will be Yale Light soon...

The Yale light stuff runs real well through blocks and works well for main and jib sheets. It is very slick when it is brand new. They put chemicals in it to spin it and that makes it slick. After a few sails it works really well. Or you can run it through a washing machine with a little woolight and it comes out nice.



If you call Layline they will send you a few samples of their line if you are unsure. I had them cut about 6 samples one time to help me decide. I still use the samples when I'm choosing new line. Just make sure you label them.



Mike Hill

H20 #791

I've found that the Harken Black Magic gloves work nice with this stuff even when it is new and a bit slick.

Somewhat off the subject of favorite line. The Harken gloves grip very well, too bad they stink! Don't know what the coating is but they smell, even after rinsing. The Ronstan sticky gloves seem to grip as well, last a long time and don't stink.

The regular smell of the Harkens don't bother me, but... I've noticed that the natural smell of the gloves seem to attract cats, who then add their own smell, if you know what I mean. I had my van open with a bunch of my sailing gear in it, and a neighbors cat picked the gloves to decorate. No amount of rinsing and washing could get that out. Not much worse than that on a hot day when your gloves get wet. At least the cat picked the gloves and not my sails. I bought a replacement pair, and they were in an open gear bag in my closet, and my cat (who normally does not do such things) found the gloves in the bag and drenched them. Out of everything in the bag, the gloves (not even used once) were the target. I now have another brand new pair, and will try to keep them from any cat interaction!



Maybe I should get the Ronstan gloves to eliminate this problem. Maybe the cats all prefer Ronstan gear, and are simply registering their dissapproval of the Harken gear! I smell a conspiracy!

Mike,



Thanks. That's great to know that Layline will provide samples. For a small fee (I assume) samples will save a lot of hassle caused by sending back line that doesn't meet the expectations generated by the marketing copy in the catalog.

You should go to the Layline website and find their closeout line tails section.

You can save 50%-75% on line, if they have what you need.

I have found some great deals on the high tech lines.