Lifeline turnbuckles

[Tallystick]

Anyone used this type of turnbuckle? http://www.ebay.com/itm/150590961137?ss ... 1438.l2649

It uses four set screws to secure the lifeline wire.

[hriehl1]

The 850# WLL (Working Load Limit) seems very low to me.... If you research lifeline loads I think you'll see guidelines in the 2,000# or more range. I think a 200# man tossed against a lifeline puts WAYYYY more than 850# of impact stress on the line. And 3/16" 1x19 SS wire has a 4,000+/- breaking strength (admittedly different from Working Load).

This is one of those things that I think "It looks easy, but if it were deemed safe it would already be common practice. The solution is so obvious yet we don't see it everywhere... that would give me serious pause."

Also, for myself, I'd bet that vendor's products at those prices all come from China... not on my boat for anything safety-related.

[earlylight]

Agreed hriehl1....Anything as important as lifelines is NO place to compromise on quality. I had the experience many year ago of being tossed through (yes through) a set of lifelines that should have been replaced years earlier. Believe me, going overboard in the middle of Lake Ontario at 0300 Hrs in a blow is no fun. I am just thankful that I had a harness on or I might not be writing this today. Do yourself a favor and purchase the BEST if for nothing more than the peace of mind.

[Tallystick]

From talking to Suncor, the working load limit on 3/16" 1x19 316 stainless wire rope is 840lbs. The working load is approximately 20% of the breaking strength of the wire rope or fittings. Suncor doesn't specify the WLL of their fittings other than that the wire rope will break before the fittings.

Once potential advantage of the set screw style is that the wire could be removed to check for corrosion at the fitting interface. Sometimes designs are chosen for mass production characteristics versus DIY. For example it's cheaper to make a machine swage fitting than to make the same fitting with extra tapped holes and set screws. But for people who don't have a machine swage tool, it's more cost effective to buy the more expensive hand swage fittings because of the expense of a machine swaging tool.

Without having access to a testing setup, I'm hesitant to use unproven lifeline fittings. So at the moment I'm leaning towards Suncor's hand swage line of fittings.

China certainly is capable of making high-quality products, but the quality can be variable, so it's difficult to trust without testing what you are getting.

[seasailor55]

Hayn Marine offers a different setup. (Handy Crimp) Hand crimping using a Nicopress tool. I haven't tried this, but it appears to be a DIY alternative to machine swaging. The vendor claims that the fittings, available in 1/8" and 3/16", develop 70% of 7X7 cable strength when properly installed. Hayn Marine markets these as lifeline fittings and from what I understand, the breaking strength of 1/8" 7X7 304 stainless aircraft cable =1750 lbs, and 3/16" 7X7 304 stainless aircraft cable = 3700 lbs. Someone with more knowledge of breaking strengths and wire loads can answer whether this is adequate for lifeline applications.

[CharlieJ]

Johnson Marine has hand swage fittings and tools also- It's what I used on Tehani in 2006. Still going good, and I'm very satisfied.

http://www.csjohnson.com/