Splicing advice

ya 1/4" sounds to big. I've gotten by using a length of piano wire for this vectran size. Got to tape sparingly with cellophane tape to aid bitter end pass through.

There is a knack to getting the smallest piece of sellotape to a pointy end. No need for a fid once this is mastered. It does pay to over-thread the sellotaped end and poke it out so that the tape can be removed and the end drawn back in.

This hack i know once taught me to use a ball point pen insert as a fid. you have to do the cello tape taper trick but it works. i've considered trying to find tiny knitting needles for a fid but haven't followed through on it.

for splicing single braids, I MUCH prefer using a splicing needle than pesky fids.

I used to work as a rigger splicing rope 40 hrs a week. For the small diameter line what i would do is instead of shoving a fid down into the core i would use a piece of coat hanger bent in half to make an eye. I then go up the core from the bottom of my bury and tape the already tapered tail to the eye and pull it through. On the small stuff it is impossible to get a fid through far enough to do a proper bury.

hope that helps

I just don't want to be the guy... or near the guy that goes up to the woman at walmart and asks

where are your knitting needles?

oops... already been that guy <img src=

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For the record... walmart has size 2 knitting needles. I spliced 7/64 vectran with it and it worked perfectly.

Walmart nothin', I can score that here at home! Thanks Cap'n!

Dave

For splicing thin dyneema line I use this custom made tool, supplied by a local hardware store. It is made of thin steel wire and an end terminal to pull the splice. The dyneema end locks tight in the steel eye, no need to use tape. see photo...

That looks intriguing Holger, what would I ask for?
I can report success with the #2 knitting needle and tape. Have created two nice eyesplices so far, it truly is easy, just takes me about 15 minute, and I expect the time to decrease with practice. Gonna do a bunch more, then eye my new spin hlyd and mainsheet for tapering. Thanks to all for the encouragement and advice!

Dave

It's important to note here that lots of bad single-braid splicing advice is floating around. I believe Samson even changed their advice in their single-braid splicing manuals, after folks were seeing the old back-and-forth-then-bury approach fail.

To do it right, you need to pass the lines through each other so that they lock even with the tail not buried. (Sketch attached.) There is an obvious way to do this (passing the entire length of the line through itself to lock, and a topological trick way to do it with just one end of the line, but I can't describe that in writing.

Anyway, if you can't get your splice to lock as in the attached picture before burying the tail, I recommend you not splice single braid at all and use knots instead. If you are going to put a thimble in the eye, then a double overhand loop is incredibly secure. Otherwise, I'd use a bowline. Yes, the strength is reduced, but non-locked 'chinese finger trap' single braid eye splices are not reliable.

2c,
--Glenn

Stop by any bicycle shop and pick up a very skinny spoke, bend it over in two and you now have the

special splicing tool

. Also, since you are at WalMart in the knitting dept., go over to the sewing dept. and find the largest needle with an eye large enough for your smallest line.

Two words:
Brion Toss.

Get the video. Get the tools.

two more words (thanks Glenn, you're right):
Brummel Splice.

OK Glenn, I'm following Samson's directions for a 12 strand Class II(dyneema, vectran, etc) eyesplice, and I think this is the method you're questioning, as the tapered end is merely inserted into the core for 3.5 fid lengths. It seems to rely on a lockstitch applied after the splice is completed(would more than one help?). So you're suggesting weaving the tapered end thru the standing part before inserting it into the core?
Tami, Brion Toss. Is that a person? Where is the video available? I have Samson's splice kit consisting of an array of fids and a pushing tool, what else do I need? I do have a #2 knitting needle now!
Thanks guys!

dave

Do I also need to look elesewhere for directions on tapering the mainsheet and spin hlyd? Are Samson's directions on that suspect as well?

dave

Toss is a rigger in Pt Townsend WA. His shop markets what they call a

Splicing Wand.

It is by far the easiest to use tool I've ever experienced. In fact, anyone wanting a set of Samson fids, send me postage and y'all can have 'em.

I have two wands, I think they're the medium and small ones, which do for most any size of line. Every line on my trimaran is spliced, most all of my line is Amsteel: halyards, lifeline stanchions, turning block attachments, and I even have a Brummel instead of a shackle in my Salsa spinnaker sheet line.

video is

Making Your Own Eye Splices.

http://www.briontoss.com/catalog/videos.html

splicing wands
http://www.briontoss.com/catalog/tools.html

But check the onLine store here... Rick may carry Toss' equipment.

Tami, is the $55 for just one tool or for all 6 sizes?

it's just for one - they ain't cheap, that sounds about right. But the first time I used it, it paid for itself. And so I bought the other. But I have a big boat and I use my wands frequently. Maybe I oughta go into the splicing biz.

I can understand messing with the hightech lines for a big boat, for the weight loss will be major. But really, I can't see messing with it for a dinghy.

Wow, cool stuff Tami. So the dvd covers 12 strand eyesplices? Tapering too, or is there another one as well that would cover that? I think I need the micro tool, as the 12 strands and cores are all 1/4" and under.

Dave

Going to the link and reading it, I find:

This is our densest dvd, packed with almost 3 hours of clear, easy-to-remember instructions for splicing every commonly used rope. Splices covered include:
Double Braid Eye Splice
Sta-set X Eye Splice
3-Strand Eye Splice
Regatta Braid Eye Splice
Double Braid End to End Splice
Spectra Eye Splice
Naked Spectra Eye Splice
3-Strand to Chain Splice
Arborist Rope Eye Splice
Featuring Brion Toss' Splicing Wand and the Point Hudson Phid. 140 min.

Given that tapering is an important part of completing a splice... yes, tapering is included.

Dave,

Tami's right: you do want the Brummel splace:
http://www.neropes.com/SPL_12Strand_EyeSpliceBrummel.aspx
. The instructions are as clear as one could hope. Note that the resulting eye is secure even without the buried tail, but you should still bury and stitch for full strength.

You really don't need a splicing wand for easy single-braids like vectran, though I do covet the small Brion Toss splicing wand. The wands were available through West Marine for a while, or on his website. I never got one because of the price, and I already had a complete set of Samson fids and a pusher, but I'd recommend the wand over conventional fids any day.

Tami's also right that the Brion Toss splicing video is awesome. I don't recall it covering the single-braid splicing (at least not the version I saw) but it is awesome, covers double-braid splicing, creating a continuous loop, splicing laid rope, arborists (super tight braid) rope. The man is a splicing machine!

--Glenn

Thanks guys and gals, you probably saved me from a disaster or two. I also appreciate the encouragement, I'm pleased to be developing a skill that will stay with me for the duration of this obsession. Stay tuned, I'm sure more questions will surface.

dave

dave

Video of 12 strand eye-splice

double braid eye splice

12 strand rope splice