Has anyone ever used dyneema for their stays? I have to raise the mast every time I sail and it seems like it would be much easier if the stays were 1/8" amsteel or similar. It's easy to splice an eye for the top and you could use short lashings at the bottom until it was done creeping, then set it and forget it. I used Dynex Dux on my F24 tri and they were so much better for raising, lowering, and stowing. Now I sail Taipan 4.9.

there are several people that have done it. i have heard they had to continuously adjust the side stays

creep by definition doesn't stop (stretch does)

What exactly would make it easier to step a mast? My synthetic trap lines are often a disaster when trying to untangle everything before raising the mast.

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Greenville SC

Offering sails and other go fast parts for A-class catamarans
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bacho

What exactly would make it easier to step a mast? My synthetic trap lines are often a disaster when trying to untangle everything before raising the mast.

I agree. I made synthetic trap lines for my old boat and they always were tangled no matter how hard I tried to keep them organized.

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-Zach
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I've had synthetic traps for about a year now and have not had any significant tangling issues. Maybe you should try these:
http://www.cableclamp.com/ They're sold under the Cable Cuff brand at Home Depot

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Jeff R
'88 H18 "Jolly Mon"
'10 C2 USA1193
NE IN / SE MI
cramsailing.com
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Jeff, what kind of line are you using?
any creep/stretch issues? if so, how do you adjust for that

When I de-rig my boat I unclip the trap lines and bungee them flush to the bottom of the mast. This mostly keeps them mostly untangled and makes rigging simple.

I assume quite a few others are doing this too but it's good to put it out there in case some people don't have a good system figured out.

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-Zach
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i NEVER unhook anything
i simply coil my shroud and trap into a 3' loop (on each side and use my traveler line to secure each loop by the rear beam - have NEVER had a tangle (besides a shroud or trap cable hooking on the trailer somewhere while stepping)

rehmbo

I've had synthetic traps for about a year now and have not had any significant tangling issues. Maybe you should try these:
http://www.cableclamp.com/ They're sold under the Cable Cuff brand at Home Depot

I auctually use those, they work great on the SS stays. I have been removing all rigging from the C2. The trap lines come off carefully and get coiled carefully and stores in the box. If someone treats that coil with care during storage and unpacking, they will normally be Ok to uncoil. However if someone disturbs that coil trying to get something out of the box or such you are SOL. I've seen electricians use a tool that was basically a plastic donut that string was wrapped around to help a coil stay sorted. I haven't seen one though that would be the appropriate size for trap lines yet. I think one would work very well.

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Greenville SC

Offering sails and other go fast parts for A-class catamarans
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I use the larger cable cuffs for my stays, and smaller for the traps.

Regarding the trap lines, I inherited the setup from the previous owner so I'm not 100% certain, but the lines appear to be a heat-set variety - perhaps the 3/16" Yale Ultrex 12. They seem to be a little bit stiffer and less prone to tangles than the typical AmSteel. No issues with stretch thus far. I doubt that we're loading them enough to cause creep past the initial set which I'm sure the PO dealt with.

The top spliced loops include a chunk of cover to prevent abrasion. Bottom loop/splice is within the barrel of the trap handle. We've sailed about 8 or 9 regattas this past year with no visible deterioration.

I remove everything but the halyard from the mast between regattas. The halyard gets tucked back in the luff track to limit UV exposure.

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Jeff R
'88 H18 "Jolly Mon"
'10 C2 USA1193
NE IN / SE MI
cramsailing.com
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