I pulled my righting lines off of my boat and noticed some chafing. The thick braided righting lines have taken the form of the rudder pins around which they wrap. And on one, it appears there is some chafing. See the one on the left side.

Here is the system I have:


Here is the damage


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Ted
Hobie 16
South Carolina Lake sailing
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Does anyone have any idea if this is normal, or is there a problem with the setup? Any work-arounds, such as a different attachment method at the rudder pins?
Thanks,

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Ted
Hobie 16
South Carolina Lake sailing
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I wouldn't sweat that! I've seen em worn down to 20 threads and work fine, the weight is spread around the whole line when you use it to right the boat. Hell, I've just thrown my jib sheet over the top hull and righted my H16 with no extra righting line at all in a pinch. A lot of people tie in a separate piece of ~3/8" rope that's about 3' long to the bungee, and tie the loose end to the rudder pin, replace every few years. Personally now, I've got a single rope that's about 18' long that's an old main sheet tied to dolphin striker, stuffed in a small Hobie tote bag on center lacing at base of mast with a loop tied 8' down that I hang onto if I flip. @ 220# any assistance at all and the boat pops up in 10 seconds flat haha!



Edited by fxloop on Nov 23, 2014 - 09:55 PM.

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Tim Grover
1996 Hobie Miracle 20
Two Hobie 14's
1983 G-Cat Restored
Memphis TN / North Mississippi
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i use one of these...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BLUE-HOBIE-RIGHTING-LINE-NEW-HOBIE-CAT-16-18-17-/320688950057?pt=Boat_Parts_Accessories_Gear&hash=item4aaa8d0b29&vxp=mtr

just around both rear pylons and haven't had any problems.

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Mike Conway
H16
Hilton, NY
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I don't see anything I would really consider significant damage in the picture you posted of the righting line.

I'm personally not really a fan of righting lines that tie off at the rudder pins, however. To me, this just seems like an invitation for potential disaster. When you're pulling on the righting line, you may have two (or in some cases even three) people pulling on the line and if the line is tied off to the rudder pin, you're putting a lot of that load on the rudder pin and gudgeons. It seems to me that this opens the door for possibly breaking either the rudder pin (especially if it's aluminum or plastic) or a gudgeon which would really ruin your day. I think a much better option is to either drill a dedicated hole through the hull flange to tie off the righting line or install an eye strap in the transom for tying off the line. Just my 2 cents.

sm