[C320-list] Lifeline replacement

[Jeff Smith]

Joe,

I am currently in the process of building my own lifelines. Here is my experience.

I am using C. Sherman Johnson hand crimp terminals. I purchased 1x19, uncoated, 3/16" wire from Defender (item #: 608954RGW316) for $1.39 a foot. I purchased CSJ handcrimp interlocking gate eye (CSJ # 27-408, Defender item #: 608991GTE316, these are $5 cheaper at Fisheries Supply) made for 3/16" wire ($47 each). I used the CSJ crimping tool (53-210). This is $40 from Defender, but I have since found it at Fisheries Supply for $25. The hardest part is ordering the hand swage lifeline terminals. I need to do this because I am reusing my pelican hooks and my turnbuckles. This is what I think: my lifeline terminals that attach to the turnbuckles are CSJ 31-607-1 (SKU #55699 at Fisheries Supply). These are 1/4-28 RH x 2 1/2" for 3/16" wire. My terminals for the pelican hooks are: CSJ 31-606-1, Hand Crimp Lifeline Stud, 5/16-24 RH x 2" (SKU# 130143 at Fisheries Supply). I am ordering my terminals from Fisheries Supply. They are between $10.60 and $12 a piece. I will be honest and say that I am guessing on the 5/16" terminal for the pelican hooks. I can confirm that they are not 1/4", because that is what I initially purchased and they were too small. I guess there is an outside chance that they are 3/8". It seems odd to me that the turnbuckles are 1/4" (those are confirmed) and the pelican hooks are larger, but this is definitely the case.

One note: if your interlocking gate eyes are threaded on both sides, you could probably just install threaded terminals on the wire instead of replacing the entire interlocking gate eye (this occurred to me while typing these instructions). This would bring your cost down another $40 per upper and $40 per lower.

Here are some tips:

1. For each lifeline, both upper and lower, I would order one piece that is at least 1' longer than needed from bow to stern. Of course, leave extra on both sides, the bow and the stern. At $1.39 a foot, you could make it 5' longer if you want to do so. I made rough measurements and used the hand crimper to form the interlocking gate eye between two wires at home in my basement. Then, I took those wires to the boat to make my final measurements with the interlocking gate eyes in the stanchion and pulling both terminals tight. You can simply replicate the length that you have on the boat, but I did not like how one line was fully threaded in on the turnbuckle. The reason I would order one piece per lifeline (4 total wires) is you get them to make the initial cuts for you. Cutting has been more of an issue than swaging. If you were really brave, you could measure each length of line and order several wires, effectively getting the supplier to make all of your cuts. I am not that brave, though.
2. If you are reusing any hardware, you need to know if they require right-hand threads (RH) or left-hand threads (LH). There are pictures on the interwebs, but look at the terminal vertically. If the threads slope up and to the right, that is RH; if up and to the left, that is LH.
3. Make sure you have a good set of cable/wire cutters. Even then, I found that it works best to tape both ends around the mark to be cut. You want the wire to cut cleanly, without compressing/unraveling the threads. I bought a $20 pair of cable cutters from Harbor Freight but I was not happy. A 24" pair of bolt cutters with the tension increased and the wire taped worked much better.
4. If the threads on the swaging tool do not tighten easily at first, a drop of oil will help. I did not need this, though. I also could get plenty of leverage using just a regular 3/8" ratchet and a 1/2" socket. 

The tool is easy to use, especially after you get the first crimp. The instructions are fairly clear, though all you really need to do is align the face of the tool with the back of the previous crimp, etc. I made five crimps on each side of the interlocking gate, or a total of 20 crimps. It takes more time to measure and trust your measurements then it does to make the crimps. 

MAKE SURE YOU ORDER HAND CRIMP ITEMS - DOUBLE CHECK THIS. My two interlocking gates were hand crimp and they crimped nicely. I ordered what I thought were hand crimpable terminals from West Marine. They weren't. It broke my tool, and I had to cut the machine swage terminal off the line with a pneumatic cutter (painstaking process). 

When it is all said and done (not including the repurchase of the swaging tool), I think the upper lifelines will cost me about $260. Of course, if you do the bottom lines, you can deduct $25 - $40 for the tool. I think you can reasonably do the lines for about $500, depending on how much hardware you can reuse. I can make no claims about how well they work, though. The $260 is about $200 cheaper than the lower lifelines that I had WM make for me a few years ago. 

I hope this helps.

Jeff
'94, #121

On 7/9/20, 4:49 PM, "C320-list on behalf of Fishbust" <c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com on behalf of fishbuster62 at att.net> wrote:

    I have a 2002 320, hull 902. 
    
    My coated lifelines are shot and an eyesore. Been looking into what to do. Dyneema is out. Not sure about the johnson hand crimps, if they are good enough, safe enough. The replacement kits at catalina direct don’t seem right to me. They put the gate at the front of the cockpit. My pelican hooks are aft, which is where I need them to be. 
    
    This leaves Suncor kits as a possible. 
    
    Seems every option is just under $1,000 to do it. 
    I could use a rigger, have not priced that out but that takes the fun out of a project anyway. 
    
    I would like to know what path others here have eventually followed for new lifelines. 
    
    Joe