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Synthetic VS. Vinyl Coated VS. Un-coated Stainless Steel Lifelines

Many people these days are looking towards synthetics or to un-coated stainless steel to replace their lifelines over the traditional vinyl coated lifelines of the past. First, let’s talk a little bit about the cons of using vinyl coated wire: the wire cannot be visually inspected for failure, the wire is typically made from a…

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Views from Aloft

What a better way then to end the year with one of our last trips aloft for 2014? This was taken early November and was one of the last views from aloft for the year. Here we were aloft to conduct another one of our Rigging Safety Inspections. Maryland Yacht Club offers one of the…

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Steering Wheel Systems

It is almost winter and it may be time to check all of the components of your boat that are often times forgotten about. Your boat’s steering system is no exception. Whether outfitted with a hydraulic, geared, draglink, or a chain and cable system, winter time is a great time to have the boats steering…

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Conventional Mainsail Reefing

Reefing or reducing a conventional/non-furling mainsail can be done by way of either a slab or a single line reef system. Today I want to talk about the difference between the two reef systems and how they should be set up. FIRST: Read below for a few thoughts on reefing procedure   When reefing, conditions are…

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Yachting Anyone?

There are big rigs and then there are big rigs! Perini Navi and Ron Holland deliver once again in typical fashion. This incredible yacht, “Felicita West”, cuts no corners. Check out the video that showcases some of the vessels highlights. As well as the refit and massive mast stepping project undertaken by Seahawke Rigging along with…

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How to Adjust a Turnbuckle

The concept of how to properly adjust a turnbuckle seems to sometimes elude most people. This is understandable as I didn’t used to spend my days thinking about tightening cables, like I do now. So let’s take a moment to discuss how this is done properly. There are generally three different styles of turnbuckles. Yes, there are a…

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Boat Rope

The vast U.S. cordage market allows us to have several competitive options including; Robline, New England, Samson, Yale, and Marlow Ropes, just to name a few. Each one of these manufacturers provide various rope constructions utilizing different materials to allow the consumer to achieve different functions based on application. All of the jargon like Spectra, Dyneema, Vectran, Kevlar, Technora, Dacron, Double Braid, Single Braid,…

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How to Service Your Winches

Some winches are more difficult to service than others. If you do not know what to expect, certain parts, depending on manufacturer, can come sliding out at inopportune times and jump overboard! I happen to know this from personal experience and if you are really unlucky (like I was) then it may be a part from a vintage…

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When Replacing Electrical Items in the Mast

Re-wiring and replacing the fixtures in the mast is a task that most of us boat owners need to face at some point. Let’s address what needs to happen during this process and what is the most efficient way to do this. First, the mast needs to be un-stepped. Therefore it could be a smart idea to…