On our first sail of the summer I spotted a couple new lines that I forgot to whip, which is easily fixed.
But I normally also cut them with a hot knife to melt the end, and the boat is a long way from electricity now. I'm thinking about taking one of those butane grill lighters and using a little flame to melt the ends. Has anyone tried this? Does it work, or make a mess?
--john
The bitter end
- kmclemore
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Re: The bitter end
Wrap the end of the rope with one or two turns of electrical tape. Cut the rope with a very sharp knife or razor blade in the middle of the taped section. Use the grill lighter to heat and melt the end of the rope. Whilst still melted, press the end onto a cool piece of flat metal (a hammer's side works well). Job done!
- Jeff L
- Engineer
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Re: The bitter end
That's one of the best ways to do the deed. I carry a butane lighter when working on the boat. Don't smoke anymore but I found a use for the collection of lighters I have, firing up the bitter ends as needed...kmclemore wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2019 8:46 am Wrap the end of the rope with one or two turns of electrical tape. Cut the rope with a very sharp knife or razor blade in the middle of the taped section. Use the grill lighter to heat and melt the end of the rope. Whilst still melted, press the end onto a cool piece of flat metal (a hammer's side works well). Job done!