Hamble Yacht Services

Standing rigging consists of the permanent stays that support a mast, i.e. forestay, backstay, cap shrouds and lower shrouds. These stays are designed to cope with the forces and dynamic loads generated from heeling and pitching by a yacht in motion, so the choice of material is very important in terms of safety and performance.

As the forces increase in the standing rigging, the rigging spans stretch elastically, and this affects the geometry of the rig and ultimately the yachts performance. 

Each of the four materials (1x19, Dyform Wire, PBO Fibre, Solid Rod) have very different mechanical properties and are normally selected to balance safety and performance; 1x19 stainless steel wire is the most traditional and is commonly used in most cruising yachts, however this does stretch the most under load. In some cases Dyform wire can be an alternative for 1x19, where elongation is required to be slightly less than 1x19, for example in a forestay where sag impairs performance . A combination in rigs using both 1x19 and Dyform can be used in to overcome situations where stretch is required to be minimised.

 
For large yachts, racing yachts, and high performance cruisers, the traditional choice is solid Nitronic rod. This has much lower elongation, weight and windage than 1x19 or Dyform wire. Rod is very suitable for small performance and racing yachts, and is a preferable choice for large multi-spreader cruisers and racers.  At the top end of the scale where pure performance and low weight are the main concerns, bespoke PBO fibre rigging has the highest strength and the lightest weight of all four. 

The chart below is a basic materials comparison:

Material	Typical Use	Advantages	Cost
1 x 19 Wire	Cruising yachts 20-75ft (LOA) and light displacement racing yachts 20-35ft.	Stainless steel twisted wire strands for good basic performance.	Low -  Medium
Dyform Wire	Cruising yachts and cruising/racing yachts  20-70ft (LOA).	Less elongation that 1x19 wire but slightly heavier and stronger size for size.	Medium
Nitronic Rod	Racing yachts and  high performance cruising yachts 29-200ft (LOA).	High strength low stretch corrosion resistant rod. Low weight and windage.	Medium -  High
PBO Fibre	All high performance racing yachts and high performance cruisers 30-200ft (LOA).	PBO (Zylon), with its very high modulus and high strength is a synthetic fibre that has the potential to replace stainless steel and rod standing rigging in high performance yachts. At just 20% the weight of steel, the benefits in weight saving aloft are high.	High - Premium

Contact the HYS Rigging team on 023 80 454 111.

HYS specialise in the following standing rigging brands: OYS, Future Fibres, Navtec, Navtec- Norseman Gibb, BSI, and Stalok terminals.