Over the last few months I’ve been seeing some blurbs on InoDesign’s Splicing Nut, and I’ve been a little skeptical of yet another marine product trying to replace tried-and-true nautical skills and techniques like knots and splices. But, we got to see it demonstrated by the inventor, Steve Brennan, at the Seattle Boat Show, and now I’m a convert.
The Splicing Nut is an amazingly simple and quick way to put a good, strong eye in the end of a line. It’s just a couple turns of the line around a special core, and then tightening a nut that’s about as easy as tightening the chuck on an electric drill. The Splicing Nut itself is made of molded, glass-reinforced plastic and shows thoughtful touches that reflect good design and engineering. For instance, there’s a little inspection hole to glance in to make sure the line hasn’t slipped. There are a range of sizes suitable for different diameter lines. I was particularly impressed that it works well with notoriously-difficult-to-secure bungee cord. The product has been extensively tested with the help of the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Center, and has proven to be strong and robust.
I remember taking most of an evening with Brion Toss’ Splicing Wand and a copy of The Rigger’s Apprentice to make up a spinnaker halyard. But because of the thickening of the line due to the splice, I also needed to add a stopper ball to keep the halyard from getting hauled in too tight and jamming in its mast sheave. With the Splicing Nut, there’s no thickening of the line, and the diameter of the nut itself makes a good stopper so your shackles won’t get jammed either.
On passage, spinnaker halyards are notorious for chafing through at the least opportune time, leaving your trying to rescue a spinnaker from beneath your boat in the middle of the night. And trying to splice a well-used, sun-baked and salt-encrusted line can be incredibly frustrating! With the Splicing Nut, preventative maintenance consists of dropping the sail, unscrewing the nut, cutting off and few inches of line, putting it back together again.
What a great product! Don’t take my word for it, though, check out master rigger Brion Toss’ endorsement on the Splicing Nut website.
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A handy gadget for little things, but no SWL (safe working loads) and doesn’t look as strong or beautiful as a splice, but very cool that it does bungee cord.
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