Stayset X eyesplice
 

I've read Brion's book, I bought the DVD and reviewed the process several times yet I have not been able to get the eye braid from bunching up. I have not been able to tightly wrap the cover "tail" with masking tape without breaking the tape. Regardless, I haven't been able to bury the taped part either.

I'm missing something. Yes, I've "snapped" the eye, which helps.

Have been able to do many double-braid eyesplices and do the bury successfully there. Just don't want to keep cutting off my failures on Staset X and have to buy a new length of 100 feet!

Any helpers?
Thanks,
Rick

I have not seen brions video, but do find SSX the easyest line to splice.

masking tape is a bear for SSX- try clear packing tape, which can stretch really tight, or Marlow sells a version of the same kinda tape(whichis what I use). also, do not unlay the cover , just pull the strands needed for the taper, it will all tape down more smooth that way, and less bulky than if the cover is unlaid to taper. the tape should be barely overlapped to keep all this really thin. When running in the bury, keep your fingers pinched and pulling the core straight and tight from mark A, and milk the cover down to it. No jerking, no snaping, easy slide with consistant pressure will do the trick. If it gets hard to bury, have a beer and 'gently' massage the tight cover/core area to make milking easier.

Also make sure that the first bit of tape, at mark two , is really tight and thin - like 2 wraps, so that the mesh is tightly held. That way when you pull the core inside the line the mesh wont slide up ( oh, thats for my rendition of the splice, not the NEropes way of doing things) anyway,
splice on !

The "other" Brian (Duff)
 

Thanks, Brian...that's exactly what I was looking for. Now I have a good splice. Using 1/2"
or larger line makes the cover taping more difficult, I believe, than for small line.

I reviewed the DVD and noticed (that I failed to notice before) just how to keep tension on the core when doing the milking. That and how to keep the cover of the eye stretched, again by keeping tension on the core.

Those little helper ideas that I need to have knocked over my head to get my attention to such detail are just what make the whole process work instead of using brute force (along with my ignorance of which there is an abundant supply).

Thanks again,

"Small-stuff" Rick

Stay-Set X
 

Thanks Guys
This post was very timely as I was having the very same problem with SSX. Work like a charm. I did add one thing that would like to pass along. I another life I used to show horses. Then putting on our riding boots, we use baby powder to help get them on easier. I used some on the splice. It made it much easier to bury the splice.

PaulM

I have heard of the baby powder trick, and also of spraying McLube on the bury, but wonder if that has any effect on the security of the splice.
I have never tried either trick.

anyone KNOW?

More details
 

Hi all,
As Renoir noted, the pertinent details are in the video, and things like the type of tape you prefer (I love blue masking tape) and whether or not to taper the cover can, I believe be called personal preferences.
I am a bit alarmed, though, about the use of baby powder. First of all, it masks problems of running the splice home, instead of solving them. If it's tough to render, it's always possible that something is awry. Secondly, it's hard to avoid the conclusion that a lubricant will be just as good at causing the splice to come apart as it is to get it home. Remember, those boots were easier to put on as well as to take off. That's why the only lubricant I currently use, and only on HM fibers, is saliva, either my own or the minty fresh kind from the pharmacy. This evaporates quickly. I have heard of a conduit-pulling gel that also evaporates, but have never used it, as I'm not sure it would go away, completely or at all, in the tight confines of a splice.
Anyway, I hope this discussion will at least point up that splices should be easy to do. I have put a lot more time and effort into refining the instructions than I ever did into designing the Wands, and it has made a gratifying difference for a lot of people. But splicing is still, of course, an art, and worthy of serious study. Keep asking those questions when you get stuck, because, as you've seen here, there are people who have sweated out the answers.
Fair leads,
BrionToss

Babypower
 

I too thought of the residual effects of the baby powder. I rinsed the splice with water to remove an residual. BTW, I was dammed hard to get those boots off after a days ride. Had to have an assitant.

PaulM