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K7,

If you got 8 years out of Stay-Set X, and are happy with it's performance I would just replace what you have with more of the same. Tappered and corred lines are great for racing boats where every ounce counts, but almost all cores are suseptable to either UV or abrasion (which is why they have a outer layer in the first place) damage. When you are out that far from a chandlery I would be hesitant to do anything that may reduce the life-span of the halyards.

As for if tapered lines are practical... Well every line on my race boat is tapered except some 1/8 tweaking lines. But then I also assume I will replace every line on my boat every 3 years. So i guess it depends on your budget and how much life you want out of the lines. The last thing I would mention is that if you ever need to reverse a line it isn't very hard with a facory line, but once they are tapered it becomes incredible difficult since you have to pull the core back over to the other side.

I am not sure but I don't know of any dacron lines... They may exist, but most lines today are made of polyester (stay-set, stay-set X, ect.). Right now at least Stay-Set is about the bottom end of New England Ropes product line. They have one other line in their 'Cruising' section which is a single braid line. I just don't think you would save enough money tring to find even cheaper line than Stay-Set without sacrificing durability or strength. Heck when I was in WestMarine today I notices Stay-Set was actually cheaper than double braid nylon dock lines.


Comparing Stay Set and Stay Set X at 1/2" diameter


Stay Set :
Weight - 8.2 lbs per 100'
Strength - 8,500 lbs breaking strength


Stay Set X:
Weight - 8 lbs per 100'
Strength - 9,600 lbs breaking strength

V-100 (For fun, too high tech and sun damage prone for cruising)

14mm or .5512 inches
Weight - 10.9 lbs per 100'
Strength - 24,500 lbs breaking strength

8mm
Weight - 3.5 lbs per 100'
Strength - 8,500 breaking strength