my theory has just been brushed off with a 'it's how it is' and 'i'm not worried' ,as the mast & rig are quite young and has done only a few miles and there was no other visual signs on the stays etc. These views were from respected sources.. As it turns out the wire (which is a cap on a cat) is undersized based on the rig plan we've got hold of from the owner; 10mm in place of 11mm [difference of 1520kg's in breaking load]. which i didn't know at the time of the check.
so i could feel exonerated. still, i think that the 'wobbly wire' could be an indicator of something going on that's not quite right. As you say, possibly inside the fitting. Maybe I'll keep the wobbly wire thing as a flag to think a little more about the 'suitability for the role [loads]'. If the wire don't look/feel right, then how does the rest of the rig stand up.
Optimal ; good word. should get more use,.......the thing is not knackered it's
not optimal.
Thanks Brion