When finishing a board with a hole through the finbox for the leash, where do you get the rope that ties through the hole to attach the leash.
I’ve looked al over but cannot find anything similiar to the normal black cord that is always on new boards, or attached to a new leash.
Drew
Boating/marine supply stores sell it by the yard for el cheapo dinero.
Right, it’s a woven nylon or dacron, something like braided tuna line ( which will work fine too ) . Sold as ‘leech line’, 1/8" diameter. West Marine carries it for 19 cents per foot, among others, usually found in white rather than black.
hope that’s of use
doc…
Drew,
You can also use perlon cord, which is multi colored or just single color. Perlon is pretty strong depending on diameter ( 300+ lb test).It is available at outdoor or climbing shops ( ie: REI, etc) and you can match the cord to your projects.
use a old shoelace.
One thing to consider…just how strong do you need this connector line? I like my CL’s to last far longer than my leashes, so I use spectra braided, like 3/32 at 400lbs. test.
And make sure you see- saw some line thru the hole to soften any hard edges, which can cut the line from repeated usage.
Any chandlerey or boat supply store will have it. If you can’t find it, try hardward store for the most expensive 1/8" line.
in my humble opinion, having used the stuff, I find spectra/kevlar to be a sub-optimal choice for this application. It is very strong but has no stretch to speak of, thus it transmits shock to the surfboard rather than absorbing it, as does a softer, more elastic cord (eg. nylon). In my case, the spectra caused a leash plug on a nice Brewer board to fail… Not that it was that hard to replace the plug, but it would have been a lot easier to tie in a new 6" of 1/8 line… I think of it this way – if your leash “system” is going to fail under pressure (rarely happens, but it can), which part of it would you rather replace when it breaks? the nylon cord acts as a “fuse” in this respect, by being the weakest link it will fail first and protect more expensive/harder to replace parts of the system.
just my 2 cents worth and your mileage may vary, not available in all states, batteries not included!
I knew I forgot something…
Check anyplace that does small engine repair. They will have the light, small diameter woven line that’s used for the pull-start cords. Works like a charm, available in several sizes.
Kinda good thinking actually, thanks.
All my boards only get big wave 8’ leashes, I have no leashes (of my 6) smaller than 3/8th, and one is actually 7/16th.
I don’t want them to fail, for any reason.
Sounds like your failure leash cup was lousy installation to begin with, as the minimal shock absorption from 6" of nylon cord is miniscule compared to your shock cord stretch, your body getting pulled thru the water, and your leg extention from the pull.
My 8’ leashes easily stretch well over 14", and come back. If that doesn’t do the trick, my body gets pulled backwards thru the water, and goes about a foot, or 5. If that doesn’t absorb enough, I always bail in a ball, and stretching out my body takes up over 3’ of shock. If Spectra is to be blamed, I think I need to look elsewhere.
actually, the metal pin ripped out of the leash plug. The only time this happened was when I was using the spectra, I switched back to regular nylon and it’s never happened since. These are every-day boards I’m talking about, single plug, normal leash.
I put double leash plugs in my big wave boards and cross-anchor them, then use a heavy 10’ or 12’leash. That’s pretty bulletproof, so far at least.