Stack cover wire?

[MASSEY JACK]

What does everyone use to control the stack covers. Wire? Galvanized or stainless cable? 1/16" or 1/8"???

[vtsnowedin]

3/8" yellow nylon rope in mine. It has that bungee effect when you pull on it and she flops right over both ways.

[danno]

stainless cable - but that's just because that's what I had left over from my old catamaran stays that got blown over and broke the mast in a storm.

I'd go cheap on this. I'd think cable over wire - more flexiable.

[maple flats]

I bought some light guage galv cable. Looks good after 6 years. I think it was 1/16" or 3/32".

[markct]

i used stainless cable on my all stainless stack cover, had to keep the stainless theme going i figured, too bad my stack is just old galv! but the stack cover was homemade outa stainless and the cable i found in the trash so not alot invested. altho i wouldnt buy stainless if i had to, just reg galv cable would be fine

[johnallin]

Used a 1/4"stainless cable I had laying around, it also was a backstay off of an old sailboat I had. If I didn't have that I would have used galvanized, afraid that anything of fiber (nylon etc) should it break, would require a long scarry climb up a ladder to re-attach. The stack is 6' off the roof peak and that's a tall stretch!

Like VTSnowed in it's a single line too, and no matter where the stack cap is - one pull will either close it or open it. Just kind of flips it one way or the other. Only catch so far is if it blows hard enough the darn thing will flip open - maybe should have put the second line on to keep it closed.

[markct]

hmm so it just flops down to close? is that how they are designed? mine i designed to be spring loaded closed and it seems to work well

[johnallin]

Yes, the "arm" on the cap extends about 12" past the cap with the pivot point at the middle of the cap. If the cap is closed and you pull the line the arm rotates downward, the cap rotates up and before you know it , the cap is beyond the balance point and it keeps going over to the open possition. To close you pull the arm again and it just reverses the procedure. Don't know if they did that on purpose, but it works on mine. It's a Leader stack cover.