[quote=Wolfman]I know a lot of people here will disagree with me but I do like the coated shrouds. I agree with Salty Dog that 99% of the problems will show at the connections before anywhere else. This is even true in fresh water. I sailed on 25+ year old rigging for one season without an issue but i did replace it because of the age and one of the bridle wires was starting to fray.
I also know from my engineering background that not all stainless is made equally well and there is a reason it is called stain-less not stain-proof. It will still corrode somewhat over time in a salt environment. The PVC coating probably provides some extra protection unles it is pierced/scraped but there is no way to tell unless you strip it.
Anyway the bottom line is that if you wash you connections with fresh water and change out the rigging on a regular schedule (5-7 years) the coated line is not going to cause you any more grief than uncoated. There is a reason that most boats come stock with it.
If you do a lot of salt water sailing in high like many of the people here do, you are probably better off with uncoated. The reason being that you are going to wear out your rigging much faster than average and being able to inspect the wires is much more important.
Regards,
Dave[/quote]
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