Lately I've noticed my leash strings are getting worse for wear. I snapped 2 last season so I figured now is the time to beef them up a bit from what you can mostly buy in surf shops. Especially now it's wave season.

4mm dyneema cord with a 2mm dyneema safety cord. I bought 2m worth for about $6

Great cheap insurance out there.

Why not have the 2 m as main and 4 in reserve ?

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LastSupper said..
Why not have the 2 m as main and 4 in reserve ?

They are for most if them. I didn't make them all the same size after a few beers ...

You should burn the knot a bit, or cut the ends closer to the knots and melt them against the knots. Like the 4mm one on the top right.

Dyneema is very slippery (this is why it is so durable, no abrasion), so the knots have a tendency to slip. You have to secure them a bit by melting into the knot.

PS: I go through the plug, then tie and burn them in place with a 3mm + 2mm. You may have a hard time fitting an already closed loop (twice the cords in the plug) with 4mm + 2mm, unless you have very large plugs.

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Nugdam said..
Lately I've noticed my leash strings are getting worse for wear. I snapped 2 last season so I figured now is the time to beef them up a bit from what you can mostly buy in surf shops. Especially now it's wave season.

4mm dyneema cord with a 2mm dyneema safety cord. I bought 2m worth for about $6

Great cheap insurance out there.

Nugdam where do you source your cord from?

You may want to file/sand the edges where the cord passes through the leash fitting on your board. Unrelated I bought a 10mm leash .. same money ... might have gone overboard lol

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colas said..
You should burn the knot a bit, or cut the ends closer to the knots and melt them against the knots. Like the 4mm one on the top right.

Dyneema is very slippery (this is why it is so durable, no abrasion), so the knots have a tendency to slip. You have to secure them a bit by melting into the knot.

PS: I go through the plug, then tie and burn them in place with a 3mm + 2mm. You may have a hard time fitting an already closed loop (twice the cords in the plug) with 4mm + 2mm, unless you have very large plugs.

Cheers for the tips, I did end up cutting then shorter gave it a little bit of heat.. I used one set today and no slippage as of yet.

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bazzaf said..
You may want to file/sand the edges where the cord passes through the leash fitting on your board. Unrelated I bought a 10mm leash .. same money ... might have gone overboard lol

They are a little rough I have tried in the past to sand them. I think the smiks are a little rough ( hence the wear ) compared to other boards I've owned.

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ghost4man said..

Nugdam said..
Lately I've noticed my leash strings are getting worse for wear. I snapped 2 last season so I figured now is the time to beef them up a bit from what you can mostly buy in surf shops. Especially now it's wave season.

4mm dyneema cord with a 2mm dyneema safety cord. I bought 2m worth for about $6

Great cheap insurance out there.

Nugdam where do you source your cord from?

I purchased this stuff from road tech marine. I think whitworths might have something similar?

I use two different length strings, if I have 2 leash plugs.

With only one leash plug:
I like a very thick leash string, so that it fills the plug and spreads the load to BOTH side of the bar.
When a leash string pulls hard on only ONE side of the bar, it can pull the bar out of the leash plug, during a nasty wipeout.

A bit hard to install a thick string... but worth it IMO.
Too many big fish, to be swimming at my breaks

Nugdam this is dyneema core with polyester cover. So less strength than pure dyneema but better for knotting

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supthecreek said..
I use two different length strings, if I have 2 leash plugs.

With only one leash plug:
I like a very thick leash string, so that it fills the plug and spreads the load to BOTH side of the bar.
When a leash string pulls hard on only ONE side of the bar, it can pull the bar out of the leash plug, during a nasty wipeout.

A bit hard to install a thick string... but worth it IMO.
Too many big fish, to be swimming at my breaks

Creek I use 2 leash strings .
One that's on the Ocean and Earth leashes that I use , and a back up string . My concern was the string breaking rather than the leash plug itself . I don't go out in huge surf but I don't like the idea of a long swim either. If the plug breaks I'm screwed

Yep, with Creeks way, you do not have room for 2 strings.

Gboots, I remove (cut) all the built-in Ocean and Earth cords, they break too easily. I even broke one at its 3rd session on an overhead day, and I have cut off all these sewn-in loops ever since.

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colas said..
Yep, with Creeks way, you do not have room for 2 strings.

Gboots, I remove (cut) all the built-in Ocean and Earth cords, they break too easily. I even broke one at its 3rd session on an overhead day, and I have cut off all these sewn-in loops ever since.

They are the cords I was having trouble with. I've broken too many to trust them.

Thanks for letting me know Colas and Nugdam. You might have saved me

Is dyneema what you use Colas ? What are other options ?

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colas said..
Yep, with Creeks way, you do not have room for 2 strings.

That's the point! I don't need 2 ??
My leg would rip off before my string will break

Also, they are are so tight in the plug that they don't move as much as thinner strings and don't show much wear at all.

I like to file the inside edge of the leash plug to dull it. Some can be pretty sharp and may cut through thinner cords rather quickly.

Hummmm, I noticed that I didn't file the plug in my new Creek (Blue one above).... I'll have to do that!

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Gboots said..
Is dyneema what you use Colas ? What are other options ?

Yes, I use climbing cords that you can find for cheap on Amazon, such as: www.amazon.com/100FT-3MM-Spectra-R-Braid/dp/B004QK1JN2/

It can be found as climbing cords, spearfishing or fishing lines, kite gear. Avoid the ones designed to be hold in the hands, as they often are coated with some more touch-friendly fiber, such as www.amazon.com/Amsteel-dyneema-1600lb-Average-Strength/dp/B01MYF7X8Y/ But if the coating is more abrasion resistant than dyneema itself, it will be worth it.

Dyneema can be found under other names such as spectra.
www.coastalwindsports.com/WhoseLine.html

I used kevlar for windsurfing but it is a pain to work with (to cut and tie), and dyneema is stronger anyways.

Creek: "That's the point! I don't need 2" - well you do not need 2 as long as... you do not need it :-) To be frank, abrasion is more likely to destroy your cord than just the force of the pull.

An alternative could be the cloth tubes made by Gorilla, Northcore and others. i used the Gorilla and they seemed very tough, none failed me but I switched to two dyneema cords as I liked the idea of a backup.
www.backdoor.co.nz/product/leash-string/ci-lstring.aspx
www.northcore-europe.com/products/northcore-heavy-duty-leash-string.html
www.eastcoastsurf.co.uk/product-page/heavy-duty-leash-string

Apparently there is only one acceptable school of thought here. Apologies colas.

Rick, In case I have - mildly I hope - offended you, I am sorry, and I want to be more explicit: saying "abrasion is more likely to destroy your cord" was agreeing with you on this.And I had my own - vivid - experience in mind when I wrote "you do not need 2 as long as... you do not need it".

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colas said..
Rick, In case I have - mildly I hope - offended you, I am sorry, and I want to be more explicit: saying "abrasion is more likely to destroy your cord" was agreeing with you on this.And I had my own - vivid - experience in mind when I wrote "you do not need 2 as long as... you do not need it".

Thanks colas.... I like to see open conversations, that invite differing views.

My leash strings aren't a convenience..... they are literally, a life line.

My home break has more Great Whites than any place in the world.
Most have stopped surfing there completely.
Plus Sub Zero winter sessions and I regularly surf remote breaks, alone.