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1. INTRODUCTION - Splicing Wire Rope with Brion Toss
July 2, 2025 · 2 min · 1K views
What this video covers
Wire rope splicing instructor Brion Toss, of Brion Toss Yacht Riggers in Port Townsend, Washington, introduces a tutorial series on hand-splicing wire rope for standing rigging. Mechanical terminals have largely displaced splicing in modern rigging, but Toss outlines three situations where a hand splice remains the better choice: field repairs far from a swaging or Sta-Lok press, traditional vessels where a splice is the historically correct terminal, and industrial applications where mechanical terminals snag or fatigue at their hard edges. A splice is only worth making if it achieves maximum strength, which Toss says depends on correct geometry from the start — not brute force. Steel wire at multi-ton breaking strength cannot be muscled into place; the rigger must learn to coax and redirect each strand. The series will cover the specific techniques and tricks that make the weaving process manageable, with the goal of working in rhythm with the wire rather than fighting it.
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