Fairlead
This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (October 2020) |
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A fairlead is a device to guide a line, rope or cable around an object, out of the way or to stop it from moving laterally. Typically a fairlead will be a ring or hook.
The fairlead may be a separate piece of hardware, or it could be a hole in the structure. There are two types of fairlead: roller and fixed. In a roller fairlead, there are four rollers in total. The first two are vertically mounted and the other two are horizontally mounted. A fixed fairlead is one piece of smooth, rounded metal with no moving parts. A fixed fairlead may be open or closed. Compared to a roller fairlead, a fixed fairlead is extremely simple.
A fairlead can also be used to stop a straight run of line from vibrating or rubbing on another surface. An additional use on
).If the line is meant to be moved while in the fairlead, the angle in the line created by the fairlead must be shallow to minimize friction. For larger angles a block or pulley is used as a fairlead to reduce friction. Where the line is removed from a hook fairlead before using, the angle is not an issue.
While fairleads are most frequently found in
Fairleads are used on almost every
An example of hook fairlead can be seen on buildings with an angled flagstaff mounted over a door. At the base of the flagstaff is usually a hook so the flag halyard can be held parallel to the pole, and still tied off to a cleat beside the door, rather than above.
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