Seacocks and thru-hull checklist

[ohthetrees]

Originally Posted by dcruz99801

Bronze has been replaced by SS not because it is better, just cheaper; <my jury> is still out on Marelon, but the price looks good and specs are enough for most duty.

I’ve installed Groco Bronze, Marelon, and Tru-Design thru hulls on my boat. My ranking of them (not even considering price) is:

1)Tru-Design
2)Bronze
3)Marelon

I love the new glass fiber reinforced composites, but they aren’t all created equal. I just didn’t like the design of the Marelon. Mine got sticky and stiff in less than a year, they are bulky, and they don’t have a proper way to attach them to the hull. The Tru Design, on the other hand, are beautifully designed, and with the reinforcing collar are strong as hell. Good Bronze is fine, but then you have to worry about corrosion, thru-bolts, to bond or not to bond, and they cost 3X.

[dcruz99801]

I just looked at the Tru-Design stuff and it looks OK, although I'd still like to see a sample first. It's not that I'm a hard-core traditionalist but it's like most new things -- let's watch someone else be the early adopter and learn from his mistakes or successes. Dripless packing glands are in that category, especially as I've had exposure, and seen an occasional failure.



Still, the price I've paid for bronze makes me wish I'd seen the Tru-Design earlier, had time to order a test piece and check with the local surveyor and insurance. I also noted it's NZ-made, there's only one US distributor at this time, and several items were out of stock.