BALLS OR ROD

[Darreneckersley]

I have a lagoon 410 and over the years have had to replace torsion balls from the mast track slides.(z Spar)
Ok all good they are not cheap but what is .
After my head car became worn and lost its balls I sent off for a new one when it arrived it has rods rather than balls .ok so the rods will have much more area in contact with the track and will be far stronger as a result . it is also much less likely to jam as it has no real moving parts . It slides up and down really well.when the balls do jam they damage the track if forced. It seems to me that the whole thing should present less problems.
So with all this in mind I have a few normal mast cars that are worn, do I go for the ROD or the Balls as replacements .
Am I missing something is there a long term problem with these rods are they less durable ?do they cause more wear to the mast track ?
Any advice welcome I looked online but can't find any.

[UNCIVILIZED]

They'll cause the system to have more friction than if you use ball bearings.

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by Darreneckersley

I have a lagoon 410 and over the years have had to replace torsion balls from the mast track slides.(z Spar)
Ok all good they are not cheap but what is .
After my head car became worn and lost its balls I sent off for a new one when it arrived it has rods rather than balls .ok so the rods will have much more area in contact with the track and will be far stronger as a result . it is also much less likely to jam as it has no real moving parts . It slides up and down really well.when the balls do jam they damage the track if forced. It seems to me that the whole thing should present less problems.
So with all this in mind I have a few normal mast cars that are worn, do I go for the ROD or the Balls as replacements .
Am I missing something is there a long term problem with these rods are they less durable ?do they cause more wear to the mast track ?
Any advice welcome I looked online but can't find any.

Darren,

We had some of those cars with the balls on our first Insatiable. A couple of the cars we replaced them with the rods. I think you'll be okay with the rods for all of them. Uncivilized isn't wrong, there will be more friction, but the jamming can be really a great nuisance. You might also try leading a down haul to the head of the mainsail, a portion of it should be a bungee so that it doesn't flail around and chafe on the sail, and then you can help it descend when it is reluctant.

Keep everything clean, and MacLube is your friend.

Ann

[Darreneckersley]

Thanks for the advise.I think I will go rod.
trouble started crossing the Atlantic we had the main halyard part and replaced it with a single line instead of the double original,although this was quicker to pull up, it was stretching and there was constant movement in the cars . The new head car seems to work better than the old Ball one Much smoother . I think when the balls do get dirty and jam they do damage the track and the car. If they then decide to become plastic hail, dropping the sail with no Balls really damages the track. I can see were there should be more friction in the rods but an wear in them will be easier to feel ,and I can't see the rods ever hailing down on the deck. We were based in Mallorca for years and the red rain from the Sahara dust was really bad on the balls its amazing the difference a good soap and water wash makes .
Don't know about Maclube was told by a rigger to just "Keep my balls clean ",Always followed that advice . Think any lube would just encourage/attract the dirt ??

[Darreneckersley]

Just thinking on the same subject has anyone retro fitted rods to car designed for balls .
Even if the cars are to damaged for balls rods should be ok ?????.
My only experience with the rods is with the new head car can you simply put the rods in the old ball cars ???
Anyone know a good rod supplier??

[UNCIVILIZED]

IIRC Harken recommends using One Drop lubricant for their bearings. And to literally use one drop of it. As to rods, if you're having trouble finding them you could either contact the manufacturer or local distributor. Or scare up some of the material they're made from, probably Torlon, & have some machined to size for you. And usually with custom machining, the bulk of the labor cost is in setting things up precisely for the job, not the materials. So it makes sense to have some spares made at the same time. Ergo ask the shop beforehand. And try & find a non "marine" shop, as anything that's nautical related or near the water will have a significantly higher pricetag.


You can find raw materials, the spec's on same, & suppliers at matweb.com And be sure to look at the UV resistance of the materials, as some blends of bearing materials have it built in while others don't. Also check the coefficient of expansion when exposed to water. And know that sometimes you can even substitute a better material than the OEM stuff.