installing new rod rigging

[Joe Henderson]

Frank,

The stainless bends are not significantly better. It's just that the alloy ones are cheaper and lighter.

I would go with stainless bends and get the rigger to just leave them loose on the rod, then you can bend them inplace and match the old rods and get the pre-existing rod curve in the right plane.


Joe.

[Brion Toss]

Hi,
Okay, maybe not worth freight back and forth, but the mast could come out just because, if the rod is weary, other things likely are, too. This is a great opportunity to deal with corrosion, fatigue, dents, fasteners, wiring, and all the other likely culprits, with the mast nice and safe at waist level. Yes, it is possible to do the whole thing in place, but I wouldn't even consider it, if I were doing the job.
Sounds like you are getting good measurements, but as Joe notes, you might want to wait to locate those noodles. For instance, are the lower spreaders angled up higher than the upper spreaders? If not, you would be cloning a mistake. Got pictures?
Fair leads,
Brion Toss

PS,
Joe, you coming to Sydney on the 13th?

[Joe Henderson]

Brion,

I will be there with balls on!

Joe.

[infinitysail]

Here is a shot from behind. The spreaders mount on heavy stainless bars that pass through the mast and have the angle already built into them. I think adjusting the angle would be difficult.

Rig is built by sparcraft. Boat is a J/40 built by TPI. I measured both sides. Spreader bends were in the same location side to side. Port side shrouds were about 3/4" longer than starboard. I calculated the bends to be 6.4 degrees for upper spreader and 13.2 degrees for lower. What is the method for putting in your own bend?

Boat is a 1990, but spent 15 years in fresh water, so the mast is in great shape. We can pull the mast in the US, but down here it is expensive, difficult and possibly risky. I want to avoid doing this unless absolutely necessary.

[Brion Toss]

Hi again,
Angles are adequate. Put in the bend by putting the shroud in the spreader tip, and tightening. The time in fresh water and mild climate is something of a clock-stopper. I understand the difficulty of pulling the stick there, but note that switching in place is also risky. Why am I writing this like a telegram?
Have you disassembled any turnbuckles to examine rod ends? You will need a scrubby pad, and ideally some form of magnification and/or a camera capable of extreme close-ups, so you can send pictures. Where I am going here is we might be able to give a long-distance, heavily-qualified blessing to the rig for the trip home. There are microscopes that clip onto iPhones now...
Fair leads,
Brion Toss

[infinitysail]

For some reason, I was under the impression that the fittings couldn't be disassembled. Are they put together with red loctite? If so, I would be happy to disassemble and take some pictures. I will try to find some sort of microscope that can take pictures.

Also, I understand dye can help show cracks. Is there an off the shelf dye I can put on before taking pics? I think I would be happy doing a good inspection before sailing the 1500 miles back to FL or Kemah if I can do a thorough inspection.

Would you worry about the upper end, or are failures statistically far more common at the bottom of shrouds?

Here are the fittings:

[Brion Toss]

Hi again,
Those can be disassembled. Heat the terminal. A lot. You need to melt the red loctite that is securing the threads. When it has vaporized, you can unscrew the studs, and slide the rod heads out for inspection. Clean it off and post closeup pictures.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss