Spreader play

[cbrey]

Greetings.

I recently took posession of a 1982 Sabre 28 Series II, a single spreader sloop rig manufactured by a very reputable maker of production sailboats.

Working on replacing the running rigging with the mast down, I found that the inboard ends of the spreaders were sheathed in what appears to be 1/16" black neoprene rubber sheet wrapped in rigging tape. I removed the tape and rubber and found that the stainless steel spreader sockets had an inside diameter of 1 1/2", while the outside diameter of the spreaders, which are original, is only 1 5/16". Without the rubber and tape shims, the spreaders, as you can imagine, simply rattle around in their sockets, and even with the shims there is an appreciable bit of play.

I found two owners of S28's of the same vintage and model who confirmed that this had also been the setup they had found on buying their boats.

I'm trying to think of a reason why a good maker would deliberately design spreaders this way. The only reason I can come up with is the prevention of galvanic corrosion between the aluminum spreaders and the stainless steel sockets.

Is there any reason having to do with desirability of some slight spreader play from the standpoint of performance? Or should I just replace the rubber/tape kludge with some PVC pipe that fits snugly?

Thanks very much for your insights,
Carter Brey
New York City