Ball Bearings on Main Furl

[Bradley Cavedo]

We have a six year old P42 with Z-Spar Main furl. The plastic ball bearings on the main outhaul car has begun to swell, break and deteriate to the point that they are creating significant resistance to pulling the main out of the mast. McLube is only a temporary help. Has anyone had to replace these balls or the car itself? How? Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Jeff Bacon]

Doing it now....

Bradley:I am in the process of doing this now. My bearings literally exploded out of the car, and I have been finishing the season with a bearingless car.....not a great idea. It has buggered up the car track a bit, and is difficult to move the car under any load.You can buy the bearings at West, BOAT US, etc, but they are expensive. I am looking for another source since I have all winter to look.When you do find them you will need a "reloader".... a simple plastic device that holds the bearings in while you continue to load them and then keeps them in while you reposition on the boom.Removal of the car is easy. Just remove the bolt at the end of the car track, and the car will slip right off (spliiling the rest of the bearings in the process).I had looked at substituting the Selden car which rides inside the boom slot and is more asthetially pleasing, but it does not appear to fit.Good luck, and let me know if you find inexpensive bearingsJeffManateeHunter 376