Sail track lube

[Bill]

My first sail in my new (1982) Cat 25 had me struggling to raise the main. It looks like the slugs are binding about 1/2 way up the mast.Is there any danger in using silicon spray on these plastic slugs or should I use a product specifically for this purpose? Also, how often should I apply?The sailing area is in salt water.Thanks...Bill

 

[LaDonna Bubak - CatalinaOwners]

Boeshield or teflon

Boeshield is a FANTASTIC lube and anticorrosion spray. But if you have a can of teflon spray lying around, try that. LaDonna

 

[jeff]

bill, congrats on your purchase, i just purchased a cat 22 and also sail on the barnegat bay/ toms river. i used super lube a teflon spray from home depot. it dries with out a residue like silicone. good sailing, jeff. currently s/v fancy free, soon to be s/v my kinja 2.

 

[Erik]

McLube spray

I have plastic sail slugs on my Capri 18. To solve binding in the mast track, I occasionally spray some McLube (available from West Marine and most sail chandlers) on the slugs. McLube is a completely dry and non-staining lube. It doesn't seem to attract dust like many other lubes.

 

[Aldo]

I use a Cotton Ball

Bill: I currently am using Teflon spray lubricant, but used silicone in the past, and both work well. Neither attacks the slugs.The way that I do this task, is to take a cotton ball, and wrap a thin wire around it, like the type of wire used for telephone connections. Then I soak the cotton ball with the spray lube, then run it up and down the groove in the mast 2 or 3 times, making sure that it doesn't dry out. I only do this once a year, before the boat goes into the water, and it is fine all season. It is on my checklist of things to do to get the boat ready. Once we chartered a 30 footer, and we had to pull the main down. If this had happened when it was windy, it could have been a real interesting time. On our boat, if we release the main halyard, the sail drops all the way down to the boom. Aldo