I'm considering having a Strong Track system put on my 29.5. But I have a couple of questions first..... 1) the installation says that my slide gate needs to be 3" and a rough measurement of mine is just 2", can I get away with that or will I need to have someone cut it larger? 3) the installation says that the slide gate must open on both sides of the mast, mine only opens up on one side. Again will I have to modify my mast? To those of you that have installed this system, are there any other things that I need to consider? Opinions on the subject? Thanks, Jane
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Bob Greenfield
Waht is a strong track system?
Sorry, I can't help because I have never heard of this system. What is it and what does it do? Thank you
Sorry, I can't help because I have never heard of this system. What is it and what does it do? Thank you
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Jane
Bob, what it is.......
The strong track consists of a mast attachment (that is inserted into the existing mast track) and has special sail slides. Both pieces are made of some new wonderful material and when used together reduce friction, making the sails easier to raise and drop. You can see a picture and more technical description at this web site: www.uksailmakers.com/chicagoprod.html jane
The strong track consists of a mast attachment (that is inserted into the existing mast track) and has special sail slides. Both pieces are made of some new wonderful material and when used together reduce friction, making the sails easier to raise and drop. You can see a picture and more technical description at this web site: www.uksailmakers.com/chicagoprod.html jane
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Bob Zolczer
No problem
I installed the Strong Track system on my 1995 29.5 this summer. I didn't need any mast or slide gate modifications. You will be very happy you did it; the difference is remarkable.
I installed the Strong Track system on my 1995 29.5 this summer. I didn't need any mast or slide gate modifications. You will be very happy you did it; the difference is remarkable.
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Rich Stidger
Strong Track System easy to install
Jane, My wife & I installed the system on our 40.5 this spring. I had to modify the opening on my mast in order to get the track into the slot. It was easy. Draw the outline of the necessary opening (be generous) on the mast with a magic marker. Using a sharp 1/4" drill, drill a series of holes to the inside of the marked opening. Using a center punch to mark the hole before drilling may help keep a straight line. I used the B&D Bullet drills that have a small tip to start the hole. After drilling all the holes, break out the interior aluminum piece with pliers. Then take a small coarse file and smooth out the edges. I used a Demel tool with a metal cutting tool to do most of the work. The hole only needs to be smooth enough to let the Strong track slide into the opening. The Strong Track completely covers the hole that you have cut or enlarged, so it doesn't have to look pretty. If the mast is down and on horses, get one other person to help install the track. Take the stop pin out of the top of the mast and put a 12" cable tie through the top holes in the track and make a big loop with it. This gives you something to hold onto and pull the track up the mast. If the mast is in the boat, attach the halyard to a slide and tie another string or line to the slide as well. Use the halyard winch to pull the track up the mast and then pull on the string to bring the halyard and slide back down to deck when done. Spray the backside of the track and the mast with an aluminum lube or WD30. Curl and push the track into the mast while the other person pulls or winches up the top of the track. When you get to the end of the track, the remaining track will lay down on the mast covering the opening that you cut and it will extend down to the top of the boom. Secure it with the hardware supplied. Total time to install is about an hour. This includes cutting the opening, lubing the track, talking about the proceedure with your helper, and actually doing it. The performance of this track on my full-battened mainsail is very good. My 52' (luff) drops like a rock to the boom! I think I have some digital pictures of the proceedures if you wish. Rich
Jane, My wife & I installed the system on our 40.5 this spring. I had to modify the opening on my mast in order to get the track into the slot. It was easy. Draw the outline of the necessary opening (be generous) on the mast with a magic marker. Using a sharp 1/4" drill, drill a series of holes to the inside of the marked opening. Using a center punch to mark the hole before drilling may help keep a straight line. I used the B&D Bullet drills that have a small tip to start the hole. After drilling all the holes, break out the interior aluminum piece with pliers. Then take a small coarse file and smooth out the edges. I used a Demel tool with a metal cutting tool to do most of the work. The hole only needs to be smooth enough to let the Strong track slide into the opening. The Strong Track completely covers the hole that you have cut or enlarged, so it doesn't have to look pretty. If the mast is down and on horses, get one other person to help install the track. Take the stop pin out of the top of the mast and put a 12" cable tie through the top holes in the track and make a big loop with it. This gives you something to hold onto and pull the track up the mast. If the mast is in the boat, attach the halyard to a slide and tie another string or line to the slide as well. Use the halyard winch to pull the track up the mast and then pull on the string to bring the halyard and slide back down to deck when done. Spray the backside of the track and the mast with an aluminum lube or WD30. Curl and push the track into the mast while the other person pulls or winches up the top of the track. When you get to the end of the track, the remaining track will lay down on the mast covering the opening that you cut and it will extend down to the top of the boom. Secure it with the hardware supplied. Total time to install is about an hour. This includes cutting the opening, lubing the track, talking about the proceedure with your helper, and actually doing it. The performance of this track on my full-battened mainsail is very good. My 52' (luff) drops like a rock to the boom! I think I have some digital pictures of the proceedures if you wish. Rich
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Jane
Rich, Thanks
Rich, If it's convenient for you, I'd love to see the pictures. And thanks for the clever ideas. Did you modify the sails yourself? jane
Rich, If it's convenient for you, I'd love to see the pictures. And thanks for the clever ideas. Did you modify the sails yourself? jane
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Rich Stidger
Pix to Follow
Jane, OK, I will post the pix probably tomorrow. Got to find them first. No, I had my sailmaker install the new slides and he had to shorten the batten a little also. Had it not been May 10th and if I had the winter ahead of me, I would do it myself. It's not rocket science. More than one dealer at a boat show told me that if I was handy I could do it myself. There is no sewing involved to the best of my knowledge. If you send me your email address, I will email yo the photos, otherwise I will post them on this site under the Photo Forum. Rich grstidge@capital.net
Jane, OK, I will post the pix probably tomorrow. Got to find them first. No, I had my sailmaker install the new slides and he had to shorten the batten a little also. Had it not been May 10th and if I had the winter ahead of me, I would do it myself. It's not rocket science. More than one dealer at a boat show told me that if I was handy I could do it myself. There is no sewing involved to the best of my knowledge. If you send me your email address, I will email yo the photos, otherwise I will post them on this site under the Photo Forum. Rich grstidge@capital.net
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Rich Stidger
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Bob Knott
Rich why did you have to drill?
Rich, I'm putting the strong track on my H380 mast this winter as a project. Thanks for posting your pics! Why did you have to drill out a gate to insert the strong track when you already had a gate? The strong track guy I talked to on the phone in FLA said I would insert the track through the existing mast gate and then a second piece of strong track would cover from the gate down to the boom. This second piece includes their gate where the new slugs are inserted. Thanks for all the info Bob Knott H380
Rich, I'm putting the strong track on my H380 mast this winter as a project. Thanks for posting your pics! Why did you have to drill out a gate to insert the strong track when you already had a gate? The strong track guy I talked to on the phone in FLA said I would insert the track through the existing mast gate and then a second piece of strong track would cover from the gate down to the boom. This second piece includes their gate where the new slugs are inserted. Thanks for all the info Bob Knott H380
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Rich Stidger
I drilled because...
Bob, My original gate was only about 3.5" long and if I remember correctly the Stong track wants the gate to be a mininum of 6" or so. The bottom line is that to insert the plastic track into the mast you have to bend it fairly sharply at the gate and the longer the gate is, the less you have to bend it and the easier it is to insert. My track was all one piece, and at the bottom of the track the part of the track that would be inserted into the mast is cut away so that the track doesn't have to insert into the mast section below the gate. You simply lay the track down flat and secure it with the special hardware. Rich
Bob, My original gate was only about 3.5" long and if I remember correctly the Stong track wants the gate to be a mininum of 6" or so. The bottom line is that to insert the plastic track into the mast you have to bend it fairly sharply at the gate and the longer the gate is, the less you have to bend it and the easier it is to insert. My track was all one piece, and at the bottom of the track the part of the track that would be inserted into the mast is cut away so that the track doesn't have to insert into the mast section below the gate. You simply lay the track down flat and secure it with the special hardware. Rich
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Tom Ressler s/v Blowdacious
Track Installation
I've had Strong Track for a couple of years now and love it! It made raising and lowering the main on my 336 a piece of cake. I bought it through a local sailmaker and they put it in at no charge. The cost was the same as buying it direct from Tides Marine. I'm glad I did it this way because Tides shipped the wrong stuff with the initial order and I might have fooled around all day trying to figure out the problem. It took about an extra week for this reason but the total installation time was less than an hour. They did need to enlarge the gate but had a template, marked it, cut it and installed.
I've had Strong Track for a couple of years now and love it! It made raising and lowering the main on my 336 a piece of cake. I bought it through a local sailmaker and they put it in at no charge. The cost was the same as buying it direct from Tides Marine. I'm glad I did it this way because Tides shipped the wrong stuff with the initial order and I might have fooled around all day trying to figure out the problem. It took about an extra week for this reason but the total installation time was less than an hour. They did need to enlarge the gate but had a template, marked it, cut it and installed.
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