Thought life calk was life seal

[ryanmohr]

And I used it to bed my Spinlock XAS rope clutch. When I realized that I got the two mixed up I went over to west marine and the guy I spoke to said it should be fine. I thought I read somewhere that life calk can harden and crack plastics though.

Should I remove the clutch and re-bed it with life seal or am I more likely to harm it in the removal / cleaning process than I would if I just left it in place?

 

[Rick D]

Should Be Fine

It is advertised for fiberglass; I have used it for decades on FRP; it think you are fine. Here is a link to their site: http://boatlife.com/life-calk.html?SID=942a1a6d570152c58e163f3d078a5720

 

[kenn]

As Rick D says, there's no problem using Life Calk on fiberglass. It was hard to tell from the Spinlock site, but I'm guessing that the important bits of the XAS are metal and the plastic exterior is of a nylon or similar material that isn't affected by polysulphides.

If you still want absolute confirmation that Life Calk would be ok for bedding the clutch, you should contact Spinlock.

 

[zeehag]

life caulk isnt 5200 so you are ok..lol..i have used life caulk--is good stuff.

 

[ryanmohr]

Found this in the installation guide: "Never use cleaning or lubricating solvents, polysulphide or polyurethane based sealants: they degrade the product."

http://assets.spinlock.co.uk/documents/XAS_Instructions_659.pdf


Typically you wouldn't bed with just silicone though would you? What else is left when you take away the sulphides and urethanes?

 

[jibes138]

Butyl Tape maybe? Highly recommended by Maine Sail.

 

[Dan Johnson]

I use...

Life Seal for Lexan and other plastics, Life Caulk for everything else. Neither will harm the fiberglass, but polysulfides are not recommended for plastics.

Recently replaced a "Gray" opening port with a new one--can you believe the installation instructions say to use 5200???

 

[ryanmohr]

Thanks for all the advice guys. Here's the response from Spinlock:

Neither product is ideal the Life Caulk contains polysulfides and the Life Seal contains polyurethane. To avoid discolouration and deterioration of the plastics we recommend 100% silicone such as the following:

3M Marine 3200
Dow Corning Marine
Aquafax Rallisil 910
GeoBond Marine