Plenty of threads over the years about winch maintenance.
But I don't recall seeing much if anything about block care and maintenance.
Do you do regularly inspect your blocks?
How do you care for them?
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Here is the reason for starting this thread:
Over the years, I have just followed the usual manufacturer recommendations to flush the blocks with fresh water and lube with dry film lubricant on occasion.
But yesterday, I noticed that my mainsheet block and tackle system no longer worked as smooth as I seemed to recall. Actually that is an understatement. In my hand, the main sheet felt like it was binding or getting hung up. Observing the action on the blocks as I hauled in and let out, I could see that one of the four Garhaurer Delrin ball-bearing blocks on my boom (see the picture) was rotating with a humping motion and also it was obviously locking up when under tension.
Great. Probably some cracked or missing delrin bearings -- which on this model can't be remedied. So new blocks for an early for Christmas present to myself.
Back at the berth, I removed the block to inspect. The sheave spun freely in my hand. All the bearings still were in the track, doing the normal ball-bearing thing, and I couldn't see any broken ones. But when I put a short line through the block, pulled both ends tight at 180 degrees, the sheave wouldn't rotate at all. So my next thought was the delrin ball bearing race-ways had become scored or corroded. I removed another of blocks. Not as bad, but exhibiting the same malfunction.
In all other respects (other than they didn't work anymore!) the blocks looked structurally sound. So I decided not to give up on them without a bit of a fight.
At home, I immersed the blocks for an hour in a bathroom cleaner than contains oxalic acid as one the ingredients. Upon removing blocks, I observed the solution had become a cloudy gray. And at the bottom of the container were some white and hard granular particles. Then to dampen the negative effect of the oxalic acid on the stainless steel, I soaked the blocks some more in a weak mixture of Spotless Stainless and water. And I noticed a few more granules on the bottom of the container.
These aren't new blocks by any means. Perhaps over the years mineral deposits had built up in race-ways or on the bearings and the acid dissolved and loosened them away?
Anyway, doing again the 180 degree line "test", the sheaves were now rolling freely.
After drying, I sprayed a shot of spray garage door lube into the raceways followed by a spray of dry film lubricant to dilute.
The two blocks now run very smooth. Gonna give the same treatment to several of my other blocks.
But I don't recall seeing much if anything about block care and maintenance.
Do you do regularly inspect your blocks?
How do you care for them?
================================================
Here is the reason for starting this thread:
Over the years, I have just followed the usual manufacturer recommendations to flush the blocks with fresh water and lube with dry film lubricant on occasion.
But yesterday, I noticed that my mainsheet block and tackle system no longer worked as smooth as I seemed to recall. Actually that is an understatement. In my hand, the main sheet felt like it was binding or getting hung up. Observing the action on the blocks as I hauled in and let out, I could see that one of the four Garhaurer Delrin ball-bearing blocks on my boom (see the picture) was rotating with a humping motion and also it was obviously locking up when under tension.
Great. Probably some cracked or missing delrin bearings -- which on this model can't be remedied. So new blocks for an early for Christmas present to myself.
Back at the berth, I removed the block to inspect. The sheave spun freely in my hand. All the bearings still were in the track, doing the normal ball-bearing thing, and I couldn't see any broken ones. But when I put a short line through the block, pulled both ends tight at 180 degrees, the sheave wouldn't rotate at all. So my next thought was the delrin ball bearing race-ways had become scored or corroded. I removed another of blocks. Not as bad, but exhibiting the same malfunction.
In all other respects (other than they didn't work anymore!) the blocks looked structurally sound. So I decided not to give up on them without a bit of a fight.
At home, I immersed the blocks for an hour in a bathroom cleaner than contains oxalic acid as one the ingredients. Upon removing blocks, I observed the solution had become a cloudy gray. And at the bottom of the container were some white and hard granular particles. Then to dampen the negative effect of the oxalic acid on the stainless steel, I soaked the blocks some more in a weak mixture of Spotless Stainless and water. And I noticed a few more granules on the bottom of the container.
These aren't new blocks by any means. Perhaps over the years mineral deposits had built up in race-ways or on the bearings and the acid dissolved and loosened them away?
Anyway, doing again the 180 degree line "test", the sheaves were now rolling freely.
After drying, I sprayed a shot of spray garage door lube into the raceways followed by a spray of dry film lubricant to dilute.
The two blocks now run very smooth. Gonna give the same treatment to several of my other blocks.
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