sail lubricant

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

chuck53

I going to be putting my head sail on the roller furling in the next couple of weeks.  What's the best lubricant to use to make it easier to run up the furling channel?
Last year when I bought the boat, the PO and I raised the sail and it was a bear.  He didn't use any kind of lubricant and the surveyor told us it would have helped a lot.

I'm assuming some kind of dry lubricant is the best.

yonar

A friend of mine uses little drops of dishwashing soap. It works great. Never collect dust, particles etc. And it washes away.
Turk Yonar
1989 C34 Hull # 858
Tradewinds
Long Beach, CA

Jim Hardesty

try Mclube sailcoat.     www.mclubemarine.com   When you took the sail down, did it pull down easily?  If so I'd guess you probably have a halyard friction issue.  Possible the top, bottom, or the organizer pulley sheeve.
Jim
Jim Hardesty
2001 MKII hull #1570 M35BC  "Shamrock"
sailing Lake Erie
from Commodore Perry Yacht Club
Erie, PA

chuck53

It came down fairly easy.  Winching it up last spring was a real b.....
The first 8-10 feet were pretty easy and then it started getting hard.  The PO and I had to take turns at the winch as we really got winded.
As I mentioned, my surveyor said it was lack of lubricant that caused the problem.

I like that idea of dish soap.  Sounds like a cheap and easy way to go that will work.

Kevin Henderson

I second the recommendation of the SAILKOTE.  I had a similar issue with my Mainsail track.  I inserted a small piece of cloth super saturated with the lubricant and ran it up and down using the halyard a few times and it worked great.  I also had a friend recommend a sliver of Ivory soap (The bar) because it contains silicone.  The only side effect from any kind of soap would be the inevitable bubbles when it rains.  :oops:
The sail, the play of its pulse so like our own lives: so thin and yet so full of life, so noiseless when it labors hardest, so noisy and impatient when least effective.
~Henry David Thoreau

Ron Hill

Chuck : Try the Sailkote lube. 
If the sail went up hard, but came down easily you may want to check the sheave at the top of the mast.

A thought
Ron, Apache #788

chuck53

Guys, thanks for the advice.

Phil Spicer

Chuck, don't forget to clean the tracks before you lube. The sailkote is the way to go for both tracks. I have used many other products to save a buck, but nothing works as well so I stick with sailkote.
Phil & Marsha,Sandusky Sailing Club. Steamboat is #789,tall/wing-Unv M25XP/Hurth ZF 50 trans.

sailaway

Chuck most catalina 34 the jibs go up hard because  there are too  many sheaves and angles . Roller bearing sheaves help some but not alot. Charlie