Dennis5.8 Posted February 18, 2003 Report Share Posted February 18, 2003 I have spotted some corrosion under some fittings on the mast. I was thinking of just drilling out the rivets and inspecting it, then re-riveting and sealing it up again. What is the standard way of dealing with it? Are there any special precautions and rivits I must use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Holden Posted February 24, 2003 Report Share Posted February 24, 2003 dennis, You have been quite busy on the forum - welcome. Any corrosion on the mast and beams needs to be treated carefully. Check for any cracks around the dolphin striker at the end of the beams - any cracks - replace it. Also replace your stays and trap wires EVERY year - $200 a year is better than $4000 any time - just speak to Hood If you are able to replace the rivets - make sure that you use Monell (not aluminium) and make sure you use a anti corrosion paste when you insert them - available at the chandelery. What 5.8 sail number do you have ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HooD Posted February 26, 2003 Report Share Posted February 26, 2003 Yes the HooD knows plenty about killing nacra's. We broke a trap wire about a six weeks ago, and they were just under 11 months old, considering, we didnt sail the first three months of the season, they didnt age real well. We still managed to win the race, so it wasnt all bad. The dolphin striker is not so easy to check, if its cracked, it will be between the first bolt and the beam, you realy need to pull it off and have a look at it. Mine had turned brittle, and lost its strenght. These 5.8's look big and strong, but the reality is, they are under some enourmous loads, they can and will break. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis5.8 Posted March 2, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2003 Hi Andrew. I am active on a few other forums (non sailing) that can have over 100 posts a day. So this forum seems a bit empty which is a bit of a shame because forums like these can be an enthusiasts best advisor. I thank everybody that has contributed to my threads and the forum in general. My sail no is 947 and I have only used it twice it is my first cat. I replaced the 3 stays and diamond wires after a side stay broke 3 weeks ago (see my thread about safe sailing after de-mastation) What is monell, are these rivets available from bris cat centre? Can I just use a normal rivet gun? When you say check for cracks around the dolphin striker, do you mean the aluminium band itself or the beam? Hood, how old was your dolphin striker when it broke and what were the conditions like at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HooD Posted March 2, 2003 Report Share Posted March 2, 2003 My dolphin striker looked like the original one, about 10 years old. We nose dived it to the hilt, in about 22knots, very lumpy sea. The main beam was about 2-3 feet under water, when she went click, and everything floated to the surface. We missed one race, and a lot of sleep to get back on the water. The worry with the dolphin striker is the aluminium strap, its held by three bolts at either end. all you have to do is loosen the three bolts, so you can see between the strap and the beam, the cracks your looking for are on the bend where the three bolts attach. on the outside it can look perfect, but on the inside it can be ready to let go. the strap is $44 if it looks remotley suspect, get a new one! Monell rivets are just stainless steel, and any ol rivet gun will work, they are just a lot tougher than aluminium ones. I use a set of lazy tongs. Yes it would be nice to have some more active posters, but I guess thats indicative of catsailing, the fleets are certainly not like they used to be p.s. in Hobart today it was 30-40 knotts and the sailing was blown out. gah. ---------------------------- Lauderdale Yacht Club www.lyccat.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis5.8 Posted March 6, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2003 Thanks. I have since found out that the DS strap had been replaced 2 years ago and the cat sat in storage for 1 year so it has only seen 1 year of occasional use in lightish conditions. Well, judging by your incident, it takes a fair bit of punishment to break the DS. Sounds like you had a spectacular bail!! Most blokes at my club won’t even go out if the wind gets above 20k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HooD Posted March 6, 2003 Report Share Posted March 6, 2003 I have always liked the wind, it really doesnt get any better than a two on wire, cross reach in 25knots++ it certainly sorts the men from the boys The week before we were in 30knots+ and 8-10ft seas, we had a ball that DS should serve you well for a few years to come, just keep an eye on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis5.8 Posted March 11, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2003 Sounds like fun!!! Are 25-30K downwind legs scary when the boat plough’s down huge waves? How hard is it to keep the nose up? I have been hearing that most damage can occur from nose-diving on down wind legs. The other day I found myself in a similar sort of situation with about 20K. It was far from being scary but I could see how it might be in strong wind with large waves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HooD Posted March 11, 2003 Report Share Posted March 11, 2003 The 5.8 is one of the better boats for nose diving, because of all the boyancy they carry in the bows, that said, when (not if) you you get the bows down deep enough, to get the bridal foil under water, the foil will act as a hydrafoil and drive the boat deeper, once that happens your heading for a swim. Usually there is no damage, but the beams and stays go under a huge load, so if there are any weak spots, thats when your going to find them. setting the mast rake well back certainly helps a lot, for me to nose dive now, it really needs to be a combination of a strong gust, and raming into the back of a steep wave. If your quick enough with the main/jib sheets you can go almost anywhere. On Saturday, we had an A-Class that could not make it to the startline without huge nosedives, and we sailed the entire race without incedent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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