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Overenthusiatic crews and sprint helms keep pulling the jib block fitting out. I've tried drilling out the pop rivet and replacing it, but it's getting monotonous. Any ideas?
All I can suggest is, if your block fittings are the simple lacing eye type, is that you fix a 15mm wide(say)x 3/4mm thick strip of anodised aluminium (keel band type) over the existing holes, fixed outside the area of the eye with big self tappers in to the tramp track/deck below.
Whack a big c/sk one under the eye as well, then re-fix the eye through the new and the old.
It may raise the sheeting angle slightly, so you may have to change the block shackle/swivel to make up for it.
It may also help to run some epoxy (or glassfibre resin) down the old holes to beef them up a bit.......but run it down a straw so it doesn't get all over the place!
The assymetric fairleads are useless. A few years ago we passed a rule allowing tracks in their place which are both stronger (attached by 4+ rivets) and adjustable. It does cost about ?35 to fit them and you need a rivet gun. I use RWO parts as follows:
Track R 2701 2off
Endstops R2770 4 off
Adjustable Fairlead R2560 2 off
All can be got by post from Pinnell & Bax (01604 592808)
You drill off the existing loops. Fill one hole with a rivet. Use the other hole as one of the fixings for the new track. Bias the track slightlty forward (ie get 2/3 in front and 1/3 behind the old fixing approximately).
Cheers, Bob Carter
fit adjustable tracks, OR fit dart 18 tracks as thses have jib failead points built in. You will need a larger bolt rope in the tramp, (which means the boat will be more rigid)
and the track will last even longer
