www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/yet-another-mast-seperation-method/?SearchTerms=mast,stuck

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/How-to-disassemble-mast/?SearchTerms=mast,stuck

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/the-finite-mast-joining-post/?SearchTerms=mast,stuck

I really dont understand what you expect an exchange. The mast was in 2 pieces, and obviously went together ok. The only mechanism by which it is stuck is because some material has become jammed between the sections (typically sand), and the store had nothing to do with that. It isnt a warranty issue, nor a manufacturing defect.

JB

Yep me to this week jammed jammed and more jam and its still jammed
Had a go........ HELP...... had to cart it down the side of the car the last couple of days.............isnt this a classic case when you drop into your windsurf shop and get them to get it appart

One of there best jobs[}:)]

Ps i will try a couple of these thats where its at

it could be something else but i think sand also.

try a rubber mallet and gently tap around the ferrule.
then put the mast on 2 horses and while holding the ferrule, bend the mast back and forth

then tap again and repeat.

this crushes all of the sand particles

after a while you hopefully will be able to twist the mast apart.

aww shucks mark, i did say gentle.

Despite being told not to do it I eventually(within 5 min) freed a severely stuck mast by swinging it like an axe and letting the tip hit the grass.
Swing, rotate 90 degrees, swing, rotate 90, swing, rotate 90 a few times then see if it is loose. If not repeat process until it becomes free.
NOW! I did say swing not smash onto the grass not paving. I dont think the shock loads would be much more than sailing and certainly less than catapulting.
The offending mast is still in service after 2 years. Its still a bit sticky but has never stuck solid again.

PS. The bold print was placed there in an attempt to placate Mark

Never had the problem myself, but, from an engineering background I have a couple of hints for the future:

1. NEVER use any kind of oily substance where grit is involved in a jammed slip fit. It will exacerbate the problem no end. Water is best, though silicone might work.
2. When you do eventually get it apart, given that it's shown a propensity to jam before, use a thin smear of water-based, fine rubbing compound and gently lap the joint until it becomes a smooth slip fit. Twisting the halves whilst working the joint in and out. Stop as soon as the joint works smoothly - this might take only a few twists. Then make sure that ALL of the compound is removed.
3. Do as others have suggested - keep all dirt, grit, sand out of and away from the joint and tape it when in use.

The lapping process will remove any high spots, and if done correctly (not excessively) it can make the joint marginally stronger by creating a larger mating surface within the joint.

Mark, My smashing with a mallet thing came from the internet so must be OK
The first time i did this was after I tried every other method and I had the same thoughts as you, Carbon + shock can't be good. But guess what? it worked and the mast(430 SDM) is still going strong 5 years later. Iv'e used it several times on another RDM 400 that's still fine after 3 years. So take the risk or not it's up to you, One piece or two it's up to you.

I still think the 2 boom thing is the way 2 go, But with all things old being new again......maybe the 1 piece mast is the go these days?

The method using ropes and booms didnt work. no matter how tight I have tied it, it slips.

Next try will be to tie it to a post and yank....TBC

Not sure what brand of rdm it is as you didn't appear to mention, but my 430 Ezzy rdm got stuck and this is how I got it apart:

(this assumes that like Ezzy masts, the base is just a tube without a joining ferrule and does not have a plug stuck in it around boom height)

- get a small length of nylon rod (from plastics supplier) smaller than ID of mast at join (need to guess diameter)
- get a length of wood dowel (from Bunnings) roughly same diameter as nylon rod and long enough so that end of dowel sticks out of base at least 20cm
- place nylon rod into base first, followed by wood dowel, then hit end of dowel with hammer

PS nylon rod used first as wood dowel may split when rammed against stuck ferrule, also nylon won't split under pressure and would cushion impact a bit

jermaldan said...

I did the smashing into the grass thing. No Dice.

After a while of doing that my whole body was vibrating. Its the stuckest mast ever!

NO not yet mine mast is sitll stuck .... Had a couple of cracks

Was with ben servern and simon hurry currie a couple of weeks back at coros and they got one stuck.... 4 people on either end and we got it apart .....but i had no idea we had to stop a couple of times as it started to come apart as the carbon gets so hot it can melt it together for ever.

Been there, done that. Including the method used in the video!!

I have a (ex) lovely No Limitz 460 hanging in the shed as a rack pole now. Frozen solid. I got it about 3mm apart. Now it has a sideways kink in it so I can't even use it as a one piece.

Can't advise anything more about getting that mast apart. All those other methods have worked for me at one time or another. The problem of stuck masts come with the territory at a place called Sandy Point.

But here are a few observations on preventing the problem in the first place.

Usually, the sand gets into the mast before it it put together. Taping the join has little advantage in that situation, (but may help stop sand already there being packed deeper into the join).

My best advice is this: Be absolutely paranoid about not getting any sand in the mast while rigging up, most especially in the top half if you have a mast with the ferrule in the bottom half. The biggest danger is if you have no seal in the top of the mast. If water can enter the top of your mast you have a recipe for a welded mast. The sand is washed by the water into the join and packed tighter and tighter by the flex and movement of the mast during sailing.
So, put a really good seal plug inside your mast just above the ferrule, and while you are at it, make sure the top plug is tight and has a good seal.
Remember, you only have to touch the mast lightly on the beach for a split second during rigging to ruin you day.

Another thing. There are some brands of masts around that have the ferrule in the top half. This seems to me to be a very good arrangement; gravity does not work against you. But be sure to make sure you have a plug in the base of the mast though!

'The older I get, the better I was'

jermaldan said...

Tied it to a lamp post at one end and yanked the hell out of it. Maybe 1mm movement. Was absolutely knackered in the end.

Chill the bottom half and try again. You can do it.

I know this sounds crazy, but I often hear Dr Karl on Triple J say to ring your local university. Try ringing Deakin Uni, they have a carbon fibre research centre. I'm sure Monash, La Trobe or Melbourne would also be able to advise on the pros/cons of hot/cold on carbon fibre.

ikw777 said...

jermaldan said...

Tied it to a lamp post at one end and yanked the hell out of it. Maybe 1mm movement. Was absolutely knackered in the end.

Chill the bottom half and try again. You can do it.

Chill the bottom half in ice pack or rap and apply heat gun/hair dryer to top half
Or you could buy it flowers. i know when i'm trying to pry other things apart this can work
Or tell the mast you want to start using other masts, this usually results in a quick separation too.

Heat:

Common epoxies soften substantially about 80-100deg and fail completely at about 130deg. There is of course hi temp ones and god knows what they use in masts like vinyl ester resins and others?
But I'd not chance it. ESPECIALLY a hair dryer. We use hair dryers to preheat the crankcases on RC car engines and easily hit 130deg. By the time the heat soaks to full depth the outside surface will be dangerously hot.

One half in the sun (whatever the "outer" half of the join is) and other half in the shade, the with some iced water applied, may do it