Ive never seen a repaired mast.

I would throw it away and look for another second hand mast on seabreeze or in your local shop. You should be able to find a bargain somewhere.

The epoxy or whatever you use to repair it will not have anywhere near the strength that the carbon fibre had.
All the epoxy does is act as a glue and filler between the strong stuff, that is the carbon or glass fibres.
So unless you can repair it with some sort of fibre overlay it will definitely be a weak point.
Only use it for as far as you can swim.

Mast's can be repaired and if done by the right guys you can often not know any difernt. if it is a right where your boom lands on the mast, then you could reapair it with a sleeve and re laminate with a carbon rap.
Vacum bagging this crack would not be worth trying.
If you want the best consolidation for your laminate/resin then you will need to use a "shrink" tape wound evenly over your laminate, use a heat gun to shrink the tape giving you a nice easy and even finish .
To be honest its probably not worth it unless you really love the mast. can probably buy a good second hand one for the same price?

if you have nothing to lose you could try this system yourself, wrapping more layers, just as an alternative to throwing it away:
www.peterman.dk/windsurf-anti-boom-slip01-1200.htm

Mark _australia said...

fuges said...

Mast's can be repaired and if done by the right guys you can often not know any difernt. if it is a right where your boom lands on the mast, then you could reapair it with a sleeve and re laminate with a carbon rap.

I doubt it - anything strong enough to repair it will be excess material and thus changing the bend curve.

The only repairs worth doing are within about 20cm of the base, or 10cm of the tip, where you can glue up a crack and then wind carbon unidirectional (or carbon sock) around it. At points close to either end the extra stiffness does not matter.
Anywhere else and it is not worth the fragging around - else we'd all be doing it

I've successfully repaired a couple of masts with sleeves...in saying that, I don't look for high-performance with the repaired masts and realise that if they fail, then I'm in for a swim. Totally agree re; mast curve, but hey - if you've got nothing to lose...?

decrepit said...
Looks to me as if it's been damaged in transit, if it had been rigged in that condition it would be in 2 halves.

I checked it under 10x magnification. There are obvious salt crystals and dirt under the delaminated bits. Besides, the packing and wrapping was all in tact and was excellent. The bloke did a sterling job of bubble wrap and glad wrap, and everything was packed in the usual carry bags. It's definitely old damage. It was being used by a teenage girl before me, so my guess is that she didn't stress things quite as much as thee or me might.

I re-sleeved a Fiberspar carbon mast years ago and got many more years out of it, though somewhat different to your mast as it did originally have a sleeve in it (sleeve snapped right on the join with little damage to top or bottom section, then removed busted sleeve and epoxied new one in). Also different coz the damage on your mast is where the boom attaches, different stresses involved there. Agree with fuges that it may be possible to repair the mast pretty much the way he explained to a serviceable state (with a section of an old mast used as a sleeve inside with glass or carbon wrap on outside), though considering the likelihood of it failing and possibly wrecking the sail as well as forcing you to swim your kit to shore, is it really worth all the hassle?

I would suggest giving Steve Stratfold in Perth a call on 0421 477 001, he's definitely a specialist in all types of fibre composite repairs. He would likely know whether it is possible to satisfactorily repair the mast and would certainly tell you if he thought it would be a waste of his or your time repairing it!

Have u contacted the national T293 distributor or any of the retailers to check if anyone has a good used Techno mast for sale?
Try here: http://www.techno293australia.org/equipment/where-to-buy/

If you're not planning to compete in T293 class for a while then maybe it's worth finding out what other brands of masts have a compatible bend curve to the Bic masts, then search for a good s/hand one of these (from someone you think you can trust!).

Tis also a bugger living a long way from a windsurf shop and wanting some more kit. I have the same prob as I'm also in Albany, currently considering shipping a board from east coast windsurf shop but now have second thoughts. It's like this - Seabreeze ad says board is in 'perfect condition with no repairs or dings', then rang shop and told that same board has had a repair to the nose!

Am certain that some dodgy online retailers must be preying on distant suckers like us!

WindWarrior said...

You will have to do all this re-rigging while in the water and attempting to keep all your gear together.

... and whilst beating off all the GWSs

Chuck it out...not worth it.

dinsdale said...

Jman said...

Maybe this is an option for you

www.seabreeze.com.au/Classifieds/Windsurfing/Accessories/~arl-s/2008-Hypersonic-460-C55-Sdm-Mast.aspx

Many thanx - I've PMd him.

Yes, I have been in contact with Bevan McKavanagh and he does have what he describes as a "very good condition" 2nd hand mast for $235. I was just testing for perhaps a cheaper, but still satisfactory option, as I've already borrowed money (from family) to buy this lot. I do have an X6 mast, but it doesn't do the Techno sails any justice at all. I believe the Techno mast is a constant curve.

I also can't sail it until I can get a trimbox fin (Select 46 Ride), as the one sent lasted about 10 minutes. It did have an obvious crack in it and the first clump of weed finished it off. Bevan McKavanagh has a new one in stock for $175. Fortunately I was in Princess Royal Harbour, in about crutch deep water only about 100m from shore - stingrays and cobblers scare me more than GWS in the harbour . Btw, I used the X6 mast and a Da Kine 6.3 sail.

On the subject of trimbox fins, as nobody has responded to my plea for a 2nd hand one, is it doable/feasable to have a different fin box put into the board? The newer Techno boards use Deep Tuttle.

I appreciate the advice so far - thanx.

I think the Techno boards are a plastic construction. Can you tell if this is the case? If so, there will be a seam running around the board.

This will mean that changing to a tuttle box would be difficult, as the fibreglass/epoxy may not bond as easily as it would to other fibreglass, and it may not look very pretty.

What's the story with your fins? You have none, or you can't get a source of any? Sometimes the shops have them in the second hand fin sections, as they aren't sold that often.

Are you actually using Select fins with replaceable heads? Can you get the trimbox heads?

Have you the ability to rebox some fins with a trimbox head?

I have a few trimbox fins here, but I need them for the Bic Nova that I have got, and as you have noticed, trimbox fins are not that common.

Dinsdale,

Surf Sail Aust in Leederville sell the trimbox adaptor for Select fins:
http://www.surfsailaustralia.com.au/showProduct/Windsurfing/Bits+and+Pieces/313601/Select+Fin+Box+Adaptor+Bic+%28Trim%29

From what I have seen, some of the Select fins have a multi-conic base that fits into the finbox head so you can interchange different heads. Just a matter of finding a suitable Select fin with the multi-conic base, remove the existing head, then fit the trimbox adaptor.

Surf Sail Aust also appear to have the Select Ride fins on special for around $130:
www.surfsailaustralia.com.au/showProduct/Windsurfing/Fins+Above+29.9cm/ride/Select+Ride+Freeride+%28On+Special%29

Yeah, it is plastic construction, based on the URL you gave. A finbox conversion would be a bit more difficult than on an epoxy board, and wouldn't look as good.

It sounds like you are trying to keep the costs down, but I think you might be better off following Gazman's suggestion and getting a Select fin with a trimbox adapter from SSA.

They also seem to have some trimbox fins, but it would be good to call them. It appears that they have these in trimbox:

http://www.surfsailaustralia.com.au/showProduct/Windsurfing/Fins+Above+29.9cm/Eliminatorweed/Select+Weed+Elimator+Freerace+Fin

At least with the select fins, you can change the head later on if you want to use them with a different box.

FormulaNova said...

It sounds like you are trying to keep the costs down, but I think you might be better off following Gazman's suggestion and getting a Select fin with a trimbox adapter from SSA.

Dinsdale,

If the crack is only in the Select finbox head (the black bit around the fin) and you can remove the base of the fin from the head then likely you will only need to buy the trimbox adaptor from SSA (the trimbox adaptor is basically a new Select finbox head). Check with Mark at SSA first and tell him what the problem is, he's pretty helpful.

Also, suspect that the std T293 Select Ride 46 could be a bit on the large side for a 6.3 sail in stronger winds so maybe a smaller fin would be something to consider later on? (a somewhat smaller weed fin would probably do the job as it would create considerably less lift in stronger winds than an upright fin like the Ride 46).

Bit of a shame that we're in the same isolated WA town and haven't met up as yet whilst resorting to this distant forum banter, so email me via Seabreeze with your contact details as I would be happy to help out anytime 'in person' with advice or tips on anything windsurfing related (including having a stab at helping to repair the mast!).

Have just realized that the mast damage isn't where the boom connects, but where the bottom cam bears on the mast.

Only good for jousting stick now


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