Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.
I always spray silicone in the track and on the sail luff while I'm hoisting the Genoa. You could use liquid soap or WD-40 but these could leave stains or sticky stuff that could collect dirt over time.
Excuse my asking a silly question, but are you hand-feeding the luff into the opening as you hoist? I found keeping the luff lined up with the groove as I pulled was an important part--I could do it alone (one hand on the halyard and one on the sail), but a second set of hands made it a lot faster. (Sailkote or any other dry lube helps.)
Dave Bristle Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired), Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge
So my sail comes back from the loft next week and I'll be putting the sail on the extrusion for the first time , the furler is CDI it has the flexible extrusion there's a a gentle "S " wave in it from being strored apparently incorrectly . How do you spray silicone the track from the deck ? Anyone dealt with CDI extrusions ? -Angus
Thanks for all the ideas. I think I will go with the silicone. Yes I feed the sail into the extrusion. Unfortunately my mast is up. So my reach up the extrusion will be limited.
Be aware that there are oil and dry forms of silicone spray. You want dry. Silicone is a general grouping of a variety of organics that can have different properties, choose wisely. I stick with SailKote for consistency.
I use a rag stuffed into the slot for my mainsail getting the same effect. I spray as far as I can reach, run the rag up part way, bring it down, spray more and run it up a little farther, repeating until I reach the top.
Dave B. aboard Pearl 1982 TR/SK/Trad. #3399 Lake Erie/Florida Panhandle
Maybe after spraying the track as far as you can reach, you could feed the sail in, haul it up about that high, and then spray like crazy into the track right on top of the head of the sail--saturating it (using a dry lube only). Then just keep pulling, which will wipe the lube along the track. The solvent in the lube will evaporate quickly, leaving the teflon or whatever...
I really recommend a dry lube like CRC or Sailkote for a headsail--you don't want anything oily that will attract crud and stain the sailcloth that is wrapped around the bead.
Dave Bristle Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired), Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge
Be careful with some of the lubricants and the plastic luff. Not all solvents work well with the plastics. I'd stick with Sailkote. Just spray the bejesus out of the sail. I have an old CDI furler with the aluminum extrusion. There's one part f the luff that doesn't quite line up, so the sail hangs up a but, but as one of the posters said, if you hand feed the sail into the slot while pulling, it goes up fairly easily.
"Lady E" 1986 Catalina 25: Fin Keel, Standard Rig, Inboard M12 Diesel, Sail No. 5339 Sailing out of Norwalk Cove Marina, Connecticut
Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ. The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.