teflon strips for mast

calicosine

New Member
i was wondering if anyone else had put these wear strips on their lower mast where it goes in the deck? i put them on today and sailed and then when it came time to unstep the mast i couldn't get the lower out!seemed like it was creating too much suction? maybe too tight? had to drive home with the mast in on the trailer, thank god it was all freeway and no low bridges. will try to get it out in the morning................terry
 
calicosine said:
i was wondering if anyone else had put these wear strips on their lower mast where it goes in the deck? i put them on today and sailed and then when it came time to unstep the mast i couldn't get the lower out!seemed like it was creating too much suction? maybe too tight? had to drive home with the mast in on the trailer, thank god it was all freeway and no low bridges. will try to get it out in the morning................terry

Yes, I have a strip that goes about half way around. The mast wouldn't fit completely encircled. There is a lot of suction created by it. I always have to turn the mast while pulling up to break the suction. When I first installed it, before I got my technique down, I would have to stand on the Laser deck, with the boat on the trailer, to get enough leverage to pull it up.
 
thanks merrily, thats what i thought, i installed it all the way round the mast, per the instructions. will try to get it out this morning.on a seperate note .....what are you using for a main sheet block?
 
just a little folow up here about the stuck mast. thing was stuckin there good and i couldn't pull it out straight up, had to put hull on ground sideways and use one of those strap wrenches to turn it, once i got it turning it came out prettty easy.the instructions for the strips says to wrap it all the way around the mast in two places, one at top and one at bottom. from what i can seeit makes it way to tight and hard to get out, not really sure it's such a good thing( my local laser dealer is the one who sold them to me and said they were a good thing.maybe if you cut them in half and only used it where the mast actually touches might be better.
 
Hi Again,
I've used them on my older Laser and had no problems, it did seem to help the mast rotate easier when tacking.
Fishingmickey
150087/181157
 
We have sold a lot of those strips and have never heard of this happening. How think is the material? I assume it is jamming on the sides of the mast step not the front and back which should have lots of play. Are you putting them around the plastic bottom foot or just the mast? Sounds like the ones you are using might be too thick..Scott
 
i got them from the laser dealer here in seattle and installed them just as described in instructions, not on cap either, no matter i already took them back off
 
How old is your boat? Do you know if the inside of the mast step has ever been repaired?
 
Reading through your other posts it looks like your boat has some age on it. My guess is some where along the line your mast step had some work on which made it a bit more narrow than standard. Just go w/out the strips. I had the same problem w/mine after I did some internal mast step work. The bottom of the step is too narrow for the stirps, but the top is fine so I just use one wear strip across the top. This doe not change my boats performance in any way. Matter of fact she's quite fast.
 
thanks rob b, it dosnt look like it's had any work, but if it was done right you wouldn't be able to see it, the boat is 1978, so old, still seems just as fast. i haven't weighed it(not quite sure how) but it works fine.
 
You can weigh a laser with a bathroom scale.

Here's how:

Put your bathroom scale under one of the wheels of the trailer/dolly. Multiply that number by 2. Put the scale under the bow-end of the trailer/dolly. Add that number. You now have the combined weight of the boat plus the dolly/trailer.

Remove the boat from the dolly/trailer. (Launch it or move it to a different dolly/trailer.)

Repeat the process. This is the weight of the trailer/dolly. Subract this weight from your earlier number (of the combined weight of boat + trailer/dolly).
 
i see, problem is ..........i have never owned a scale, as a guy the only time i get weighed is at the doctor hahha.thanks for the info......terry
 
I been told you could just balance the boat on the side, on the scale to weigh it. Does this not work?
 
LarsenCanvas said:
I been told you could just balance the boat on the side, on the scale to weigh it. Does this not work?

That's how I did mine. I used a small block of wood that was the width of the scale to make sure the load of the boat was evenly distributed across the length of the board, (like 2 feet on a scale and not standing in the middle on one foot). Then I rested the boat on it's rail on the block of wood. Seemed pretty accurate.
 
Merrily said:
But you don't double that number as you do the first one?

No. I am assuming that the weight for the two wheels is the same. You can save a step by doubling one wheel.

If you suspect that the weight is distributed asymetrically, then weigh each wheel and the bow. Add the three numbers together.
 
Rob E said:
No. I am assuming that the weight for the two wheels is the same. You can save a step by doubling one wheel.

If you suspect that the weight is distributed asymetrically, then weigh each wheel and the bow. Add the three numbers together.

I am sorry, but I do not have much convidence in the accuracy of this measurement. If you would put the boat on three scales simultaneously, yes. However when you put one wheel on a scale the weight will be off, since the boat is slightly raised when you put it on the scale. I like the idea, but I would put it on one scale on its side.
GWF
 
Georg W.F. said:
I am sorry, but I do not have much convidence in the accuracy of this measurement. If you would put the boat on three scales simultaneously, yes. However when you put one wheel on a scale the weight will be off, since the boat is slightly raised when you put it on the scale. I like the idea, but I would put it on one scale on its side.
GWF


If you assume that the distance between the tires is 5 feet (just a guess), and the scale is 2 inches high, then the angle of tilt is just under two degrees (arctan {2/60}). Not a large angle.

Perhaps someone will try this experiment. Measure with just the bathroom scale, and again with 2x4's under the other wheel and under the bow. The 2x4's will be about the same height as the scale. This will eliminate any error.

I would expect that the error in the measurement due to the scale height would be comparable to the accuracy of the scale.
 
LarsenCanvas said:
I been told you could just balance the boat on the side, on the scale to weigh it. Does this not work?
If you happen to have a 2 X 6 measuring about six feet and TWO scales, it's really easy to weigh the boat. Place a set of scales under each end of the 2 X 6. Place the boat on the 2 X 6, perpendicular to it and balanced fore and aft. Add the readings of the two scales then remove the boat and weigh the 2 X 6; substract its weight...voila!
 

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