Replacing Amiot traveller system

[apexio]

Hi all,

Can two pieces of bent traveller track be connected together and still work?

For years I have looked for a replacement traveller, or traveller and track, but have not found a solution. In the meantime my traveller breaks and I repair it - but it is a franken-traveller now and could blow up anytime. Also the track itself is worn where the bearings ride - and so it goes through ball bearings quickly.

I have an Amiot 32mm RCB track with Amiot 32B-12D mainsheet traveller car.

Track length: 5.3 meters (17 feet)

It has a moderate curve.

This is for a Fountaine Pajot Belize. I have talked with FP over many emails and they do not have a solution. They only have track up to 4 meters (Lewmar) nor will they supply it with a bend.

I have talked to Mark at Garhauer and he says they can't get something that long anodized and they no longer bend track (the fellow who previously did this sort of thing at Garhauer died during or from Covid - I was told).


One option is go with the 4 meter track and try to find someone to bend it (or build my own jig) - I'd lose a bit more than 2 feet of length on either side which I do use when going downwind.


Any advice appreciated

[apexio]

Some photos

[psk125]

Anodized track is (according to another thread I read on this) difficult to bend because the bending can crack the anodizing layer, which is apparently fairly brittle. Does the track HAVE to bend? Curving track to match the camber of the deck is nice, but isn't required to enable the mainsheet traveler to do its job. Curving it so it matches the radius of the boom is nice too, but isn't required to enable the mainsheet traveler to do its job. (Vangs on Star boats are a different thing.) So long as the traveler car goes back & forth when you tack, it will work. Coasting schooners used to have travelers made from straight iron pipe, with a ring sliding back & forth that the sheet block attached to. An exact replacement for what you have does not look like it's in the cards. Rethinking the setup is the way to go. You might also find that your curve is so slight that straight track can be made to match it (with a little persuasion) as it is installed. K.I.S.S.

[ggray]

Our Voyage 430 cat has a curved track, by Lewmar. While it is curved, it has a larger radius than the distance from gooseneck to the mainsheet blocks. It looks like yours has an even larger radius than mine. So as psk suggests, you probably could get by with a straight track.

But if you want to put a mild curve to it, you would likely do a better job bending a track that had a taller profile. I don't know what that would do to the anodizing, Maybe you could get a short piece and experiment.

I measured/calculated the radius of my track, and it was exactly the minimum radius that Lewmar recommended that the track be curved, and still use the standard traveller car. For smaller radii, you had to have Lewmar make a custom car fit for that radius. So you might keep that in mind.

Oh, and my track is longer than the longest length Lewmar sold, at least at the time. There are two pieces, with a butt joint.