Square top main sheet loads

[TJ D]

Delancey,

It's starting to feel like you're just trying to pick on me or my boat at this point. What's up with this?

To suggest that there's a problem with the design or the boat itself because some way too old torlon balls failed is a bit of a stretch, don't you think?

We learned from an earlier post that these should be changed annually or so in high load applications.

It's sort of like not changing your oil for 30,000 miles and then saying that ford built bad engines when it blows up.

If there's a fault here, it's in my maintenance program, not with the boat.

Anyway, the point here is just to determine what, if any increase in load we'll see with a new sail, considering the roach we already have.

Peace, man.

TJ

[Delancey]

"The Riptide 55 was my first keel boat design (1994)... She was very innovative for her time, with such characteristics as: water ballast, a swept spreader rig with no permanent backstay,* a carbon mast and carbon boom attached to a waist high hollow mast “pod” (which provide extra light and ventilation below), a long sprit with masthead asymmetrical chute, a long curved traveler without vang.... Many (but not all) of these features later became widespread in racing and cruising circles....

-Paul"

Not picking on anyone. Just making a few observations. Where I come from ball bearings get crushed due to "excess" loads.

Plenty of folks out there sailing on twenty-two year old boats that have never replaced bearings in their travelers who might disagree that replacing them should be considered a normal part of annual maintenance.

Design is a process and unfortunately for a lot of reasons designs that get built aren't always perfect. How can it hurt to reach out to the designer?

If I were him I would be happy to hear about how my creation was fairing. Let him decide if there is a problem and how best to ifix it. If I were him I would be happy to help you with it.

Anyhell, it's your boat. I wish you the best with it. Happy Sailing!