[frers-list]Traveler Advisory

[Arthur Kelley]

Is that a catchy subject line or what?

Last weekend the shackle embedded in my Harken windward sheeting traveler ca=
r, which I believe was pretty standard on these boats, let go. When the shee=
t pulled away it made a royal mess of the sheetmetal component of the self t=
acking mechanism. Harken rep advised with the amount of damage I had, repair=
s might be almost as much as a new car ($500). I will post an FAQ in the nex=
t week or so as I have learned a lot about how this was assembled, what need=
s to be replaced etc. but in the end total repairs are going to run about $8=
00 due to changes in designs, frozen bolts, etc. If the mechanism had not be=
en damaged Harken would have replaced the shackle and bearings for $75. If y=
ou've never had the car serviced, it can be removed  by removing 1 bolt unde=
r the port end of track, removing the control end and sliding the Traveler o=
ff. The bearings will escape!  Send to harken and have them replace shackle.=
 Remember this stuff is 20 years old and subject to high loads and metal fat=
igue.=20

Art Kelley=