Marlec/Rutland 913 good service.....

FullCircle

FullCircle

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Although my bearings on the 913 did not last long, that is not the point of my post.

I phoned and made arrangements with Marlec to repair and refurbish, and sent off the unit last week.
Within a day of arrival, I had a nice e-mail with total cost estimate including P&P.

I gave them the go ahead and paid up front.
They despatched same day, but unfortunately I was out when TNT came.
So I would have had it in time for the weekend, a total turnaround of 4 days, end to end.

They were unfailingly polite.

When I opened the box - a surprise and delight - they have replaced the faded plastics, and replaced the tail fin unit, which I hadn't even sent to repair.

Well done Marlec, this performance is a true credit to your service and customer relations.
 
well done to Marlec, indeed, but just as a matter of interest , what does it cost to replace the bearings of a 913? Hope you don't mind me asking , mine are sounding a bit sore.
 
I have always had excellent service from Marlec from whom I bought a 913 and solar panels in 2007. The 913 has been in constant service since then - ie never tethered. How old was your 913 when the bearings needed replacing?

They offered great advice pre-sales, great advice on fitting and great advice on trouble shooting when I had a tricky wiring fault after a couple of years.

Other than being a satisfied customer - I have no connection with the company.
 
+1
On several dealings with marlec since 1995 I have always found them absolutely top class for quick, courteous and efficient service. A credit to the marine industry.
 
The bearings on my 913 began to rumble after a fairly short time. Can't remember exactly, may have been a couple of years. In view of the short time, Marlec replaced the bearings for little more than the carriage, and like FullCircle's, they supplied a new tail fin. I suspect the new tail fin is because of the packaging. Excellent company to deal with.
 
CAPTAIN FANTASTIC said:
Mine has been operating for the last 6 years non stop; I would have to change the bearing sooner or later; so what is the cost?
Click to expand...

I remember someone giving a figure in region of £100 some time ago. Hopefully you'll get an accurate figure from a person who actually had this work done by Marlec.

I replaced mine in April 2011 and bearings only cost around £17.50 incl. VAL & Del.
2 x SKF62022RSL Deep Groove Ball Bearing with Two Low Friction Rubber Seals 15x35x11mm

It is a simple enough job to do but with 2 caveats.

1) You need a specific grade of Lok-tite and it is quite expensive in size normally sold. I managed to get a smaller size on Internet for about £20.

2) You will def. need a special puller. I don't think they are terrible expensive to buy but would have to check that out (Poss. £30).

So DIY job will probably be about £20 - £70 depending on cost of Lok-tite & puller. Of course you then have tools to do the job again, so might be worth DIY.

Update: I checked eBay and found the puller type I actually used £47.50, so more expensive than I thought.
DRAPER EXPERT 43137 SMALL INSERT BEARING PULLER SET

I have several pullers and this one was the only one suitable for the job. There was very little to grip with normal pullers, so these were ideal.
 
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Thanks for the clear detail and bearing numbers..
Bit like servicing my engine rawwater pump then, bearings n seals cheap as chips and I now know how to fo it with the tools onboard, and carry spare ones..
the mild steel 913 tailfin is a paint-it-annually service item i reckon! perhaps the co have invested in stainless ones more recently?
mX
Mistroma said:
I remember someone giving a figure in region of £100 some time ago. Hopefully you'll get an accurate figure from a person who actually had this work done by Marlec.

I replaced mine in April 2011 and bearings only cost around £17.50 incl. VAL & Del.
2 x SKF62022RSL Deep Groove Ball Bearing with Two Low Friction Rubber Seals 15x35x11mm

It is a simple enough job to do but with 2 caveats.

1) You need a specific grade of Lok-tite and it is quite expensive in size normally sold. I managed to get a smaller size on Internet for about £20.

2) You will def. need a special puller. I don't think they are terrible expensive to buy but would have to check that out (Poss. £30).

So DIY job will probably be about £20 - £70 depending on cost of Lok-tite & puller. Of course you then have tools to do the job again, so might be worth DIY.

Update: I checked eBay and found the puller type I actually used £47.50, so more expensive than I thought.
DRAPER EXPERT 43137 SMALL INSERT BEARING PULLER SET

I have several pullers and this one was the only one suitable for the job. There was very little to grip with normal pullers, so these were ideal.
Click to expand...
 
Mistroma said:
I remember someone giving a figure in region of £100 some time ago. Hopefully you'll get an accurate figure from a person who actually had this work done by Marlec.

I replaced mine in April 2011 and bearings only cost around £17.50 incl. VAL & Del.
2 x SKF62022RSL Deep Groove Ball Bearing with Two Low Friction Rubber Seals 15x35x11mm

It is a simple enough job to do but with 2 caveats.

1) You need a specific grade of Lok-tite and it is quite expensive in size normally sold. I managed to get a smaller size on Internet for about £20.

2) You will def. need a special puller. I don't think they are terrible expensive to buy but would have to check that out (Poss. £30).

So DIY job will probably be about £20 - £70 depending on cost of Lok-tite & puller. Of course you then have tools to do the job again, so might be worth DIY.

Update: I checked eBay and found the puller type I actually used £47.50, so more expensive than I thought.
DRAPER EXPERT 43137 SMALL INSERT BEARING PULLER SET

I have several pullers and this one was the only one suitable for the job. There was very little to grip with normal pullers, so these were ideal.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information. My Rutland 913 has been so reliable so far; if I only need to replace bearings every 6 ~ 7 years; that is good going.
 
Well, I don't think much of Marlec or their products.

After 3 months my 913 burnt out due to overheating. Their "world wide support" didn't run to anything in Iberia. A hefty marina bill whilst I waited for the new parts to arrive. Getting comprehensive instructions for the repair was like pulling teeth. They originally wanted me to return the unit for repair, the carriage at my expense both ways.

In the two years since I bought the 913, along with Spectralite and Spectraflex solar panels, the HRSi controller has burnt out 3 times, the all the solar panels have delaminated and the junction box on one has corroded away to nothing. Oh, and the badly engineered mounting system for the 913 has tried to fall overboard on many occasions. Also, their electrical output figures are somewhat optimistic to say the least.

I took this tale of woe up with Marlec's sales director at the London Boat Show. All she could offer was a small discount on new panels. I won't be buying from them again.
 
michael_w said:
Well, I don't think much of Marlec or their products.

After 3 months my 913 burnt out due to overheating. Their "world wide support" didn't run to anything in Iberia. A hefty marina bill whilst I waited for the new parts to arrive. Getting comprehensive instructions for the repair was like pulling teeth. They originally wanted me to return the unit for repair, the carriage at my expense both ways.

In the two years since I bought the 913, along with Spectralite and Spectraflex solar panels, the HRSi controller has burnt out 3 times, the all the solar panels have delaminated and the junction box on one has corroded away to nothing. Oh, and the badly engineered mounting system for the 913 has tried to fall overboard on many occasions. Also, their electrical output figures are somewhat optimistic to say the least.

I took this tale of woe up with Marlec's sales director at the London Boat Show. All she could offer was a small discount on new panels. I won't be buying from them again.
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about the problem. One reason for doing the work myself was to have the tools on board in case I had problems in Spain/Portugal. Seems to have been a good idea.

I must own up though to the fact that the need for bearing replacement was entirely due to my own sillyness. I lowered the pole and stored the 913 tail up for a couple of months (well covered though).
 
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I had similar service when I took mine back after 12 years of non stop use, they said bearings were a little loose but not defective although they did replace them. They sent me back what is like a new machine. Fantastic people!
The key to long life is NEVER to stop the rotation of the blades as the bearings can only expel water when the blades turn. If the blades are restrained the bearings will fail. Probably applied to other wind gens as well.
 
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"Moaning Myrtle" my Rutland 913 has been hospitalised at Marlec for a buff up of her bearings department. She has whizzed away for over 7 years and I never stopped her doing her thing - which as SimonJ says is the key to a long life. She has survived many gales and a few storms. In harbour or at anchor she has shrugged off the worst winds easily but the only times when she really took a battering were on passage in gales when large lumps of sea get blown off the tops of waves and hit the blades- oh how she screams when that happens - very scary. After my last pasting on passage in a January gale the low speed rumble in very light winds was too noticable so time for a refurb. Fast response from Marlec and a bill for £88 which I think is very reasonable so thank you Marlec team. Myrtle lives to whizz again.
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Robin
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