old Rutgerson cars / battens

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stephenh

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A friend has just put the sails on his new (to him) yacht.
The main is fully battened and has old Rutgerson cars that attach and tension the battens with a plastic wedge through which a short 25mm tape is threaded and locked off.
The wedge is approx 125mm x 30mm and is like a ladder, we have scratched our heads pretty thoroughly on this but it is not obvious as to how the tape is threaded through the ‘ladder’.

I have searched the internet - there must be instructions / picture out there somewhere – but to no avail.

Any advice would be very welcome.
 
I have a 'soft' copy of a Dehler owner's manual, which shows how these should be threaded and set up.

Unfortunately, I am not set up to post pictures on this forum (photobucket etc), so PM me your email address and I'll email it to you.
 
rudolph_hart said:
I have a 'soft' copy of a Dehler owner's manual, which shows how these should be threaded and set up.

Unfortunately, I am not set up to post pictures on this forum (photobucket etc), so PM me your email address and I'll email it to you.
Click to expand...
Hi,
I also have the same kind of Rutgerson batten wedge setting that must be threaded with a nylon strap and I haven't got a clue on how to attach the battens to this batten car system. If you still have a copy of this Delher Owner's manual, could you please send me a copy as well to rodharvey2004@yahoo.ca.
Cheers and Thanks
Rod
 
rodgo said:
Hi,
I also have the same kind of Rutgerson batten wedge setting that must be threaded with a nylon strap and I haven't got a clue on how to attach the battens to this batten car system. If you still have a copy of this Delher Owner's manual, could you please send me a copy as well to rodharvey2004@yahoo.ca.
Cheers and Thanks
Rod
Click to expand...
Rodgo:
Hi,
I have the same identical problem as the initiator of this : My Etap main is fully battened and has old Rutgerson cars that attach and tension the battens with a plastic wedge through which a short 25mm tape is threaded and locked off.
The wedge is approx 125mm x 30mm and is like a ladder, we have scratched our heads pretty thoroughly on this but it is not obvious as to how the tape is threaded through the ‘ladder’. I would really appreciate if I could get help on the way to thread the tape around the ladder. Additionally, I'd like to buy spare parts of these wedges and associated receptacle plastic: any residual piece in the bottom of a drawer? My E.mail is ftamburrano@libero.it, I am in Milan. Thanks and Regards, plus a big thank-you! - Francesco
 
ftamburrano said:
Rodgo:
Hi,
I have the same identical problem as the initiator of this : My Etap main is fully battened and has old Rutgerson cars that attach and tension the battens with a plastic wedge through which a short 25mm tape is threaded and locked off.
The wedge is approx 125mm x 30mm and is like a ladder, we have scratched our heads pretty thoroughly on this but it is not obvious as to how the tape is threaded through the ‘ladder’. I would really appreciate if I could get help on the way to thread the tape around the ladder. Additionally, I'd like to buy spare parts of these wedges and associated receptacle plastic: any residual piece in the bottom of a drawer? My E.mail is ftamburrano@libero.it, I am in Milan. Thanks and Regards, plus a big thank-you! - Francesco
Click to expand...
I used to have these on a previous sail.
Don't know if the attached photo is clear enough to give much help, but basically the tape is first taken forwards, then goes around the edge of the batten 180 degrees, goes under the metal bridge and is introduced into the thin end of the wedge/ladder. There is a locking cam at the thick end of the wedge which the tape goes under. With this in mind it will become fairly obvious exactly how the tape is threaded along the ladder.

I doubt that there will be spare parts for this old system available at Rutgersons (my sail was made 1991).

IMG_9754.jpeg
 
ftamburrano said:
Rodgo:
Hi,
I have the same identical problem as the initiator of this : My Etap main is fully battened and has old Rutgerson cars that attach and tension the battens with a plastic wedge through which a short 25mm tape is threaded and locked off.
The wedge is approx 125mm x 30mm and is like a ladder, we have scratched our heads pretty thoroughly on this but it is not obvious as to how the tape is threaded through the ‘ladder’. I would really appreciate if I could get help on the way to thread the tape around the ladder. Additionally, I'd like to buy spare parts of these wedges and associated receptacle plastic: any residual piece in the bottom of a drawer? My E.mail is ftamburrano@libero.it, I am in Milan. Thanks and Regards, plus a big thank-you! - Francesco
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum.

Spares for this generation of Rutgerson cars are very unlikely to be available. However I suggest you contact some sailmakers in your area to see if they have any that have been removed from old sails. I know a sailmaker local to me in the UK who mentioned they never throw away any old fittings when sails are either being upgraded or replaced.
 
rudolph_hart said:
I have a 'soft' copy of a Dehler owner's manual, which shows how these should be threaded and set up.

Unfortunately, I am not set up to post pictures on this forum (photobucket etc), so PM me your email address and I'll email it to you.
Click to expand...
You don’t need to be set up to post pictures, other than resizing them. You could look up many threads on the issue, or click on the landscape icon in the reply box, towards the right. This should bring up you photos from which you can navigate or select. I gather that resizing s not now necessary, but down to 1k pixels is probably preferable.
 
Johnalison,
thanks a lot for your kindness. My E-mail is ftamburrano@libero.it
I also thank Concerto, Baba Yaga and Rodgo: every tip is useful and now I feel I'm sure I'm going to solve the problem properly. I will make pictures and send them.
 
Hope this helps. I lost one of these overboard and am looking for a replacement. Threading them is actually pretty easygoing. Let me know if anyone needs more pictures
 

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Hello. I'm seeing three different ways that these are threaded in the photos here. Mine were done the same as the first picture, but not convinced it's right as it's hard to get tension on. Will try the third picture next
I got spares from contender in the uk
 
peteretep said:
Hello. I'm seeing three different ways that these are threaded in the photos here. Mine were done the same as the first picture, but not convinced it's right as it's hard to get tension on. Will try the third picture next
I got spares from contender in the uk
Click to expand...
Mine was like the first picture.

On e the batten was in the wedge was slotted in place with the strap under the steel bar. I used to pull the strap and then push in the wedge and fold down the lever to trap the strap.
I always left the strap in the wedge with the lever down when the batten was removed, as saved having to re thread it.
 
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