Rebuilding a furling drum

[IanR]

I have been quoted more than £400 to part exchange my furling drum for a new model, the flanges of the drum have cracked, was made of plastic and 15 years old. Would it be possible to get some anodised aluminium discs made of the same size and with a suitable thickness (approx 8mm) to replace them with. Or should I bite the bullet?

Any suppliers (Hamble / South) you could recommend for supply

Any advice as always well received

 

[Searush]

Why not stainless steel? You can probably buy scrap plate (say 3 to 5 mm) cheaply & cut to size with an angle grinder. No need for expensive anodising & much stronger. The extra weight is probably insignificant that low down, especially compared to the weight of the foil & sail combined.

 

[Norman_E]

If the bearings of the furling gear are still good, including the bearings in the top swivel, it is worth making a repair.

Discs of aluminium or stainless steel bolted through the existing plastic drum centre with four evenly spaced bolts will make a good repair, but be sure to get the edges of the discs well rounded off, otherwise they may chafe the furling line.

If you cannot drill through the drum centre for the bolts it will probably be quite OK if you arrange the bolts so that they fit closely around the drum centre and the furling line wraps around them.