mast bearings

Posted by fgljff (esfogel@…>)

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25 wing mast
was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a question
about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base, metal on metal?
And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the mast base as it
turns.

Posted by Tricia Coldren (tcoldren@…>)

If you go to the old group website
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freedomyachts2003/, you’ll find a file
on F25 mast bearings. The mast rides on a bearing. Mine was frozen
solid and had to be ground out. I used a bunch of dremel-type diamond
wheels to cut it out. Good detailed instructions with bearing specs in
the file mentioned above. I also faired and filled with epoxy and
graphite the post that the mast sits on. When we pulled the mast the
teflon bearing at deck level was so jammed that the mast tube pulled
right off its base as well. Bonus was better access to the post.
I’ve posted a few pics in a new file in the photo section.

Tricia
F25"Muse"

— In FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com, “fgljff” <esfogel@…> wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.

Posted by Herman and Gail Schiller (hschiller2@…>)

There should be a front wheel bearing on it which can be bought at
any auto parts supply. Just get a tapered roller bearing that fits on
the shaft at the mast step. It also needs a bearing seal for which I
still have the spec. National Oil Seals 473238. whose external
dimension is 1.875 x 2.876x0.312. Pack the bearing with boat trailer
wheel grease.
Good luck, Herm

At 09:46 AM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.

Posted by esfogel@… (esfogel@…)

Herm,

Despite looking at Tricia Coldren’s mast photos as well as trying to decipher
the photos on the original site, I still can make neither head nor tail of the
bearing arrangement. Would you mind e-mailing me a sketch?

Regards,
Jeff Fogel
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Herman and Gail Schiller <hschiller2@…>

There should be a front wheel bearing on it which can be bought at
any auto parts supply. Just get a tapered roller bearing that fits on
the shaft at the mast step. It also needs a bearing seal for which I
still have the spec. National Oil Seals 473238. whose external
dimension is 1.875 x 2.876x0.312. Pack the bearing with boat trailer
wheel grease.
Good luck, Herm

At 09:46 AM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.





There should be a front wheel bearing on it which can be bought at
any auto parts supply. Just get a tapered roller bearing that fits on
the shaft at the mast step. It also needs a bearing seal for which I
still have the spec. National Oil Seals 473238. whose external
dimension is 1.875 x 2.876x0.312. Pack the bearing with boat trailer
wheel grease.
Good luck, Herm

At 09:46 AM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.



\

Posted by Herman and Gail Schiller (hschiller2@…>)

Don’t know how to do a sketch, but I’ll try once more to describe.
The mast bottom should have an outer race embedded in its hollow
bottom, This is a steel ring, with a tapered inner surface in a
manner identical to the ones inside the hubs on a boat trailer or the
rear wheel hubs (on a front wheel drive car). If this is not there,
then glue one in there; it comes with the wheel bearing
The part that corresponds to the trailer axle is the shaft projecting
upward from the mast step inside the boat.
The wheel bearing sits on the “axle” with its narrower side upward;
this is the side that rolls on the outer race inside your mast
If you choose to use the seal (I didn’t and just kept the bearing
well greased because I lived in the North and removed mast each
Fall), it will keep bilge water out of the bearing.
To keep rain out of the bilge, I used a 6"x6" copper-to-clay pipe
Fernco fitting (Plumbing Supply has these) which fits the mast, and
the raised tubing into which the mast fits at the partners.
With a proper teflon bearing at the mast partners, and a new bearing
at the mast step, the mast will rotate quite freely.
Note that the "Clamcleats on the side of the mast, low down, are
intended for the halyards in light airs where the mast hesitates to
rotate. Using those cleats takes the load off the halyard between
mast and the blocks at the base of the mast.
Adjust the rotation limiter so that the curve of the leeward side of
the mast flows smoothly and fairly into the curve of the sail fabric.
If there is a serious catamaran sailor in your area,
he might be able to help with the rotation limiter thing.
Herm

At 11:45 PM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

Herm,

Despite looking at Tricia Coldren’s mast photos as well as trying to
decipher the photos on the original site, I still can make neither
head nor tail of the bearing arrangement. Would you mind e-mailing me a sketch?

Regards,
Jeff Fogel
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Herman and Gail Schiller
<mailto:hschiller2%40suddenlink.nethschiller2@…>

There should be a front wheel bearing on it which can be bought at
any auto parts supply. Just get a tapered roller bearing that fits on
the shaft at the mast step. It also needs a bearing seal for which I
still have the spec. National Oil Seals 473238. whose external
dimension is 1.875 x 2.876x0.312. Pack the bearing with boat trailer
wheel grease.
Good luck, Herm

At 09:46 AM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.

From: Herman and Gail Schiller <hschiller2@…>
To: FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [FreedomOwnersGroup] mast bearings
Date: Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:29:39 +0000
Content-Type: Multipart/alternative;
boundary=“NextPart_Webmail_9m3u9jl4l_17411_1209008723_1”

There should be a front wheel bearing on it which can be bought at
any auto parts supply. Just get a tapered roller bearing that fits on
the shaft at the mast step. It also needs a bearing seal for which I
still have the spec. National Oil Seals 473238. whose external
dimension is 1.875 x 2.876x0.312. Pack the bearing with boat trailer
wheel grease.
Good luck, Herm

At 09:46 AM 4/23/2008, you wrote:

The plastic collar that fits inside of the partner on my Freedom 25
wing mast was shot. I had
a local fabricator make a new one for me out of Teflon. But I have a
question about the base
of the rotating wing mast. Does it simply sit on the mast base,
metal on metal? And should it
be lubricated or greased? It seems like a lot of friction on the
mast base as it turns.

Posted by Larry (martel@…>)

If you go to the old Freedom site there is a folder in the files
section where I have photos of the mast bearing, part numbers, and a
disctiption of my experiences and bruised knuckles from replacing same.
If you cannot find it contact me directly and I will send them to you.

Larry
Freewill (F25)