Pulled the non working Garmin wind transducer off the mast top yesterday. To my surprise it was still working when spun by hand. The propeller was just sticking a bit. Pulled that off and flooded it with wd40 and, blow me down if it didn't start working. I've stuck it back up and it seems fine. Just shows that it is always worth a go before shelling out $1000.
I do have 2 other tricks in my repair armory. Hit it with a hammer or pull it completely to bits and stare at it!
Now that !@#$ing leaking metho stove.
Keep it shipshape
Bristol Fashion
You may well be right! I will report on how long it keeps going - any bets? Still, I love climbing the mast! It is 6 years old, so i was anticipating replacement when i bought the boat.
It's kept going for 3 days so far.
Ship shape and ......
Bristol Fashion
And, always keen to learn, is there a technique to repairing these sealed units? I'm guessing that once out of warranty, the price of a manufacturer fix would make buying a new unit the sensible option.
Bristle
Select to expand quoteBristolfashion said..
You may well be right! I will report on how long it keeps going - any bets? Still, I love climbing the mast! It is 6 years old, so i was anticipating replacement when i bought the boat.
It's kept going for 3 days so far.
Ship shape and ......
Bristol Fashion
You could do it properly next time, pull the tiny bearing races out and replace them with new.
It is pretty factory sealed. If it stops again I'll have another go. Just to clarify. It did seem like corrosion or gunge at the point where the propeller shaft leaves the body. Once this was cleaned off with WD40 it seemed to rotate freely. Maybe the bearings are ok.
Probably not.
"Learning through breaking stuff"
Bristle
Select to expand quoteBristolfashion said..
It is pretty factory sealed. If it stops again I'll have another go. Just to clarify. It did seem like corrosion or gunge at the point where the propeller shaft leaves the body. Once this was cleaned off with WD40 it seemed to rotate freely. Maybe the bearings are ok.
Probably not.
"Learning through breaking stuff"
Bristle
Silicon spray might be a better option than WD40. You need something that actually lubricates.
Next time it seizes, I'd spray it with a solvent to get rid of the WD40 gunk (electrical contact cleaner would be my preferred option), wait till it all dries, then hit it with some dry lubricant such as silicon spray or teflon spray.
I'm glad to see that you got it working again though.
Our Tacktic wind anenometer froze up recently. Over 10 years of 24/7 punishment, so not bad. Breaking open the unit seals voids the warranty, but after 10 years I'll take my chances! We gave it a shot of silicon spray, got it working again for a bit. We then spent $50 buying the replacement bearing. Hopefully good as new again soon, and still way cheaper than a vendor service! :-)
Select to expand quoteLooseChange said..
WD40 .... you'll be pulling it down again next week.
hehe, yeah maybe some isopropyl alcohol instead?
