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DaveL View Drop Down
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Posts: 111 		Post Options Post Options   Quote DaveL Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Block Choice
    Posted: 06 Mar 08 at 10:00pm
My contender arrived with pretty well a full harken kit out and the 200 is fully harkenised as well.  all the other blocks on the contender are ronstan and RWO .  I think you can tell the difference between the three sets, personally i really like the feel of the ronstan orbit blocks and the harken kit, withstands most bangs and knocks and havn't had a harken blow up on me yet, had fairleads break while racing but no blocks.
Contender GBR443
National 12 - 2859 "Dogmatic"
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Ian99 View Drop Down
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Posts: 138 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Ian99 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Mar 08 at 10:29pm
I've got a Lewmar ratchet block on my Fireball mainsheet - it provides a pretty good tradeoff between hold and mainsheet wear, and was a lot cheaper than the Harken equivalent. Best feature of it though is the On/Off switch - it's possible to operate it easily whilst sailing and wearing winter gloves, and more importantly it never switches by itself or when it gets knocked like the Harken slidey switch does!
Worst feature - the ratchet seems unduly noisy, I reckon about twice the sound as you'll get from an already fairly noisy Harken classic!
Don't slate all the RWO stuff - some of it is really good and very strong, particularly their trapeze hooks.
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Iain C View Drop Down
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Posts: 1113 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Iain C Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Mar 08 at 10:33pm

I was in the USA on business earlier this year.

I like Harken.  A lot.

The dollar rate is VERY good at the moment.  This lot was well under half UK price...

I'm building a new Cherub and the wonders of the internet make it very easy to place an order an get it delivered to your hotel (take a bow Fisheries Supply in Seattle)

Who needs hotel porn TV when you can look at this instead?

(And more to the point I thought Cherubs were supposed to be light on fittings...

 



Edited by Iain C
RS700 GBR922 "Wirespeed"
Fireball GBR14474 "Eleven Parsecs"
Enterprise GBR21970
Bavaria 32 GBR4755L "Adastra"
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29er310 View Drop Down
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Posts: 174 		Post Options Post Options   Quote 29er310 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Mar 08 at 10:40pm
That is pure boat porn 
----------------------
International 14 GBR1485
29er 310 for sale
Laser 138462 for sale
Optimist 4626 For sale
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FireballNeil View Drop Down
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Posts: 654 		Post Options Post Options   Quote FireballNeil Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Mar 08 at 10:50pm
How is the new maching going anyway Iain?
Neil

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Iain C View Drop Down
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Posts: 1113 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Iain C Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Mar 08 at 2:42pm

Er, it's not!

So far I've bought the hull shell (abandoned project) which kicked the whole thing off, a brand new RS800 kite, the C-Tech carbon tubing (racks, internal structure, gantry, boom, pole, temple vang etc) from NZ is hopefully sat in Southampton docks now, and the C-Tech daggerboard is on it's way airfreight probably arriving next week, and obviously I've got all the fittings, as well as a mast.

Days are getting longer and it might be time to mix some epoxy and start gluing it all together!
RS700 GBR922 "Wirespeed"
Fireball GBR14474 "Eleven Parsecs"
Enterprise GBR21970
Bavaria 32 GBR4755L "Adastra"
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Iain C View Drop Down
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Posts: 1113 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Iain C Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Mar 08 at 2:58pm

And to answer Allen's question...

What I would like to see would be a lightweight 30mm sheave block with large shaped aluminium (or titanium!) sides for use as halyard turning blocks at the top of skiff masts.

Plastic ones are crap, as if you have an iffy hoist with the kite blowing off to leeward, the halyard just saws through the side plate ruining it, and making things jam next time.  I'd like to see the sides quite thick but with suitable smooth cutouts to allow the halyard to enter the block at funny angles but still be kind to the halyard itself.  It might also want to have a much less pronounced hollow in the sheave itself to allow for unusual angles, basically make the tops of the U much lower if you catch my drift, (the U being the top of the sheave, with the halyard running in the bottom "catch water" part of the letter U..).
RS700 GBR922 "Wirespeed"
Fireball GBR14474 "Eleven Parsecs"
Enterprise GBR21970
Bavaria 32 GBR4755L "Adastra"
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combat wombat View Drop Down
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Posts: 345 		Post Options Post Options   Quote combat wombat Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Mar 08 at 4:41pm

Allen

What you have to contend with in the market today is written above.  The issue is not with your blocks, more the perception of them and the vocal minority that claim "my Holt/Allen block exploded before I even got it out the packet, my boat is just that quick!".  And beware - use of the word "exploded" donotes an exaggeration in the story. 

My experience of Holt blocks is excellent.  The reason for this is because the blocks on my boat I maintained - keeping them washed down with fresh water and giving them a spray of McLube/ProLube or whatever to keep them sweet.  This all on a B14.  In fact, I sold my first B14 with its original Holt kite sheet autoratchets (ie 9 years of hard racing) as they were still in perfect condition. 

B14 GBR 772
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Merlinboy View Drop Down
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Posts: 3169 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Merlinboy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Mar 08 at 7:31pm
Originally posted by combat wombat

Allen

What you have to contend with in the market today is written above.  The issue is not with your blocks, more the perception of them and the vocal minority that claim "my Holt/Allen block exploded before I even got it out the packet, my boat is just that quick!".  And beware - use of the word "exploded" donotes an exaggeration in the story. 

My experience of Holt blocks is excellent.  The reason for this is because the blocks on my boat I maintained - keeping them washed down with fresh water and giving them a spray of McLube/ProLube or whatever to keep them sweet.  This all on a B14.  In fact, I sold my first B14 with its original Holt kite sheet autoratchets (ie 9 years of hard racing) as they were still in perfect condition. 

Actually its not an exageration, our 14 had a few holt blocks which were orinially supplied with the boat by RMW, and one of the cunningham blocks exploded with a big bang with bearings and chassis everywhere! I think we still have it somewhere as a momento! It has since been replaced by a Harken usit! The Harken carbo auto rtcets we have are trully awesome! Although we do have a Ronstan self tacker which the shackle failed on!! other then that you cant fault it.  All our blocks are well maintained because they are exspensive to replace and becuase the boat is our pride and joy!  If Holt are imporving there build quality i would gladly give them another go, as i feel despite my issues the brand is a strong one!
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JimC View Drop Down
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Posts: 6662 		Post Options Post Options   Quote JimC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Mar 08 at 8:18pm
But the only blocks that have really destructed on me have been Harken...
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