Generally with blocks that have ball / roller / needle bearings you do not want a slippery lubricant. The blocks work by having the bearings roll not slide. A proper grease / wax has the property of carrying away debris, preventing corrosion and leaving a tiny film between the elements without causing them to slide.
Most lubricant when rolled over in the presence of water will end up mixing with the water, the result being aptly described as "goopy". So oiling or greasing an open bearing ( no seals ) is never likely to work. Michael Brown Windburn C&C 30-1 Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2014 19:04:26 +0000 From: Wally Bryant <w...@wbryant.com> To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com Subject: Re: Stus-List block lubricant (and goodbye Robin Williams) Message-ID: <53ebb6ba.70...@wbryant.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed T9. Yeah, I've seen that goopy result. I don't use it any more. It might be a great corrosion prohibiter, but my opinion is still out on that as well. The only thing I trust is a good fresh water rinse. Back about 220 years ago I was a scuba instructor working a 90 foot boat in the Caribbean, and I asked the Captain/Owner why he was always heading into squalls. 'Free fresh water rinse,' he said. I thought I understood, but really didn't, because I didn't own my own boat. Later, I was sailing with a guy who knew everything, (including how to sail my boat,) and at the end of the day I said 'well, it's about time you did something, why don't you wash the boat down while I walk down the dock and talk with Cheryl.' He showed up a few minutes later and said, 'Do you mean you want me to hose off everything that's metal?' and I said 'no, I want you to hose off everything that's BOAT.' And even later, I hadn't seen rain (i.e. water falling from the sky) in three years, and went a little wild during a rainstorm, and blasted Clapton's 'Let It Rain' along with Pete Townsend's 'Rain' and a few other rain oriented tunes through my cockpit speakers, while I danced on the foredeck. Onto every boat, a little rain must fall. It cleans the rig. And even later than that, I sailed with a guy who was a certified expert. He told me to oil the bearings in my Harken Mark I furler. That's the last thing you want to do. But you really can't tell experts what to do. All those bearings need is a fresh water rinse, but if they get sticky it *might* be because someone cranked the halyard on the jib too tight. It must have happened while I was asleep, because when I slacked off on the halyard about two inches the furler suddenly started working again. Wal PS. Nanu Nanu, dude. Pete wrote: > We just finished a week long distance race series and during the race I > noticed that the blocks that we lube with T-9 become pretty gunked up. We > cleaned with a solvent, rinsed with soapy water and fresh water, then > re-applied. Same result after a day or two. Anyone have similar > experience? -- s/v Stella Blue www.wbryant.com
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