[C320-list] Wheel Brake

[Scott Thompson]

I don't get it Jeff.  Either the ST4000 is loading up when you do this 
or not.  If not then it doesn't help.  If so, you are putting some 
stress on it at least some of the time, and while that might not cause 
it to fail, it surely contributes to eventual failure.

I have the MK2 unit and can verify that the bearings in there are 
mounted on little plastic studs.  Those were the point of failure when 
mine broke after a week of h.  It's not exactly a cheap Wendy's toy, and 
the plastic is high quality stuff.  But plastic is plastic and the 
lifetime is going to be driven by the number of loading cycles and the 
friction in the bearings (assuming the drive belt doesn't fail first). 
A bit of shock cord is a lot cheaper than an AP drive unit.  Why use the 
AP for this if it isn't necessary?

Regarding your comment about relying on the unit:  After seeing how 
these things are built on the inside, I believe that this unit should 
NOT be relied on in heavy seas.  I sail on very protected waters for the 
most part and rarely see seas as much as 3 feet.  But I no longer use my 
AP in strong gusty conditions, and when I do use it, I'm very careful to 
trim sails to keep the helm balanced.  The MK2 unit is a light duty tool 
in my opinion.  I use it mostly to help me keep the boat head to wind 
when hoisting / dowsing the main short handed, and for motoring in flat 
seas.

Scott Thompson

Jeffrey Hare wrote:
> Well, 
> 
>    For those who choose to apply a little common sense to this idea, it'll
> work just fine and you won't be replacing AP parts for any reason even
> remotely related to this practice.
> 
>    If your boat isn't rolling a lot, and you just want to keep the wheel
> straight because of a reversing current, you can pair up a little Brake and
> the AP and be just fine, and not have to replace either the brake or the AP
> in spite of what some folks think might be the case.  :)
> 
> 
>    Remember, I suggested you need to apply a *little* brake too.  This takes
> virtually all the regular motion out of the wheel, so your AP doesn't see
> anything that would wear it out.  If you choose not to apply a little brake,
> you probably will stress it some under certain conditions.
> 
>   If you choose to try this while heaving to in a storm, or in a seriously
> rolly anchorage without setting the brake some to add resistance to the
> wheel, well, you're just not using common sense.   In those cases, you'd be
> better off snugging the brake a bit (not too tight) and tying off the wheel,
> but almost nobody does that on a regular basis from what I've heard.
> 
>    I'm on a river on a dock and the current reverses twice a day.  5 years+
> later and when I looked inside my ST4000+ MK2 this spring it looks like the
> day I installed it.  And my brake works just fine too.  For those without
> the MK2 or the old ST4000, maybe it's built like a cheap Wendy's toy, I
> don't know, but if so, I wouldn't want to rely on it steering me through
> heavy seas anyway.  :)
> 
> 
> The key here is that if your boat is rocking like crazy and you're feeling a
> lot of that in the wheel after you apply a little bit of brake, *maybe*
> you're better off tying off the wheel than cranking down on that tiny little
> hub brake.  
> 
> IN MY OPINION, the Edson Brake is more a cruel joke than a real brake.  It
> seems like it's mostly useful to take the free motion out of the wheel at
> anchorage.
> 
> Cheers!
> -Jeff
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dave Anderer [mailto:danderer at udel.edu] 
> Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 10:16 AM
> To: C320-List
> Subject: Re: [C320-list] Wheel Brake
> 
> Scott Thompson wrote:
>> I'm not so sure.  Have you ever seen the inside of that very expensive 
>> drive ring on the ST4000?  I did when mine failed.  It's not as 
>> solidly built as you might imagine.
> 
> Ditto.  And by the way, important parts for it are no longer available.  
> So I treat it with great kindness.
>