Sport Today

Hi everyone!
I have just bought House carbon 60 mast and have a few questions about it:

1.Any general info  -  quality, durability?

2.Should I use a metal mast protector in the boom attachment area ( I
have Chinook Competition with 120 degrees front end)? Does it work?

3.When using mast base extension from Chinook and Bic I found a little
wobble - seems like the mast's internal diameter is slightly bigger than
the epoxy's that I have (it doesn't have the wobble). Is it bad for the mast?
 I suspect that the pressure is unevenly distributed at the base which
will cause it to break there. The House people told me that it's OK
and the mast's wound helix construction tightens up when dounhauled.
I believe them but would like to hear it from fellow windsurfers.

4.What is the care for such a mast? I know the basics - keep away from
direct sun and don't scratch - but feel I need to know more - never owned
carbon before.

And the last question is not about the mast at all: Haw is the Reactor
harness bar better than others?

Thanks. Hope my questions will be interesting to many.

                                         Yuri.

Yuri --
I have only a half an hour or two to address the Reactor bar advantages,
but I'll try a quick dump:
* If you sail only in perfectly straight paths across the water, never
changing direction (it's called steering) except to avoid the far shore,
AND
* if you never trim your sail sheeting angle by a millimeter or two feet
to adjust for wind direction, power adjustments, gust speed or direction,
or being diverted from your path by a piece of chop,
AND
* you never maneuver for the sheer fun of it, AND
* you never jump and turn off the wind to avoid spinout upon landing,
AND
* you PREFER driving dump trucks with the power steering belt removed, AND
* you're perfectly happy with a metal hook that eat a few pairs of $30
harness lines a season and catches off-center to affect your steering,
AND
* you enjoy the nostalgia of plastic football fins, Edsels, and booms that
tie onto the mast with ropes,

that is ...

* if you never actually DO ANYTHING while you're windsurfing and enjoy
breaking harness lines, then use the 19th century metal hook.

On the other hand, if you are the driver of -- rather than just a
passenger on -- your sailboard, buy a Reactor bar. Of the 3,242 sailors
I've seen try them, only one went back to the hook. He did it because he
prefers to hook off-center on his harness lines rather than center them
properly on his boom.

If you've graduated from rowboats, it's time for a Reactor bar. Do I stand
to gain anything from convincing you? Yes; the satisfaction of knowing
I've lifted yet one more soul from the purgatory of oned more obsolete
contraption. All five of the wheels on your car roll -- including the
steering wheel. So should your spreader bar hook.

Am I biased? You bet - by 17 years of windsurfing, the last five or six
being on Reactor bars. When rumor had them stopping production recently, I
bought a handful, at list price. I don't ever want to sail without one
again.

Jeez, Yuri, aren't you convinced yet? If they cost $100, it would be the
best $100 I ever spent on the sport.

Any opposing opinions are based purely on total, sheer, astounding,
inexcusable ignorance of the progress of windsurfing in the past decade.
Or upon some unjustified, unfathomable personal preference.

Just my two cents.

Mike \m/
Never Leave Wind To Find Wind

Of course this year they could be selling UP or whatever under the
"house" name...  I bought mine last year.

Scott

I'll totally back up what Mike (NLWTFW) says about the
Reactor. I used to chew up at least one set of harness lines
a month (the kind with the plastic over 3/8" line).
I started using the Reactor 4 years ago and I haven't worn
out a single set of lines yet. Great product.
As someone else pointed out you could ding your board with
the reactor, but I'd guess you'd ding it with any other type
of harness (except the plastic ones, and I broke a ton of
those years ago).
If you haven't tried the Reactor, you should. Makes all your
little trim movements smooth as glass, and will help you to
really balance out your lines because if they are out of
balance with the Reactor, you'll know instantly.
later

sailquik US 3704
F2/CFX Boards; North Sails/Masts;
True Ames/Rainbow Fins; Chinook Booms

Phone= (301) 872-9459

Snip!

 The House people told me that it's OK
and the mast's wound helix construction tightens up when
dounhauled.

Question #3:  I would get a thin aluminum mast base shim
like we used to use on WH and in the old grey ampros. If the
clearance is more that about 0.010"(.25mm) then I would
definitely make a shim for it.
As for the helix winding collapsing when downhauled I
certainly hope not. Carbon structures are noted for rigidity
and any change of shape (other than designed in bend
characteristics) or interlaminar movement is a failure mode
not a design characteristic.

Question #4: I'd wax it with car wax (NOT in the boom clamp
area) to make water bead off and help any cambers to rotate.
Other than that you've covered the other care pretty well.

Reactor bars are better because the harness line is allowed
to run freely around the roller. There is no hook, the
roller serves as the hook therefore any trim adjustments you
make just roll the line past the hook with no fricton and no
wear on the line. I've used them since they came out and
would never use a fixed hook again. The Reactor is a super
design that was way ahead of everything else out there when
the design came out, thus it has taken some time for sailors
to accept it. It just works!
Hope this helps with your questions.  

sailquik US 3704
F2/CFX Boards; North Sails/Masts;
True Ames/Rainbow Fins; Chinook Booms

Phone= (301) 872-9459