(I was going to call this post "Should I grease my doodad"!)

I'm putting together my first Axis foil and it seems to me that where the aluminium 'doodad' goes in to the aluminium mast it should have a little anti-seize compound on it. Do people use Tefgel or similar on any other mating surfaces beyond just the bolts?

I ride in the ocean and add Tef-Gel every few weeks. I also loosen all the bolts after each session to prevent them from seizing.

Yeah nah. Only Tefgel where you have metals of different compounds making contact ie. stainless bolts going into aluminium. It is here that the chemical reaction occurs and can cause the corrosion that brings on seizing. Aluminium doodad into aluminium fuse won't matter. The stuff is messy enough without it being spread all over the doodad.

I put Tefgel on and leave my gear done up for weeks without washing. Never an issue. Mind you, after years of build up there is probably enough of the stuff down there to prevent corrosion anyway.

Anybody tried teflon tape? It might last longer than Tefgel and be a lot less messy.

I use Marine grease, the same stuff used on boat trailers, and haven't had any problems. Always good to 'crack' the screws half a turn every few sessions to make sure they don't stick.

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Gorgo said..
Anybody tried teflon tape? It might last longer than Tefgel and be a lot less messy.

Only ever used plumbers tape, don't understand why anyone would want to use a grease near our sandy environment! 6 years foiling never had a seized bolt, plus the benefit that bolts don't work loose, greece doesn't prevent that.

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pumpnjump said..

Gorgo said..
Anybody tried teflon tape? It might last longer than Tefgel and be a lot less messy.

Only ever used plumbers tape, don't understand why anyone would want to use a grease near our sandy environment! 6 years foiling never had a seized bolt, plus the benefit that bolts don't work loose, greece doesn't prevent that.

Interesting.how do you apply it to the threads (ie thinly wrapped into the thread like string or wrapped round using the full with of the tape)? Might give it a go. Cheers.

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pumpnjump said..

Gorgo said..
Anybody tried teflon tape? It might last longer than Tefgel and be a lot less messy.

Only ever used plumbers tape, don't understand why anyone would want to use a grease near our sandy environment! 6 years foiling never had a seized bolt, plus the benefit that bolts don't work loose, greece doesn't prevent that.

How long do you leave your foil connected together when using tape? I have used it In the past but disassembled too often I think.

Marine grease on everything, assemble at home, wipe off excess. Disassemble and clean each month.

I've learnt my lesson with marine grease. It won't absorb water but it also doesn't stop electrolytic welding of dissimilar metals.

I had a stuck bolt on a mast base - mast fitting. Broke an easy out, drilled the countersunk head off the bolt and removed the base. I grinded opposite sides of the bolt (15 mm sticking out of mast) to get good purchase in a vice. I still couldn't turn the bolt. The eventual solution was to put the end of the mast in an oven at 200 degrees C. Once it was hot, I was able to put the bolt end back in the vice and turn the mast off it. The different expansion of the stainless bolt and the aluminium mast loosened the fit. The heat darkened the colour of anodizing on the mast.

Tefgel is worth every cent.

Been using aerosol white lithium grease from Bunnings for about a year. Inexpensive and seems to work well and isn't as sticky and messy as Tefgel. I use axis gear, leave everything assembled and only reassemble and relube every 2 months.

Im with greg
If your plumbers tape splits you still get electrolytic reaction
All the other greases are not specifically designed to prevent the reaction that welds dissimilar metals together but Tefgel is so sake of a few bucks why risk your $1000 setup

Still i like charging money to fix all that stuff

For the most part, I keep my whole rig assembled- quick rinse with fresh water when I'm done. Only thing I sometimes take apart is the fuse from mast. Pretty much set it forget it. A nice coat of tef gel, leave plane (fuse, stab, wing) intact for long periods as I have one setup for prone and one for winging. The baseplate on my alu mast I almost never disassemble.... have gone a year and came off easily. It's not surprising, having used tefgel on boat hardware, sailboat rigging constantly exposed to saltwater, weather. Parts don't seize after years. I keep 2 taps in my foil hardware box in my truck. If screws start to feel like they're hanging up, a few quick in and outs on threads with m6 or m8 tap cleans things up. Maybe had to do that a few times in 4 years?

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airsail said..
Marine grease on everything, assemble at home, wipe off excess. Disassemble and clean each month.

With tef-gel, you do not need to disassemble.

And you should not. Tef-Gel provides a permanent electric insulation layer, disassembling / reassembling just risks to pierce this layer.

If you need to disassemble/reassemble monthly, this is because the marine grease is not something that prevents efficiently electrolytic corrosion.

Vaseline seems to be as good as anything. Hydrophobic and a non conductor as far as I'm aware.

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rgmacca said..

pumpnjump said..

Gorgo said..
Anybody tried teflon tape? It might last longer than Tefgel and be a lot less messy.

Only ever used plumbers tape, don't understand why anyone would want to use a grease near our sandy environment! 6 years foiling never had a seized bolt, plus the benefit that bolts don't work loose, greece doesn't prevent that.

How long do you leave your foil connected together when using tape? I have used it In the past but disassembled too often I think.

Just took gear on holiday, was last disassembled at Christmas, no concern whatsoever with tape

with mi duotone foil I received WEICON Anti-Seize High-Tech Assembly Paste

www.weicon.de/en/anti-seize-high-tech-assembly-paste-metal-free-lubricant-and-release-agent-paste/26100085

Brilliant stuff from Bunnings.
Been using for 2 1/2 years, never had an issue.
I leave my foiling gear assembled for a month at a time.
Apologies for the rotation

+1 for lanolin based products. Natural non-toxic / food grade. I'm using Lanotec Type "A" Grease. Similar goo that you put inside pool lights for electrical insulation, but thicker.