The forward keel roller on my 275 has at some time jammed and one side has now become flat with keel wear so wont turn evenly.
I have removed the assembly and then removed the roller. The roller is some form of hard plastic 38mm dia 32mm wide with a 16mm dia shaft hole.
I ordered a replacement from BP Sailboats a while ago but they now inform me they cannot deliver as the minimum order is 6 for the whole assembly.
Has anybody or does anybody know where I might source the roller or buy a lump of plastic that might be machined into a roller. I was wondering about bow rollers or industrial pallet wheels but cannot match the size.
Any help appreciated.

Andrew

Do you know how much they would cost from BP - maybe we could invest in some spares between a few of us?

Do you know whether BP would actually want to go ahead?

Hope this helps

Tim

Hi ,
As some parker are now wintered ashore , is there anybody able to show me a picture of the last model of the forward keel roller fixed with 4 bolts.I'll be ok to order this item.
Cordialement
Christophe

I got the impression that BP Sailbots were not really that interested in getting the roller even in a batch of 6. I think that a 3 month plus delay says all.
The roller on my boat only has two bolts but it is really only the plastic roller that wears out. The metal carrier is fairly robust and easily separated once the tack weld is broken in my case with a saw, big hammer and punch.
I am heading down the road of buying the plastic and machining my own.
I have also sent an enquiry to who I think we're the original supplier Wycliffe Services to see if they can help. As yet no reply for such a small order.
I shall keep you all posted as it may be a problem others will encounter.

My forward keel roller is going the same way, so interested in your progress. The fabrication on mine is pretty rough, and I think the bolt holes in a new one would need to be matched to the present locations.

Doesn't the 235 have the same keel configuration as the 275? Do they have a similar keel roller?

Regards



Dick
Dark Star P275 No 36

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Yes, the 235 & 285 share the same forward keel roller assembly.

Not sure if this would adapt? worth a look.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-Boa...an-rubber-/150622504493? 

Gary/Ruth/& Skipper the Working Cocker Spaniel
Crew of Juicy Blue P235

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Following Ruth and Garys ebay link I telephoned versatilemarine in Cornwall and they apparently make their own rollers out of hard white plastic.
They say they can manufacture what we want.
I have therefore emailed them and asked for a quote and deleivery also saying there might be follow up orders from PSSA members if successful.
I will keep you informed. Thanks Ruth and Gary.

What an amazing service - enquire thursday, order 4.30pm Friday, manufacturered Friday late pm, arrives 10am Saturday. You cannot do much better than that!
The rollers are also exactly what I asked for although the 16mm hole should maybe have been 17mm as its a bit tight on the shaft. Easily fixed and better too small than to big.
The contact is Peter at info@versatilemarine.co.uk
tel: 01326 376 084
They supplied me two rollers (one spare) for £20.75.
The material is Acetal similar to Nylon but does not swell so much when it gets wet.
I would certainly recommend this company. They did offer discoount on bigger orders but really not worth the hastle of trying to organise.
Hope this is of help and I would check your rollers before boats go back in.

My forward keel roller had become badly grooved, and was obviously not rotating properly.

There is a set of photos at this link
https://www.dropbox.com/...XTWvJlAOTj9W24_vlya?dl=0 

The axle was obviously a very loose fit in the mounting before it had been tack welded to secure it. The whole assembly is very much “as-welded”, with a lot of weld distortion, so the axle support brackets are not parallel.

The first two photos show the roller re-assembled after the tack welds have been cut away with a Dremel tool, and the axle punched out. The couple of millimetre clearance between the axle and the support can be seen. The holes were dressed to be reasonably round using a small grindstone in a Dremel tool.

I machined a new axle from some 18mm diameter 316 Stainless steel. This is a tight fit into the axle supports at each side. The axle OD is about 17.5mm. The port side hole is the largest, so the axle is inserted from that side. I machined a groove in the axle just on the inside of the port-side support. The “C” shaped retaining clip is made from a S/S penny washer for a 10mm bolt. This is fixed with a 3mm countersunk head machine screw through the support.

The new roller is machined from Acetal. The outer part of each end is cut back by about 1mm, leaving a bearing shoulder around the axle, so that the roller will not be so prone to binding up on the [not very parallel] supports. The ID is just enough for it to run freely on the axle.

We'll see if it works in the coming season!


Dick
Dark Star P275 No 36

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