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Hi Folks,
After taking my old steering chain to an Edson dealer, and having them order the more common 5/8" (#50) chain in error, I was informed that Edson didn't sell / stock the 1/2" #40 chain any longer. Since using the larger chain would have made me change the sprocket as well, and the fact that the old 1/2" chain lasted for 29 years, before starting to break, I decided to buy a 10' lenth of 1/2" #40 from an industrial dealer.
I paid the same amount ($150) for 10' of chain, as Edson charges for 1 1/2 or 2' of chain!!!!!! I am using stainless shackels / clevis pins to connect to teh new wires that I had swaged (nico-press) in a loop.
If anyone needs chain, let me know - I will sell you 2' at cost ($30) + shipping!!! I seen a guy on the Ericson site, who did the same thing with the 5/8" chain!!!
**** For those of you who have 20-40 year old boats, who haven't inspected this lately, you may want to do so. I had 1 link, with 1 side broken, that would have surely let go in the next season or two!! you can view it pretty well, by taking the compass off the pedestal, and watching closely, as you turn the wheel fully, in both directions. Another Seafarer owner did not have a rudder stop underneath, and his wire to chain attachment broke after years of repeated contact with the sprocket, during hard turns.
I also had to weld 4 broken lifeline stantion bases, where the tube was breaking away from the flat base. You could not tell from the outside, but they would have failed soon enough. IMHO the bases are fairly flimsy stainless on my 1978 Seafarer 30!
Also fabricated a new skeg-hung rudder gudgeon, after discovering the weak state of the old one, underneath layers of bottom paint!
*****************All of these things were missed by a full Marine Survey 2 years ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Darrell
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