Any tips/tricks?
How much real world maintenance are you doing?
See my old post. I put some marine grease on the pins after that and haven’t had any problems since.
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Thanks. Do you frequently take off the baseplate?
Hey everyone, I’m only commenting because we just made an update to our instructions/owner info page after evaluating data over the last year. We’re also very interested in those willing to share their experience with us and/or on this forum so thanks in advance to those who do.
We just got a mast back from Oahu that was ridden nearly every day, and sometimes twice a day, since May. The owner did not rinse or disassemble his setup at all. As far as I know he left his whole kit assembled with his Lift adapter in the fuselage which is an absolute worst case scenario (aluminum adapter into carbon fuse filled with saltwater). The mast was sent in for repair after a turtle strike.
The good news is both the mount and the adapter came off super smoothly. The new PVD coated titanium hardware has better lubricity with the aluminum fittings, so it doesn’t damage the anodizing which can result in corrosion between the head of the screw and the adapter/mount. The old stainless hardware had a tendency to fuse to the aluminum mount if it was not removed occasionally or greased. The Ti hardware from this mast turned freely and shows no wear or corrosion. The stainless threads in the mast look great too. I bet with an ultrasonic cleaner we could make the hardware look brand new, as the only sign of use is a layer of salt on the heads covering the laser etching. The stainless pins slid right out of the mast foot, thanks in large part to the tefgel we applied when we shipped his mast assembled. There are no signs of corrosion, pitting, or damage anywhere on the aluminum in the mast foot. And this particular customer is riding double and triple overhead waves and backflipping with a wing. I was really happy to see the condition of the mast foot. Because there is absolutely no movement between the adapter and the foot (2 pins, 2 screws), there’s no scratching or abrasion.
The adapter itself on the other hand was pretty pitted and corroded in places where the anodizing was damaged. We’ve seen this with Lift adapters even on the classic. Any exposed fibers in the fuselage pocket can create a conductive path with the adapter if the anodizing fails, which can happen due to sand or debris, or just general installation/removal. We gave him a discount on a new adapter as we figured we could keep his around the shop for emergencies (demos, low inventory, etc) and wanted him to have a fresh start with his as new mast. As stated at various places on our site, we do consider adapters “wear items.” If you remove them from fuselages and take care of them they should last a very long time. But for those who live on the beach or have Sprinters and don’t like dis-assembling their foil, think of the adapter as the sacrificial anode of Cedrus.
The updates we made to our site suggest that it’s not necessary to remove the mount or adapters when the mast is not in use for long periods of time. Of course it can’t hurt, but it’s not necessary. Definitely don’t leave carbon fuselages attached, otherwise adapters will corrode. We advise tefgel on the adapter pin holes, and don’t recommend it (or any grease) on screw threads. The lubrication really helps the pins, but it also displaces and seals out saltwater. The titanium hardware doesn’t need it. On my personal setup, I did not use tefgel on the pins for the first 6 months, and when I went to remove my adapter, it was very difficult. I just removed the connection screws, re-attached the fuselage, and then tapped the whole lower assembly off the mast. Since using tefgel, I haven’t had to do this. I believe it was a buildup of salt crystals (not corrosion) that made it challenging.
We’re past the 1 year mark for Evolution masts in the wild and learning a lot. So far I’m really happy with the results, but of course user maintenance (or lack thereof) and the brutal nature of the marine environment will always be things that keeps me up at night. Our UV curable clearcoat is holding up really well. It’s extremely scratch resistant, harder and more slippery than any paint. But we did have some masts from an early production batch that had some adhesion issues due to surface preparation. We’ve repaired/refinished these masts at no cost to owners who’ve notified us.
Please share your stories and we’ll be sure to monitor. We’re still learning and want our instructions to be clear and minimal for owners, so the feedback is super helpful.
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My maintenance, Ive had mine for around 8 months now.
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Put a tiny bit of olive oil on a paper towel and coat the steel M10 pins, this makes the adapters slide in and out super easy, no matter how long its assembled. I believe Cedrus now lubricates the pins for you when shipping now so you probably don’t need to do this.
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Disassemble and rinse and dry everything every 3 ish weeks. I ride in salt water 4 times a week and this is easily frequent enough. Usually just do this whenever the forecast shows no waves 3-4 days out.
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I use tefgel on all bolts threads (contrary to what Cedrus said), as I did actually get some crystallization inside the mast on the threads where one of the adapter bolts goes, but I think it also lowers chance of bolts loosening while riding. Not really sure why only one hole had that but the tefgel fixed it.
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When assembling the base plate and adapters onto the mast, I use a weak 5V electric screwdriver till it stops, and then finish by hand with a small L shaped torx wrench thing doing a little extra turn with more strength behind it. I think its super important to make sure these parts are tight in a system with more parts and want to make sure it’s tight by hand.
The maintenance of these masts is easy and worthwhile if you wanna use a multi-brand quiver. Haven’t felt a single vibration from something coming loose on my mast in 8 months.
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It was definitely salt crystals that seized the pins on mine.
I have not been removing the base plate. I personally wish the base plate was slimmer and bonded similar to nolimitz. It would remove the maintenance requirment and likely have the added benefit of shaving off some weight.
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I keep mine assembled and haven’t had any problems yet. Whatever grease the adapter shipped with (some sticky & thick white grease) has been sufficient. I don’t think it is tefgel, but it might be. The tefgel I use on threads is much thinner and clear.
I’ve been looking for a tefgel alternative for a while, would be really happy to hear if anyone has a recommendation. Tefgel contains fluorinated forever compounds that I would love to avoid, but those same compounds are why it works so great unfortunately.
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Thanks for the feedback. Lubricating the bolt threads can’t hurt, we just don’t think it’s necessary based on the data we’ve seen thanks to the PVD coated screws. But if you used stainless hardware, we’d recommend it for sure.
We get constantly opposing feedback on the removable baseplate and have no plans to change the architecture at this time. There are goods reasons to keep it removable (repair, refinish, travel, replacement) and there are reasons to bond it (maybe lighter, maybe smaller, maybe cheaper). For now we believe the positives outweigh the negatives as we have not had any reports of loosening hardware/mount which would be the only reason worth bonding it in our opinion.
Good point on the toxicity of Tef-Gel. This is what we are currently using on the pin sockets. I personally use Lanocote on my sailboat, which is based on sheep fat I think. Here’s a good comparison: https://www.practical-sailor.com/systems-propulsion/tef-gel-vs-lanocote
We have also heard good things about Fluid Film, also a natural product: https://www.fluid-film.com
Maybe these products are more in line with our manufacturing prinicples and worth transitioning to them. Thanks for the feedback.
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Thanks! I’m going to start using Lanocote and report back, it sounds perfect for what we are doing actually (no high temperatures).
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Proper tefgel is the white stuff. Thinner clear stuff is dielectric grease, but gets called tefgel. I put real tef gel on the pins and bolts occasionally.
I’m curious was does torque level of 20N*m feel like when using a typical hand tool. I usually tighten the titanium bolts until they offer some real resistance and make that squeak sound.
That sounds about right. With our hand tool, we go about as tight as we can. 20N is about 4.5lbs. That’s not a lot of force, but with a 1m lever arm it’s a fair amount of torque. To get the same torque with only a 10cm/4" tool, you’d need 200N or 45lbs.
I use my Cedrus Evo mast a few times a week
I’m pulling my adapter off regularly to change. And rinse with fresh water every other time.
I use a tiny amount super tef gel on all my bolts. Re-applied when needed, which is maybe once a month.
And roughly once a month I’ll loosen the base plate and rinse in fresh water.
And even less frequently I’ll give it all a wash in some soapy water and start fresh.
Seem to be working well for me.
I’ve not had any seized bolts and I’ve been on Cedrus masts for a few years.
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