Hi. Hoping any no limitz mast users v1 or v2 can help.
Recently picked up a second hand no limitz v2 mast, seller claimed hardly used. Mast feels great on the water, but on the beach there is noticeable flex on the foil end, coming from where the adaptor slots into the mast, there is also about 1mm gap. Is this normal or should I be worried and can it be repaired? Riding fone sk8 950, rider 80kg. On a bit of a budget so I was excited to get a modern carbon mast, so latest new gear not an option. Cheers
I’ve found the connection is the weak link in the equation for a lot of setups. Least intrusive fix is using shims to tighten any gaps. Next step is filling gaps with thickened epoxy - the super thick hardware store putty is great. make sure to not get any on the screws and coat both the mast And the wing in some kind of oil like cooking spray. You’ll definitely want to leave it assembled in this case - it’s not a take apart fix - you’ll be able to clean the epoxy off for resale but it might take some effort like scraping it off. It’s a good solution if you just have the one wing/mast combo
The gap is between the actual carbon mast and the aluminum foot? These masts have had failures at this point.
The reports I have heard come from people that were jumping them with large foils.
Riding a Sk8 950 without jumping wouldn’t be an issue from my point of view… but if the previous owner broke the connection loose, you may well finish it off and lose a plane.
A video or photos would be helpful. In general the bond should be perfectly sealed between the carbon and the aluminum. There should be no gap and no play. (Compare against the mast plate end). I think the bond between the mast and the foil adapter has been the most common point of failure for these masts
This is happening where the mast is bonded at the foil end. My foil connects tightly
Couldn’t get a video of the movement but this picture shows the gap pretty wel and I can feel the movement if I load the mast up and have my fingers on the join. Looking like I’ve been ripped off. I’m guessing no magic fix, any epoxy is likely to crack and/or debond in no time?
Yup. That’s unfortunate. If it were to separate, and you had all parts, I am not convinced it couldn’t be repaired. But the ones I have seen lost the foot/adapter.
You are probably soured on the whole idea, but I have a 78cm V2 for Axis with a F-One adapter for sale.
I think it’s should be repairable. Use cyanoacrylate (Super Glue). Look online for a very low viscosity version (type in low viscosity CA glue) and buy a fine tip bottle end if available. Tape off the top and bottom of the crack (tape down the mast a ways for good protection, so no clean up needed.). With mast mounted to the board and foil mounted for wiggle leverage, squeeze in around the entire crack and wiggle. Let it set for an hour to be safe, and it should be good to go. If you want to be super safe you could drill a small hole through the thickest portion of the mast where it bisects the aluminum adapter and CA glue in a steel pin (or even 2 pins).
I buy CA adhesive by the gallons and it works well for locking things back together or pre-assembly. It is used a lot in industry.
The v2 have a dyneema string that ties from the baseplate to the aluminum adapter. You will not lose the foil but it will get looser overtime or crack near the end of the aluminum adapter like mine.
I don’t think superglue will work since you already have salt water get in there. And with that small of a crack, you can’t get it properly clean for good bonding.
Also when I removed the aluminum adapter from the carbon I can see this white corrosion. I’m thinking it’s a mix of aluminum oxide and salt. Since the inside adapter part is not anodized, the salt water reacts with the carbon and aluminum.
