Streamlined u-joint failure, recommendations?

[manuel]

I acquired the black u-joint (on the right) used and after many years of reliable use with hundreds of sessions I thought it'd be a good idea to purchase a new one (red on the left).

Now the other day, I rescued someone from the reef who had broken this exact same newer model. It was 2 years old with little use (here things wear out fast!). It was the lower bolt that had snapped.

I remember now that another reason why I changed my old one was that the upper bolt had ground into the upper metal part and I was afraid that there was not enough metal left.

Also, I cannot tighten the upper plastic cup to reduce the play that developed quite fast on the joint of the new model. I always had tightened the old one once in a while to have as little play as possible but still rotate easily.

If you look closely you can see some rust around the lower bolt on the new model but nothing on the old one. I rinse my joint thoroughly after each use.

Now I was thinking about using the upper part of the new model with the base of the old one?

[dllee]

Change out vital parts yearly and rinse off metal to metal fittings.

[NOVAAN]

Clean inspect and replace yearly. Some windsurfing parts are not worth buying used. New is not always unbreakable but at least it hasn't seen wear or miss use. How cheap are harness lines, yet people use them they break. And they only fail on the outside.

[manuel]

You all are truly replacing your u-joint yearly? That's crazy.
How about Aluminum booms? Boom heads? Outhaul line?

I'd recommend changing the tendons every 6 months depending on use/climate, inspecting it every 2-3 months max. They crack after 1-2 months but it takes time to reach the point of tearing (150 sessions or 10 months, something like that). But changing the base altogether seems and should be overkill!

Metal parts on the base shouldn't fail for at least a few years (5?).
My used base is 12-15 years old?

Maybe changing the plastic cup and tendon yearly ok, but the bottom bolt should be lifetime honestly. Certainly not fail after 2 years and little!

[dllee]

I find and use old worn out bases but I don't complain when they break.

[dllee]

And my favorite and most used board is a 1998 f2 air 115, me weighing around 165 now.

[jpeter]

The hourglass style last longer than a year. They are also easy to rebuild. I have one that's at least four years old that has no cracks. That one is on my replace list. JP

[manuel]

When used in salt water, the hourglass oxides and separates from its metal mount. This one needs to be replaced every 3 months, prob 6 months max. If you can rebuild then it's fine. Replacing tendons is super easy.

I have two tops of the old black streamlined model. One was deeply grooved by the top brass plastic cup grommet and cannot safely be used, the other one has lots of material left. This design can be tightened to reduce play to a minimum.

I'm waiting for an answer from streamlined. Here's what I'm excepting out of a tendon-based mast base. Replace tendon every 4-6 months, tighten top cup every 2-3 months. Replace whole thing after 3-4 years. This sounds reasonable, wouldn't you think?

[capetonian]

Does anyone have Streamlined's telephone number? I sent them a number of emails but haven't had a response.

[manuel]

Ditto, I'll try reaching out too.
The other thing that's concerning is shelf life... how do we know we don't get a mast base that's been sitting behind a glass window baking?...