The Good: I hooked up the two new solar panels (in series, 24V, thru their own
circuit breaker) into the Outback FlexMax 60 Regulator, and we're drawing amps like
crazy! This Honolulu sun is a force to be reckoned with! When the bimini arch
extension is completed, two more SolarWorld 175W solar panels mounted on top
of the 1/2" expanded PVC cover will be installed, thus giving Infini 700W of solar
power. Nice.
The Bad: I was up the mast the other day dressing it out; spreader tip protectors,
radar reflector, cotter pin check, etc...and found a broken wire in the backstay! It was in the short piece of wire from the upper backstay toggle to the entry of the Hayn Hi-Mod terminal which fits into the upper insulator. Wow - talk about a rude surprise! If I hadn't found that broken wire, eventually the mast would, most likely, have come tumbling down. All the other terminal attachments are intact, and we've taken apart a bunch of them since installing the new turnbuckles and cutting new wire lengths, so I'm not sure what happened. The backstay is, like the headstay and inner forestay, toggled top and bottom, but somewhere in this last season's 8000 nm of cruising a strand of the 1 x 19 wire broke. Of course, it was in a tough place to see, so those regular inspection intervals up the mast are mandatory.
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