TURNBUCKLE FAILURES

[Gramps]

A sailing club friend who found a crack in a recently replaced turbbuckle reported it to Ronstan who replaced it. He then received a notice from them indicating that there was a faulty batch of turnbuckles and arrangements would be made to replace all of the "new" turnbuckles. When this was discussed other members of the club reported similar problems. No recall notice appears on any website regarding the particular series of the product, but it appears that the problem is not limited to Ronstan and the fault lies with a NZ manufacturer who manufactures for a number of name brands and who sourced inferior material for the work. The defect is said to affect products up to 2 years old and as recent as the past 6 months. It appears that the recall arrangements(if they can be called that) are being managed through the riggers.
My source is a very reliable guy who does serious offshore cruising so, if you have had any recent rigging done, at least check your turnbuckles for any evidence of cracks.

Sean
AZZURA