I am looking to make my own mast bearings since the precut teflon chips are stupid expensive. A 12"x12" sheet of 1/16" teflon costs about $20 (+$10 shipping). I believe the mast bearings are about 1.25" diameter, so that should yield about 90 bearings for $30 instead of 3 for $8 (+shipping). I also noticed that Hobie used to make a Delrin mast bearing cup. Delrin is much cheaper than teflon ($5/12"x12" sheet), but is a little more rigid, not quite as slippery, and absorbs a small amount of water.

I just purchased a 30 year old Hobie 16, so I am not yet concerned about racing performance and am on a tight budget. I am just looking for a low cost bearing solution.

Has anyone tried making their own bearings out of Delrin sheets? Any feedback on their performance/longevity compared to teflon?

Also, can someone confirm that they are 1.25" diameter? I do not have any to measure.

Thanks!

I measured two of my unused Teflon chips for my 1977 H-16. They measure 1.5 inches, or in metric 3.8 centimeters.

If you try using nylon, I'd watch it carefully. I don't know how well it would deform, before cracking. It also might have a tendency to squeeze out of the bearing. If it fails, just call it a day, and you will probably do little damage to the metal surfaces.

The Teflon chip will deform into a cup shape, usually without any problem. A search of this site's archived topics would be useful to you, as I believe the Teflon chip topic has been discussed a few times in the past.

Hello, just buy the plastic practice golf balls at any sporting goods store and cut them in half. Works great.