mistral comptcs slidetrac

Question
Recently bought used in good condition. However track slidesfreely. Red clip in back of track broken.Is therea forward clip?  Wherecan i get replacement parts? I tried removing track. Does itrequire a little leverage after all screws removed?What is function of hanging rope at front of track? do I attach to mast?I inserted2 stiff plastic strips inside track to secure mastso itdoesn't slide.6position+/-.What haveI lost in performance? s
Should I put it at another position? I learned on an old teak boom windsurfer with duct tape securing mastin the70's so I have always sailed on stationary masts

Answer
Hey Hans,

Replacement parts are very difficult to find and usually only found through a private seller. There is a conversion available to make your movable track system into a stationary mast track. You can get a specially designed slider nut from here; www.chinooksailing.com Look under board building parts on page 3.

If you have removed all of the screws (should be 4 or 5), the whole track should come out. There could be sand, salt, or other debris causing the track to be stuck. Put all the screws back in and snug them down. Fill the track with water and let it soak overnight. Then dump the water out and try removing it again. You may need to use a little force but be very careful about prying on anything as any plastic parts will be fragile and you don't want to damage any part of the board. Once you have the track out, remove the track system. Be sure to take care when removing the end parts as they will need to go back on after you place the new slider nut into the track. Reinstall the track and you are ready to sail again. The new slider nut uses a standard threaded mast base. You may need to get a new base or convert your old base to the threaded type. They can be found at the same website as the slider nut.

Hope this helps.
Keep on sailing,
Windlover