Tides Marine – Headboard Slide – SH-500

Purchasing Slides for your Existing Tides Track System

If your Track System was purchased PRIOR to 2006, you will need to order “SM” stainless steel slides.

If your Track System was purchased AFTER 2006, you will need to order “SS” stainless steel slides.

In 2006, Tides Marine improved the consistency of the internal shape of the SailTrack when they changed the shape of the knives used to machine the track shape. This eliminated a step that was once done by hand.

This modest change to the track also required an associated change in sail slides that are made from stainless steel. Please see below.

Track & Slide 1995 thru June 30th 2006	Track & Slide After July 1st 2006

Tracks Purchased Before July 1st, 2006

CORRECT – When ordering a replacement or additional slides, be sure to order the SM Slide. (Slides SH-401, SH-500, or SH-600)

INCORRECT – Do not order the SS Slide It will not fit properly into this track.

If the serial number on your sailtrack is 44229 or smaller, your track was produced BEFORE July 1, 2006 and it requires stainless-SM Series Slides.

If the serial number on your sailtrack is 44230 or greater, your track was produced ON or AFTER July 1, 2006 and it requires stainless-SS Series Slides

Batten Car Receptacles

SH-200A and SH-200B

1. The SH-200A is the small batten receptacle and comes with an SH-400 slide. It accepts flat battens up to 1 5/8″ wide and round battens up to 1/2″ in diameter.
2. The SH-200B is the large batten receptacle and also comes with an SH-400 slide. It accepts flat battens up to 2″ wide and round battens to 5/8″ in diameter.
   Count the number of full-length battens on your sail.Measure the width of your flat battens or the diameter of your round battens. Using this information, select an SH-200A or an SH-200B for each batten on your sail. Some batten ends may have to be trimmed before assembly to optimize fit.

3A. Headboard Slides

Most conventional headboards have a “length along the luff” of 12″ or less. This type of configuration should only require one (1) Tides headboard slide (SH-500) fastened / webbed to the middle of the headboard.

SH-500

Longer headboards may require two (2) Tides headboard slides – one at the top of the headboard and one at the bottom.

Multi-hull sailboats sail much stiffer than monohulls. If you are fitting a Tides Track System to a multi-hull, you may wish to consider one of the SH-900 headboard car assemblies.

The price of these SH-900 units is in addition to the standard cost of the Tides Track System.

3B. Batten Receptacles (Non-Tides Marine)

Tides offers two batten receptacles with its track system.

If you wish to use your existing batten receptacles (or those of a competitor), this is possible assuming these receptacles connect to corresponding slides with a 10mm stud.

Simply order an SH-400 (below) for each of the receptacles you wish to use. Turn the 10mm stud into “your” batten receptacles and the Tides System will take care of the rest.

SH-400

3C. Reef Points

Count the number of reef points on your sail. A Tides SH-401 slide should be used above each reef point (or cringle). However, if the slide above the reef point is a batten receptacle with a Tides slide, this step is not necessary as the SH-401 is already part of this batten receptacle assembly.

SH-401

3D. Remaining Slides

Count the remaining existing slides on your sail. These will be replaced with the Tides SH-600 intermediate slides.

SH-600

3E. The Final Slide Count

Summarize all of the slides you have selected and determine if the total falls within the “one slide for every 2 to 3 feet of track” guideline.

If so, complete the slide section of the Order Form at this time.

If you will need more slides than those which are offered with the standard Tides Track System, contact your loft or Tides Marine for information on how to order additional slides at the regular Retail Price.

3F. Check Your Stack Height

Now is a good time to total the length of each Tides slide you have ordered to determine a final slide stack height. Compare this stack height to that of your current slides. If the Tides stack height is longer than your original stack height, your sail cover may need to be modified.

All batten receptacles will use the SH-401 slide.

3G. Attaching the Tides Slides to Your Sail

If your current slides are webbed to the main (or some sort of shackle is used), simply remove the old slides and replace them with the Tides slides. This is covered in more detail in the Sail Track Installation Instructions.

If your existing slides are sewn to the luff or you have a bolt rope, your sailmaker will have to sew web loops onto your sail to complete this installation.