From the look of the pic, it would appear that something has happened to put undo pressure on the pad. It's telling that the beam end damage is around the areas where the pad seems to have an impression rubbed into it from the main hull area. So, I'd say you have two issues:

1 - Why did this happen? You need to figure this out. Was there a collisions? Did you recently replace the pads? If so, did you take the time to make sure that the clearance was proper? If you don't have the proper clearance, things like this can happen. Check for the proper clearance. If you have not done anything to the pads, and this happened, inspect the rest of the folding system. Make sure nothing is loose or broken. On my F-27 the delrin bushings in the joints had gotten old and brittle and started to come apart resulting in some excess play.

2 - Assess the beam end damage. Hard to tell from the pic, it may just be superficial from flexing (gel coat cracks) or something more. Remove the pad (after you've figured out why the joint is too tight) and inspect the beam end. You may be ok once the other problem is addressed, but you might ultimately want to send a pic to Corsair or to Ian Farrier.

On Ian's site is a document about beam care and inspection, there's also another regarding beam pads. I suggest you download them and see if your problem is covered.

Farrier Builder and Owner Page

Last edited by Keith; 03/24/08 09:30 AM.