Jeff,
My rigger also is Dave Thompson (@ Cedar Creek). The same? 

Do you switch sails? As I understood, that was the only reason for the internal halyard. I remove my mast and furler as a bundle.The halyard was used once or twice in it’s life (23 years old), so I can’t relate to that plastic top issue with my CDI. I reduced jib size from a 155 as my only sail to a 135, as on Barnegat we’re blessed with moderate to high winds. The lack of the ball bearings doesn’t seem to present any difficulty with a smaller sail. Wish I could offer better info.

Jay Friedland
s/v Wanderlust ‘97

> On Apr 10, 2020, at 12:47 PM, JeffSmith <jeffsmithphoto at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Radiant (now) came with a CDI FF2 jib furler. The halyard was old  and I had
> a very difficult time re-raising the 170 Genoa. My rigger Dave Thompson
> suggested that over time the all plastic "halyard top cap" been cut into by
> the halyard, creating almost a clam cleat. CDI has a newly designed top cap
> with a sheave for $68.  A new halyard is $64. And a new "ball bearing"
> bearing (BB2) for $138, which Dave strongly recommends. 
> Has anyone had experience with these upgrades or alternatives? 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --
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