The sorrows of gin

[crazyoldboatguy]

Originally Posted by Hardhead

Another great idea, above.

I've never seen a mast raised from the stern that way, but it really makes perfect sense. It looks like you might have a roller for the mast - on the trailer. How hard is it to get the mast locked into the mast step on the deck?

Yes, the rollers help a lot. We have purpose built mast horses that the mast rests on. We pick up the mast and set it on the roller nearest the bow and roll it forward until we reach the one resting on the truck tailgate. We have to rotate the mast once to get the radar positioned properly.

Once in position the hinge pin is easy to get in - just move the mast back and forth. Been doing this for about 20 years with updates and modifications.

[john61ct]

A detailed build thread with specs, close up pics would be invaluable.

Triton's a top pick for me. http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ts-193354.html

[crazyoldboatguy]

I cannot claim to have come up with this myself. The basic design of the process came from this book - https://www.amazon.com/Sailors-Sketc...CTL&ref=plSrch

I have made my own changes as they worked out for me. I use 3/8” 3 strand twist line for the boom bridle as the geometry is not good enough for a wire bridle as Bingham suggest.

Detailed photos are a challenge. I try to keep the time using the launch ramp to a minimum so as not to antagonize marina staff. But Bingham does a good job of describing the whole thing. After all, even I figured it out from his book!

[john61ct]

OK thanks for the book link. Maybe I'm seeing it as more of a rocket science challenge than it is.

[crazyoldboatguy]

IMO, the key is in the details. The geometry between the upper shrouds has to closely match the pivot point of the mast hinge. I beefed up the topping lift using spectra line. I added a second one that I use as a spare halyard for the mainsail. The blocks and shackles are oversized to take the load. I have roller furling so I leave the foil off and use the headsail halyard as a temporary forestay until the mast is raised.

[billgewater]

At Fremantle Western Australia, there are three low bridges that require mast lowering for the thousands of vessels up the Swan River when they venture outside to the offshore islands.
I am sure that many of the excellent local mast suppliers and boat builders would have addressed the lowering issue for many boat rigs over a long period of time.
My own boat has a 53 ft main mast and a 38 ft mizzen that are lowered in tandem via the triatic joining the two masts heads. Although I am no longer at Fremantle, I have retained all the gear. It was a bit exciting the first time but we got it down to a fine art after a while. Highfield levers seem to be near mandatory.

[hamburking]

You could just forget about the gin pole entirely. Plenty marinas in my area have a permanent mast crane, often manually operated and free to use...located near the launch ramp. A little planning to be sure there is a mast crane at your launch site and you could save yourself a lot of trouble.

[john61ct]

Then there are those of us cruising to unknown third-world shores, who want to be able to launch and retrieve wherever, away from any infrastructure, possibly on short notice.

As well as getting under bridges.

[Jammer]

Thanks for all the ideas. I'm pondering.

I will want to be able to step/unstep the mast on the water to deal with some problem bridges on Lake Minnetonka, so I don't want to use something dependent on the trailer.

I'm now mainly thinking of either an A frame or using the boom with a bridle, and using the jibsheet winches with turning blocks as needed.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by hamburking

You could just forget about the gin pole entirely. Plenty marinas in my area have a permanent mast crane, often manually operated and free to use...located near the launch ramp. A little planning to be sure there is a mast crane at your launch site and you could save yourself a lot of trouble.

My cruising plans include several inland bodies of water where there are limited services available for sailboats. In some cases there is simply not a mast crane available (Lake Vermilion), in others crane service is not available to transient boats during peak times (Lake of the Woods), in others there are bridges to clear with no mast crane on one side of the bridge (Lake Minnetonka), etc.

I am trying to make the most of my time with a smaller sailboat by visiting these locations where there is no practical means of access for a full-sized cruising sailboat.

[Seabeau]

Have a simple hinged mast tabernacle built. I've used them for years, nothing simpler or easier.

[Sailorbob8599]

Originally Posted by Jammer

I stepped the mast for the first time on my new-to-me boat last weekend.

I used the heavy, overengineered gin pole provided by the previous owner. While not a disaster (nothing was dropped), it was time consuming and way too much work. The overengineered gin pole has its own winch and five (five!) of its own stays.

To my way of thinking, the whole point of a trailer sailor is that you can move it around between bodies of water, and I have plans on doing that later this year. I'm going to have to figure something else out. I think it will be wood and use one (or both) of the jibsheet winches.

Please share photos of a gin pole that works for you, or describe it, or provide links, or whatever to help me out.

It would be helpful if we knew what kind of boat we are dealing with and maybe even the size of the mast.
For instance, my boat has a 4" x 6" x 30ft. aluminum spar. It is secured on deck in a small Tabernacle with two 1/2" thru-bolts at the base, the lower one acting as a pivot hinge point when raising or lowering the spar. The upper is simply a safety feature to prevent the spar from falling while attaching the shrouds. I also have a Boom Gallows that will support the mast when it is in the lowered position.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Sailorbob8599

It would be helpful if we knew what kind of boat we are dealing with and maybe even the size of the mast.
For instance, my boat has a 4" x 6" x 30ft. aluminum spar. It is secured on deck in a small Tabernacle with two 1/2" thru-bolts at the base, the lower one acting as a pivot hinge point when raising or lowering the spar. The upper is simply a safety feature to prevent the spar from falling while attaching the shrouds. I also have a Boom Gallows that will support the mast when it is in the lowered position.

The boat is a Morgan 25. The mast is 29' aluminum, approximately 4x6". There is a tabernacle with a forward and an aft pin. The forward pin is intended to be removed easily, the aft one less so.


Matters would be much simplified by leaving the mast on the tabernacle rather than detaching it to slide it forward. It would then project a considerable distance beyond the stern of the boat.

[Sailorbob8599]

Originally Posted by Jammer

The boat is a Morgan 25. The mast is 29' aluminum, approximately 4x6". There is a tabernacle with a forward and an aft pin. The forward pin is intended to be removed easily, the aft one less so.


Matters would be much simplified by leaving the mast on the tabernacle rather than detaching it to slide it forward. It would then project a considerable distance beyond the stern of the boat.

This sounds almost identical to my boat and yes, my mast projects similarly a considerable distance beyond the stern; but once I have lowered the mast, I simply pull the second pin and move the mast forward and support it on a 2 x 4 affixed across the pulpit at the front, and on the boom Gallows at the rear . . . for transportation.
If you have no gallows, do you have a stern railing, or failing that, what about a support made of two crossed 2 x 4's or similar, rigged vertically in the aft end of the cockpit? Or am I misunderstanding your problem?

[Simi 60]

A sad day indeed.
Gin has run out but I have vermouth and olives.
The horror...the horror.