The sorrows of gin

[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.

[TreblePlink]

My 28' boat has a 36' keel-stepped mast. I bought a 26' sailboat mast, mounted a winch on it, and made a pivoting base to place on deck. That's my gin pole.

It was a major pain for two men, but we did it. Without overhead lift, I wish I knew of a better way ...

[Davy J]

I don't about your particular boat, but on one of my previous boats, a Catalina 25, we used an a-frame.

Here is a video of me lowering, then raising it's mast by myself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r33VCObNroY

You can also go to the Catalina 25/250 association forum, use the search function, and you will see many discussions about using it and constructing one.

Association Forum

[Davy J]

Also, for some reason, you posted this in the multihull forum, which is why I came across it. However, you question probably has a better sub forum then here.

[Dymaxion]

I use two aluminium pipes from spinnaker track/car to toe rail on each side as stays. Allows the mast to pivot up while the pipes slide along spin track. Mast stays solid side to side and no need to adjust as it rises. Spinnaker pole is the gin pole and gets tethered with dock lines as loose stays, just tight enough to keep the gin pole from flipping sideways while first winching up the mast. The main halyard through a single block off the forestay plate and back to a cabin top winch does the raising. I have a yoke in the cockpit that holds the upper end of the mast up about 7 foot off the sole to get things started. Mast is 32 foot, wouldn't want to do much bigger, always a white knuckle task but works.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Davy J

Also, for some reason, you posted this in the multihull forum, which is why I came across it. However, you question probably has a better sub forum then here.

I must have posted it in the wrong forum by mistake. Intended for it to go in the mono forum.

[mark_morwood]

The system on the Hobie 33 works very well. Once the mast was in position on the deck with the mast step pin connected, it only took one person to actually raise it. The key was the cleverly designed bridle on each side that kept the mast aligned as it was winched up using the spin halyard over the spinnaker pole as a gin pole. It's described about half way through the manual.

https://static.hobiecat.com/digital_...ers-manual.pdf

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by Jammer

I must have posted it in the wrong forum by mistake. Intended for it to go in the mono forum.

Here you go, Jammer, moved to the monohull forum.

JPA Cate

[FabioC]

An A-Frame explicitly built for the purpose and a contraption that gives you a 8:1 purchase or better would work very well. You should be able to get the mast up or down and tuned in a matter of minutes, even by yourself, and then the A-Frame can be folded and stored on the trailer when the boat is in the water, or next to the mast when the boat is on the trailer.

[kclancy]

I have a Catalina 22. My mast is a lot lighter than yours, but this might work for you. I do it a little different than the video below. Instead of have the pole attached to the bow pulpit, I have a long length of square tube steel attached to the trailer with an eye bolt at the top. It attached in a couple of places to the trailer in order to support the steel tubing with U-brackets. This tubing is in front of the bow pulpit and is also about 2 feet higher. Some of my sailing friends have a similar set up, but with the steel tubing mounted on a plate and the plate is then bolted under the trailer winch. The pole still rises above the pulpit, but is shorter than having the tube bolted to one of the trailer rails.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yK_k1LZ1tq8

Good luck!

[Howler]

My first boat was a MacGregor 26X. Although a controversial boat to purists, the mast stepping system was simple and intuitive. Maybe you could replicate a similar system.

[qatharms]

The best solution is to buy a MacGregor 26, which is built with human beings in mind. We had one for five years. We routinely drove 5 hours to find good sailing water, then the two of us raised the mast in 45 minutes, , in the dark, with flashlights in our teeth. Great boat, great memories.

[Hardhead]

Originally Posted by kclancy

I have a Catalina 22. My mast is a lot lighter than yours, but this might work for you. I do it a little different than the video below. Instead of have the pole attached to the bow pulpit, I have a long length of square tube steel attached to the trailer with an eye bolt at the top. It attached in a couple of places to the trailer in order to support the steel tubing with U-brackets. This tubing is in front of the bow pulpit and is also about 2 feet higher. Some of my sailing friends have a similar set up, but with the steel tubing mounted on a plate and the plate is then bolted under the trailer winch. The pole still rises above the pulpit, but is shorter than having the tube bolted to one of the trailer rails.

Good luck!

This man is a genius. I have a Catalina C22, and I played around with a multitude of methods for raising the mast solo.

Once I saw this video on YT, last summer, I switched to the winch on the mast, as described, and there is no comparison. Excellent control and safety, even with a heavy roller furler forestay. I personally used an extra Catalina C22 keel winch for the mast winch, which has a geared reverse feature. If you go this way, I would highly recommend a winch with a geared reverse. Great method!

Something else to try - is creating a long shock cord "rubberband," and attaching one end to the loose forestay when raising/lowering the mast. Attached the other end to the bow pulpit, or trailer. By adjusting the length of the "rubberband" it can be set to keep the forestay taught but springy, and keep it from flopping off to the side, especially with a heavy roller furler. It also acts to counter-act the weight of the mast, and slow the whole process down, and make it steadier.

[crazyoldboatguy]

I have a deck stepped mast on my 28’ Pearson Triton. I don’t use a gun pole - I use the mast itself. I have a hinge plate on the deck that is pinned to the other half on the mast. The mast is stepped from the bow because the main cabin is too high. Also, I use the main sheet to raise the mast, with the boom adding a fulcrum point to assist. I beefed up the topping lift to take the load. The upper shrouds are attached, but not the lowers. The shrouds have a pivot point close in line athwartship to that if he mast hinge. I fashioned a bridle to attach the aft end of the boom to the shroud pivot point using a d shackle with the pin acting as the clevis pin for the shroud - it creates a triangulation to steady the mast when raising. Once all is taut, I run the main sheet to one of the headsail winches and crank the mast up - making sure my forestay is in place.

It’s a big mast - 35’ long.

[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?