Lowering a Prout Mast

[limejucer]

Can anyone advise me on lowering the mast on a snowgoose 37
Thanks

[boatman61]

PM Eleven.... he's a Prout man...

[Eleven]

Indeed I am, but although I have never done this i have given it some thought.
It can be done without outside assistance, and will be much easier the second time!

The mast hinges forwards which means it can be controlled by a rope from the end of the boom. Sounds simple? Well,the boom may fold sideways so it needs guying to each side shroud mounting plates so it can't, and you need a prop for the mast to sit in when it is lowered, and the rope from the mast head to boom tail needs to be in good condition, or replaced, and the pulleyed line from boom tail to traveller needs to be really long and the traveller needs to be pretty solid and I'd recommend at least three hale and hearty bodies.
Just looking side on the leverages are not particularly good, the weight of the mast has to be held by the line from boom tail to mast head at an angle of about twenty degrees. That's five time the mast weight. And that has to be carefully released through the boom to traveller pulley system.
Getting it back up will be even harder.
Hope you'lget news from someone who has done it!

[Talbot]

The boom should be more than long enough for the correct angle for this task, but I would be concerned about the forces at the gooseneck.

You need to be able to control the sideways movement of both the boom and the mast,

The catalac is set up to be able to do this relatively easily due to shroud pivot points at the same pivot point as the mast, so the shrouds remain connected.

I used a big winch to control the lowering (and the raising) of the mast.

The biggest problem is the subsequent movement of the mast so that it is not acting as a massive bowsprit. When I was young and foolish, I oved my catalac mast on my own a couple of times - I REALLY dont recommend this

[Eleven]

Yeah, I'd thought about it, but only as a 'What If'. the Prouts have shrouds aligned with the pivot pin, a bit of skack might be a good idea. My boat has additional shrouds behind the mast that would be removed, and the rear 'shrouds'? of course.
Do strip the rolling furling off before you start! Doing it all near or on the hard sounds a safer option.
Mast climbers are expensive, so are permanent steps, and neither are any good at anchor if you are under thirty and want to be older, and useless if you are over thirty and wise. I do mine mast climbs on the mudflats. Nice stable environment.
If it all goes wrong you'll need a light crane, so be somewhere that a light crane can get to. Let us know how it goes. Please.

[limejucer]

Thanks.
My wife has an idea about doing the french canals.
I was hoping that somone who had done it before would say its easy to do.
I thought the boom would be big enought. The mainsheet to control the weight.
Use the jib winches and prussik links to shrouds to control left and right. So three man job plus someone to guide the mast onto cradle.
Definatly strip the mast of sails and extras.
I will examine it closer with the surveyor later this week

[limejucer]

Surveyor has firm recomendations. 1 get french company to ship mast. 2 dont even think about it it is too big and heavy to do youself. 3 bill for new mast and hole in deck/hull would be masive$5,000+, 4 full insurance required for all within 15m of mast.

I think he means don't do it