Taking the mast down this offseason to install a windmeter (couldn't remove old wiring/get it through the conduit with the mast up). Will likely replace halyards, spreader boots, and add a spinnaker crane while its down.
Are there any other projects you wish you had done when you had the mast down that I should think of?
I haven't had the mast down yet but definitely going to replace the vhf coax cable. Obviously inspect all sheaves, rigging, etc.
- Service the mast head shives (got to take the whole mast head fitting out so you can't do it with the mast up.
- run a second wire chase up the mast so one is for the spreader height and 2nd is for the mast head. Mine is getting quite full!!
- replace ALL light fixtures on the mast with new LED (MUCH nicer to do on the ground rather than in the chair
- replace all mast wiring with new tinned wire (bought mine from Pacer in Florida. They can build you what you want and cut it to length)
- replace VHF antenna wire with LMR 400 ultraflex (stranded copper for nice bends) or equivelent. Mine was rg56 or 59!!! So tiny!
- replace vhf antenna with vesper ais/vhf tuned antenna (will work better for both if you dont already have ais.
I am sure thrre is more, but thats most of what I did (except the mast conduit... wish i had).
QuoteAre there any other projects you wish you had done when you had the mast down that I should think of?
I like my LED anchor light. You may consider one. Of course a close inspection of everything, the rigging, halyard sheaves and steaming light. Find someone with a swr meter and check the VHF antenna and coaxial cable. The swr meter needs to be connected to the working radio/antenna. So check before unstepping then replace if needed.
FWIW. Replacing halyards is the same mast up or down. Sew the end of the new halyard to the end of the old and pull thru.
Jim
Take pictures of everything so you have record of what it's supposed to look like. Check spreader bases for cracks. Run a messenger line in case you need to pull a wire in the future.
More things I thought of.
I take Don Casey's (Good Old Boat) recommendation and wax the mast. Use a turtle wax type car wax. I take my mast down every 5 years for a good inspection, sooner if something needs done, the wax seems to me to keep the anodized aluminum looking good.
Also, I installed a pair of folding mast steps near the top high enough so I can stand on them and be high enough to work on the top of the mast. Working from a bosuns chair everything on the mast head is too high to comfortably work on.
Don't forget a coin under the mast, for tradition and luck.
Jim
Quote from: shehant on January 26, 2022, 02:13:27 PM
Taking the mast down this offseason to install a windmeter
it's called an anemometer :)
My two cents. The anemometer only measures the wind speed along with the wind vane it's a windmeter.
Jim
I would replace the Windex (mechanical wind direction indicating arrow). Because the red tail indicators fall off eventually and the thing looks like crap, and I am not going up the mast just for that.
If you are adding or redoing wires, add an LED to light-up the windex. I was supposed to have one in my "plans" but ran out of unused wires after installing the tricolor, etc.
When I rewired I updated the deck light by installing an led light on a spreader that really lights up the boat. That along with aforementioned windex light were great additions.
This is the foredeck mast head steaming combo light I installed.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/store.marinebeam.com/amp/led-masthead-foredeck-combination-light/
I too installed the windex lamp. I am still getting the wiring sorted out because I have a mast head tri color as well as my deck level lights. I want to have it turn on with either or.
This is the mast head/anchor light I installed. I also mounted it on the short mast extension they sell. It has a dusk to dawn photo cell feature for the anchor light. Pretty slick!
https://www.lunasealighting.com/product/led-navigation-fixtures-and-bulbs/tricolor-ais-fixture-no-ais-interference/
I also added an extra conduit to handle radar and LED spreader lights. All was done 6+ years ago and haven't needed to pull my keel-stepped mast since then. When I finally do, I will try and fish another pair of wires to the masthead for windex light. I miss it.
Noah... It was your idea that I read once on here and when this topic came up, I felt it was worth repeating!! Unfortunately I hadn't seen it when my mast WAS down :-( I struggled to get my new radar cable up the mast after it was up as my conduit is QUITE full. I have one more wire to pull up there for my loud hailer and then I should be done messing with the mast wiring for a bit. Hooefully i can get it to fit :shock:
Make the tails of the windex symmetrical. (Or, maybe I DO point 20 degrees higher on starboard?)
sheh : You might consider a TV antenna and that cable. I also would install a lightening "positive ion dissipater".
When my mast was down beside the replacement wiring I also ran another leader - Don't know what else I might run in the future, but there is a leader in there - just in case!!
A few thoughts
Thank you all! These are all really excellent suggestions.
Looks like I'll be replacing the stem fitting too, as I just noticed this crack when I took the sails off this weekend. Any recommendation on sourcing? Know there's an upgraded one on Catalina Direct - any other recommendations though?
For the spinnaker crane get a longer one than what's up there. I've heard of several people having troubles because it's too short.
Some items I haven't seen mentioned yet you may want to consider -
add courtesy flag lines, pulleys, and snap shackles on both spreaders.
LED spreader lights (I have Lunasea LLB472W-21-10 low power and it's like daylight at night).
if your mast is painted repair the paint and corrosion at the fittings.
add extra rivets to the existing conduit inside the mast.
fittings for Lazy Jacks.
check/replace mast boot.
since your replacing the stemhead fitting, think about a larger bow roller for the new style anchors.
As to the stemhead fitting and the longer anchor roller, I purchased from Garhauer as part of the commissioning upon purchase in 2018. The stemhead fitting did seem to change the forestay tension, in that the forestay turnbuckle needed tightening. I did have the marina do the stemhead fitting, and was so smitten by the "new" boat, I didn't realize how loose the forestay had become.
The crack you show is a fairly common problem. I sent the cracked fitting to Garhauer so they made the new, stronger one as an exact match. Well, not entirely true as the pressure of the stay sets it more precisely as Guido (RIP) explained.
Garhauer makes some great stuff. CD, I believe, is not using their stemhead fittings of late.
Quote from: shehant on January 29, 2022, 06:36:04 AM
Thank you all! These are all really excellent suggestions.
Looks like I'll be replacing the stem fitting too, as I just noticed this crack when I took the sails off this weekend. Any recommendation on sourcing? Know there's an upgraded one on Catalina Direct - any other recommendations though?
Is yours a tall rig?