spreaders mount removal

[mdidomenico]

the spreaders are held to the mast via a bar which does not appear to be welded in place.  the spreaders came off nice and easy, however, i can't seem to get the connecting bar out of the mast.  before i go wildly pounding on the thing, is there a trick to getting it out?  Over the winter i'll be sanding, sanding, and more sanding the mast for repainting in the spring.  i can sand around the spreader mount, but i would believe it would probably be better to get it out.

unfortunately, i didn't find anything searching the forum

[Jim Hardesty]

I'm not sure what you are describing but what I think you are asking about is a compression support to take the horizonal load of the spreaders. ie to keep the spreader load from deflecting/crushing the mast.  Don't think you want to remove that, would be a bear to put back in place.  A picture of the problem would be very helpful.
This is just my best guess.
Jim

[Dave Spencer]

mdid,
I remove my spreaders every year when I take my mast down.  I'm sure you have already removed the two pins on each side and slipped the spreader arms off.  After that, there is a black spreader casting base on each side that should slip off the spreader bar.  The castings look like this:  https://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm/product/1953_774/spreader-base-castingsbrc-34-c-36.cfm  If they don't come off easily, some gentle persuasion may be necessary... i.e. light tapping with a mallet and / or some kind of releasing agent like Liquid Wrench.  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,10041.0.html  Once both castings are removed, the spreader bar that accepts the compression load from the spreaders slides out although some wiggling may be necessary since the bar is angled to set the correct angle of the spreaders.  Here's what the spreader bar looks like:  https://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm/product/2871_774/spreader-barbrc-34-c-36.cfm  The spreader bar has a very nice rounded edge built into it to prevent chafe of the halyards.  When reinstalling the spreader bar, look into the mast where the spreader bar goes and try to identify the forward halyards (jib and spinnaker) vs the aft halyards (main and topping lift) and install the spreader bar between them.  It isn't the end of the world if the halyards end up on the wrong side of the reinstalled spreader bar but it will slightly increase the resistance and chafe of the halyard.  It's critical to reinstall the black spreader base castings.
Here's a nice illustration from Catalina Direct.  https://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm/feature/184/spreader-bar-installation.cfm 
This is not difficult, but it helps to know what to look for and what to expect when you are taking things apart.  Good luck with your project.

[mdidomenico]

Yes, the spreader bar mentioned here https://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm/product/2871_774/spreader-barbrc-34-c-36.cfm is what i'm referring to.  (sorry didn't have a pic of mine handy)

the spreaders and the base castings came off really easy, pretty much just slipped off, but the bar seems stuck.  if you say it should just "slide" out with minimal force i'll see if it's hung up on something.

if i can't just "slip" it out, then i'll probably just leave it and paint around it

the other thing i can't get off are the spreader end caps.  i drilled out the rivets, but the cap doesn't seem to want to budge, but i have to look at those again with better light

[Dave Spencer]

The spreader bar is a fairly loose fit on the hole in the mast.  But, it can become jammed because of the angle inherent in the bar.  If a few gentle raps on either side with a small mallet doesn't free it up, painting around the bar sounds like a good plan. 

[mdidomenico]

The spreader bar is a fairly loose fit on the hole in the mast.  But, it can become jammed because of the angle inherent in the bar.  If a few gentle raps on either side with a small mallet doesn't free it up, painting around the bar sounds like a good plan.

just to followup, i did manage to get the bar out, but it took a few good whacks with a regular hammer.  the first whack was scary, but once i started to see it move and nothing else was bending, it seemed to just slide out.