DIY Sailboat Mast Raising System
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 เม.ย. 2021
- Here's a DIY demonstration of raising and lowering the 35' mast using a hinged tabernacle, whisker pole, tackle, and manual anchor windlass on a 28' Pearson Triton. The same principal should work for larger masts as well. Sketches and photos are available if you contact me through atomvoyages.com.
Despite the natural advantages of using the boom as a gin pole and dropping the mast forward, the mast must hinge aft on most boats because the jib furler would get in the way and since the mast is stepped forward of boats centerline if it was dropped forward there would be too much spar overhanging the bow pulpit when lowered. And it works out better because the windlass is at the bow and the transom is a good place to secure the mast support roller. In my case, I use intermediate aft shrouds so it makes sense to hinge it to drop aft. If you don't have any shrouds suitable for tying off at the same level as the mast hinge pivot point then you could use halyards to control the mast from swinging sideways. If you had 6-1 tackle you might be able to use your cockpit sheet winch if an anchor windlass is unavailable. Just make sure it's thru-bolted with backing plates and have a second person on a safety line the first time you try it.
Update: A viewer replied to my question of load calculation formula and said the max load on the windless line is H*W/(5.66*L) where H is the mast height, W is the mast weight and L is the length of the gin pole. The load above the tackle without the 4:1 purchase is 4 times higher. In my case the mast is 35'. Pole is 8'. Mast , rigging, pole and raising hardware weigh about 170 lbs so I would guess the load on the windlass line would be 526 lbs without the 4:1 purchase and 132 lbs with it. Adding friction losses for tackle and windlass brings it up to around 170 lbs. This info is useful for you to calculate the size and strength of components required.
Warning: Raising your mast is dangerous so don't try it based on this video alone and make sure you are competent to do it safely. For example, if the hinge assembly failed, the bottom of the mast could shoot forward and cripple you. If a guy line breaks the mast could swing to the side and hit another boat or fall on your crew. If doing this on land beware of overhead power lines that kill people every year.
Parts:
Dwyer DH2150 hinged mast plate available here for $75:
store.sandiegomarine.com/prod...
Roller is the Attwood Heavy Duty Boat Trailer Roller 10 inches, currently on Amazon for $13. The roller can be supported by 1" stainless tubing with eye and jaw end fittings used for biminis. Be aware that most of the weight of the mast will be on this so ensure the guy lines are secure and the attachment points to pushpit are strong.
For the mast brackets I used 1/8" x 1.25" stainless steel angles, which are stronger than flat plates to resist bending.
The pole brackets are 3/16" x 2" flat plates.
The mast guy line brackets were made from leftover sail track.
You'll need a drill press and welder for DIY.
I used stainless steel for this because I had it in stock and my TIG welder does not do aluminum but if you are having a local metal fab shop makes these up for you then using aluminum will save weight.
We can be reached at atomvoyages.com where you can find articles on cruising and fitting out sailboats. If you have a classic sailboat and want to share your experiences or have questions on fitting out, consider joining the Plastic Classic Forum where I'm a forum moderator and answer questions: plasticclassicforum.com/forum/ - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
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Wow… I’ve been watching many videos on mast raising and lowering masts, this is the Best and thank you for your detailed text explanation. ⛵️
This could not be a better or clearer video on mast stepping. Thank you so much!
Such great ingenuity! Thank you for sharing, James. Seeing Atom always brings a smile to my face thinking how that amazing little ship took you on such incredible adventures.
Dear James. The max load on the windless line is H*W/(5.66*L) where H is the mast height, W is the mast weight and L is the length of the gin pole. It would be 4 times higher without your 4:1 purchase. Regards. Ken.
Thanks Ken. Maybe you can crunch the numbers for me. Mast is 35'. Pole is 8'. Mast , rigging, pole and raising hardware weigh about 170 lbs I would guess.
@@atomvoyager The load on the windlass line would be 526lbs without your 4:1 purchase and 132 with it.
@@kenowens1688 Excellent. Thanks. I'm thinking the force I had to generate at the windlass was around that 132 lb number plus friction loss for a total of at least 170 lbs plus some windlass gear friction. Anyway, the total 526 lb load is helpful to calculate the size and strength of components required. Would be nice to have a scale to confirm.
I built a mast hinge a few years ago and have been experimenting with dropping it forward... I concur, there’s too much overhang in that direction.
Well done as always.
Brilliant. You’re so thoughtful in devising super practical applications for sailboats.
Qy
Outstanding. This solution may solve my challenge of raising and lowering the mast on my 1986 Catalina 25. Thank you for sharing.
Great information! I made one for my Precision 23. It's much less weight so did not need to be so involved. But the stays are definitely critical to keep the mast from swaying to the side and potentially ripping the tabernacle out of the deck. I mounted a brake winch on my dedicated gin pole after first using a 4-1 block system. Works great and allows me to raise and lower by myself, stopping at any point without having to engage cam cleats or a pawl, to clear shrouds or for anything else. Its really a life-saver.
I really enjoy watching the way you're able make modifications and solve problems to either make improvements or to invent new systems. James Zi
I have been a logger for 31 years and I’ve often wondered why no one has done exactly what you’ve done on a sailboat is a great idea and you can never have too much safety gear you’ve kept going up and down simple and something like that should never be attempted by yourself anyway awesome job
Great for deck step mast.
At first I was impressed then I was really impressed.
Keep up the great work.
Great demonstration!! You’ve given me the needed confidence to take on raising the deck stepped center pin mast on my 30’!!
Wow that's impressive!!! I have a Watkins 25 that I was considering lower the mast myself. I think I feel pretty good about it now. I've done it many times with a 22 Oday and 22 Macgregor but the Watkins mast just seem huge to me. Thanks for the video.
Very well set up. Thanks for the complete explanation.
Thank you. You've done an amazing job.
Thanks for another great informative video! This could be a game-changer if you had a dock that happened to be upstream of a fixed bridge and wanted to store your boat there.
Great stuff as always.
You never fail to amaze.
Very nice work, as always -- quite similar in some ways to the mast-raising systems found on the MacGregor 26 and other trailer-sailors.
Here in Perth, yachts who moor in our river usually have a mast lowering system. Using two whisker poles in a triangle from shroud base to bow, same block and pulley system. On one shroud on each side, there is a permanent stainless bar from deck to about knee height, and then the shroud attaches to that. They’re called “wobble-stoppers” (true that). A well thought out mast lowering system sir. Love your videos, learning a lot. Fair winds, Elaine.
Impressive! Thanks for sharing.
T=[Lmast x Wmast]/[Lwhiskpole x sin(angle between rope and whisker pole)]
I solved this problem using the moment about the hinge on deck. I ignored all non-coplanar forces. Find the balance point on the mast for “Lmast”.
Brilliant good rig up
I first saw a mast raising/lowering system on YT about 6-7yrs ago, used on a 21ft boat. I knew that with your skill set, it was only a matter of time until you built your own version for the larger boats that you refit. A "must have" piece of kit, once I get my A30. Note: the Dwyer hinged mast base is now $121.75, I guess they heard about you and decided to capitalize...I also like mast steps and the new Maxwell vertical windlass. The prototype was developed jointly with Sailing Uma...
you left me wanting to build something like this for my mast. i really dont like depending on third parties to do my stuff. cost savings also plays into it of course. i might ask you for more info later on, at the forum.
Brilliant.
Very ingenius. Undoubtedly works on many masts, however, my unstayed Nonsuch mast weighs 550 lbs. so I think I will stick with the mast crane.
Thank you
inspiretional thanks
My only worry would be that the rope slips from my hands, or that I need to stop and make adjustments, therefore some kind of cleat would be useful.
Nice
Thank you for sharing your very well thought out Triton.
Who makes those furling line fairleads you have mounted on your port stantions?
Garhauer Stanchion Block SB-3: www.garhauermarine.com/shop/stanchions-accessories/stanchion-blocks/stanchion-block-sb-3/
@@atomvoyager Excellent, thank you.
I am considering buying a Pearson 28-2 and would like to make a similar system, but have it tilt forward using the boom as a gin pole.
The main reason I want to do this is that Wethersfield cove has very economical moorings and is very well protected, BUT….. the entrance to the cove has I-91 going over it. Bridge clearance is about 36 ft. The P28-2 is about 41 ft. My thought is that I can tilt the mast, oh, I don’t know maybe 20 degrees or so to get it under the bridge.
That much of a tilt shouldn’t be an issue. I would make up a halyard that would lengthen the backstay enough to make it pretty consistent and easy. My guess is with that little tilt, it would be easy to pull it back up via the boom. Might not even need force multiplying tackle.
In theory that will work but I don't think it will be practical in practice. I think you'd need at least 30 degrees of tilt and maybe a bit more for a safety factor. At those angles it's important not to have the boat moving side to side or pitching because it puts high loads on the hinged base. The setup time will take longer than expected. The furler will get in the way, etc. Simpler at this point to buy a smaller boat or find a new home port.
I would love to photos of the hardware on the mast to allow the hinge to work. What size mast was that? thank you
The mast is 35' long but this system can also work for larger masts. I have photos and sketches of all components that I can email to you if you contact me through atomvoyages.com
It seams a bid confusing without hands on. I have a vega with aprox 30' mast. Are you comfortable with the dwyer mast hinge they they sell for that mast?
Yes the largest size Dwyer mast hinge will work for a 30' mast assuming you have proper guy lines and tackle to ensure there are no side loads. We used one on the Cape Dory 26 with about a 30' mast. You can see it in the following video at 11:55 and 15:41. Dwyer Hinged Mast Plate - Stainless Steel - 4" x 6.5"
$121.65 store.sandiegomarine.com/products/dwyer-hinged-mast-plate-4x6-5-%7C401050.html
What are the brackets called that are deck mounted just aft of the mast? Thank you, and appreciate your engineering skills. I am designing an A-frame system for my Compac 23.
They're called deck hinges. Mine are heavy duty and not commonly available but for your smaller boat these linked below are fine. They use them on the F-27 Corsair trimaran mast for example. These are 90 degree but they also have them angled or swivel base:
www.marinedepotdirect.com/deck-hinge-90-degrees.html
Thank you Atomvoyager. The link worked great! I will either order this, or one slightly larger. I have made gin poles for two different boats-they worked well, but the boats were much smaller. I am looking forward to the stability of the A-frame. Thanks again.
Hi, I'm thinking of doing this with a keel stepped mast....I haven't seen anyone do this yet and presumably everyone thinks that is crazy...I figure a scarffed joint made with 2 plates if alu., a large pivot, and 2 bolts with spacing tubes inside the mast to hold it all together when upright. Seems crazy, but just some set up and some tig.... complication would be the fear I was destroying an expensive mast. Any input appreciated.
I don't know the model boat and mast size you're talking about but in theory you could cut the mast above the deck and weld/bolt together a tabernacle type mast hinge. Seems to me it would be an improvement if done right.
@@atomvoyager Thanks for answering. Apparently the structural dynamics of keel stepped boats is different, so you can't deck step them ..but as I write this it occurs to me that maybe you mean the tabernacle could be used just for folding, when erect the mast would still bear on the keel? Generally speaking, keel stepped boats don't have the structure in the deck to support the mast on deck + the mast and standing rigging is lighter in comparison on a keel stepped. It would seem that even though the deck hole doesn't act as a structural support, the extra length of the keel stepped mast makes it require less lateral support. Something to do with the chord length and flex position...ie a stay 1/2 way up the mast deck stepped is 1/2 plus 6.5' (aprox distance deck to to keel step). So obviously the keel stepped column is more secure, even without the deck collar. There are a bunch of bending dynamics as well involved that I don't understand. On your boat none of this comes into play, but 70s boats 40'+ feet of extruded thin walled mast are light and engineered pretty tight. I'm looking at various 35 to 45 boats, but I'll be damned if I'm going to have one that needs to a craned every time there is a low bridge (there are a bunch around here). There is a company in Perth Australia that apparently has a design, but they aren't interested in doing this for older boats, and frankly, tiging old thin walled aluminum sounds like a possible disaster to me as well 😂😂. I'll get my best Tig welder on it, but still. I guess worst case I end up with a pole mast and a junk rig 😭😭😭
@@patrickfitzoot The issues you brought up would need to be overcome but I don't see why it can't be done, at least on most boats. Sometimes rigging might be smaller on keel stepped masts but if so, it could be upsized. Yes, I meant that the section on the keel still takes the load except your reinforced hinge plates need to make up for the lost lateral stiffness. There would be some guesswork and a need to overbuild it. If you cut the mast say 30-50cm above deck and made the portion above deck into the tabernacle then there is no added load on deck. The lower section is acting like a tabernacle base and a compression post to the keel. Sure there may be some race boats where it's not advisable, and probably not worth the trouble. And if you're boat shopping then better to find the boat with the right rig to start with.
you have a shortened mast, can this be done with a Fractional rig?
Yes it will work fine for fractional rig. A couple feet longer won't matter. Just take the Jib and spinn halyards to the pole.
Has anybody use this system on a 31 foot sailboat wondering if it will work
Maybe someone who's done it will comment but there's no reason why it can't be scaled for a 31-footer or even bigger boat. Online there is a video of a similar system used on an F31 trimaran. I think they use the trailer winch but that's not a requirement so you can use deck tackle to a windlass.
This is so over-complicated lol.
Brilliant system and geometry - too bad your wife is not firing on all cylinders and stands directly under the dangerous moving mast, contributing nothing and creating risk
Thanks for your comment. It's good to remind people don't stand under the mast if not needed. But in this case, since it was our first test, I had instructed my wife to watch and help with any snagged lines or rigging and to guide the mast into the crutch if needed but to otherwise keep her head down. Since I had doubled up on support lines and she was mostly under a 1.5" stainless boom gallows/bimini frame and the fiberglass coach roof, there really wasn't any risk. In the future she won't be needed there at all but in this case she was there for a reason.
Brilliant.