After repairing my mast step, one last thing I did was purchase one of those stainless steel disks to insert into the bottom of the mast step, providing a smooth surface for mast rotation. I wanted the disk glued down and didn't just want to drop it in the hole and hope it lands right-side up. So here's a creative way of inserting the disk using spare parts:
I found a section of PVC piping around, that was longer than the mast step. I taped the disk to the end of the PVC pipe by using some painters tape (blue). First I attached the disk to the pipe with 2 small pieces of tape, just enough to hold the disk on, and then I wrapped the PVC pipe end to "capture" the 2 small pieces of tape. After all, I wanted the disk to stay in the hole but the tape to come out with the PVC pipe removal.
I added a bit of epoxy to the end of the disk and inserted it into the mast step. To remove the PVC pipe, I inserted a piece of handly copper tubing I had around (a long dowel would do) into the PVC pipe to push against the disk while I pulled on the pipe. Out comes the pipe and the dowel too. Quite easy. Here's some pix using a simulated disk of how the taping went.
I found a section of PVC piping around, that was longer than the mast step. I taped the disk to the end of the PVC pipe by using some painters tape (blue). First I attached the disk to the pipe with 2 small pieces of tape, just enough to hold the disk on, and then I wrapped the PVC pipe end to "capture" the 2 small pieces of tape. After all, I wanted the disk to stay in the hole but the tape to come out with the PVC pipe removal.
I added a bit of epoxy to the end of the disk and inserted it into the mast step. To remove the PVC pipe, I inserted a piece of handly copper tubing I had around (a long dowel would do) into the PVC pipe to push against the disk while I pulled on the pipe. Out comes the pipe and the dowel too. Quite easy. Here's some pix using a simulated disk of how the taping went.
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