Old Sunfish Mast

J

James W.

Member
Did old Sunfish masts just have an eye bolt screwed through the top of the mast with a washer & nut tightened on the other end ?

I borrowed a mast from a friend and his is like that- with just a plain black top plug (no eyelet on top plug to thread halyard through).

Thanks, James
 
Same for Porpoise II—and possibly throughout Porpoise's entire lateen lineup.
 
Yes, and some of the bolts were chrome plated brass and the eyelet could pull open, block falls off, sail goes kerr plunk. So take a close look for any signs of the eye opening up :)

Oh and the nut could vibrate loose on long trailer rides, eyebolt finds new home on side of the road, sailing fun canceled.

But other than that, it's a great setup!
 
Some people like the old masts with the block on the top claiming it is easier to hoist the sail (less friction) to which I say
"bull". With the block at the mast head you have more hardware at the mast head to chaff against the upper boom and
the thru-bolt invites water intrusion and corrosion especially in salt water. My recommendation is to remove the block and old mast head cap, install a new style cap with halyard eye and secure well with silicon caulk and pop rivets.

Alan Glos
 
Since AG mentioned the superiority of the plastics caps: one thing to remember whenever you hoist the sail is to be sure to always actually lift the upper spar with your hand as you are raising it rather than just pull on the halyard. Not only will it raise more easily but you will dramatically extend the life of the cap. Halyards, especially the newer higher tech ones, saw through and leave those grooves in the plastic.
 
minifish2 said:
Since AG mentioned the superiority of the plastics caps: one thing to remember whenever you hoist the sail is to be sure to always actually lift the upper spar with your hand as you are raising it rather than just pull on the halyard. Not only will it raise more easily but you will dramatically extend the life of the cap. Halyards, especially the newer higher tech ones, saw through and leave those grooves in the plastic.
Click to expand...
I lift the lower spar
 
Wavedancer said:
I lift the lower spar
Click to expand...


Probably most of the sailors at my club do that, also, but then again many don't really take particular care of their gear (for instance, they also let the hulls touch sand rather than always using a dolly or cushion).

If you do lift the lower, you want to lift the upper spar as well (so it's up most of the way by hand). Lifting both can be awkward. If you only lifted the lower and then pulled the halyard to raise the upper you would be putting unneceassary wear on the plastic cap. Try always lifting the upper and you'll see the difference. This is particularly noticable with higher tech lines.
 
Thanks; I will give that a try.
The reason I hold the lower spar is to protect the deck from getting scraped by the tack as I raise the sail.
 
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