I have an anchor light problem on my H 336. The wires to my anchor light are shorting out and I need some advice. The juice seems not only to be grounding out against the mast, but if I send juice up one wire it is coming back down the other wire. This leaves me with two problems really. One, I have not been up the stick myself (I don’t really want to go) and therefore I am the slave of what I am told by a guy I do not really know. Two, the guy who did go up (and removed the entire light assembly) tells me that he cannot get the wire to feed up the mast, nor down it. He cannot push the old wire back into the mast at the top. Indeed, he tells me the stick must come down. End of story. My question is simple. If I go up there am I going to find a way to send the old wire down, sending a line with it that I can use to pull a new wire back up, or am I just going to have to pay someone to unstep my mast? Any advice is appreciated. Rodney S/V Avanti
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Rodney, usually the mast wires run through a ...
conduit to the head. You should be able to chase a new lead from the top down or vice versa. The wire inside the conduit is probably okay...a guess. Problems usually occur at the fixture connections or at the step splice. Check and test at both ends with a volt meter before replacing the entire length. Terry
conduit to the head. You should be able to chase a new lead from the top down or vice versa. The wire inside the conduit is probably okay...a guess. Problems usually occur at the fixture connections or at the step splice. Check and test at both ends with a volt meter before replacing the entire length. Terry
What I found,
You will need to lower the mast and remove the cap, I found that the anchor wire at the mast head exits the conduit under the top cap, so close, that there is no room to pull the wire out. With the top cap off, we found it formes an S shape, from the light fitting down 2 inches or so, then up and into the conduit. (probably to minimise moisture into the conduit. We were able to bring almost five inches of wire back to the lamp base, and still have enough to re fit everything. Our wiring and mast base fittings were in good condition, so they were re used. I hope this helps some.
You will need to lower the mast and remove the cap, I found that the anchor wire at the mast head exits the conduit under the top cap, so close, that there is no room to pull the wire out. With the top cap off, we found it formes an S shape, from the light fitting down 2 inches or so, then up and into the conduit. (probably to minimise moisture into the conduit. We were able to bring almost five inches of wire back to the lamp base, and still have enough to re fit everything. Our wiring and mast base fittings were in good condition, so they were re used. I hope this helps some.
John, you should be able to remove the head...
cap with the stick up? I would prefer to do the work leaving it up rather than go to all the trouble of hiring a crane crew to lower and raise it, plus the boom and rigging IMHO. Terry
cap with the stick up? I would prefer to do the work leaving it up rather than go to all the trouble of hiring a crane crew to lower and raise it, plus the boom and rigging IMHO. Terry
So can I Remove the cap with the stick up?
Terry and John (and others): First off I am going to be stiff with terror, but this is as good a time as ever to start going up. What tools will it take and can I remove the cap if I am up top using the main halyard? If it has screws or bolts and “pops” in I should be able to remove it I would think. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Rodney S/V Avanti
Terry and John (and others): First off I am going to be stiff with terror, but this is as good a time as ever to start going up. What tools will it take and can I remove the cap if I am up top using the main halyard? If it has screws or bolts and “pops” in I should be able to remove it I would think. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Rodney S/V Avanti
Rodney, I'll defer to others regarding the head...
cap removal on your boat, assuming that there is one. I would say yes. If it is held inplace with pop type rivets you can remove them with an over sized drill bit to remove the rivet head. The anchor light fixture and wiring on our boat was easy to access withour removing any kind of head cap. As far as going up the stick, search the archives on this site for lots of information about the procedure. I had two fellow sailboat skippers winch me up; one on the main halyard and one on the topping lift as a safety backup. Beers were plentiful afterwards. Terry
cap removal on your boat, assuming that there is one. I would say yes. If it is held inplace with pop type rivets you can remove them with an over sized drill bit to remove the rivet head. The anchor light fixture and wiring on our boat was easy to access withour removing any kind of head cap. As far as going up the stick, search the archives on this site for lots of information about the procedure. I had two fellow sailboat skippers winch me up; one on the main halyard and one on the topping lift as a safety backup. Beers were plentiful afterwards. Terry
Good advice Terry
I was freaking out when I read he was new to ascending the mast. Rodney, I'm sure you will ask for advice, right? There's lots to keep in mind, safety wise. Like not using a snap shackle and lanyards on your tools. (or hardhats for your crew)
And Rodney, where is Burnt Store Marina? That is such a cool name.
I was freaking out when I read he was new to ascending the mast. Rodney, I'm sure you will ask for advice, right? There's lots to keep in mind, safety wise. Like not using a snap shackle and lanyards on your tools. (or hardhats for your crew)
And Rodney, where is Burnt Store Marina? That is such a cool name.Burnt Store - Charollote Harbor - Fla.
Fred: I am attaching a web link. Burnt Store is just North of Ft. Myers, Fla (25 miles). We can be sailing 10 minutes after dropping our dock lines. We are just off Charolotte Harbor. The mailing address is Punta Gorda, but we are actually about as close to Cape Coral. Nice location. Charolotte Harbor is easy sailing, and it is a ten mile straight shot out into the Gulf. We also have a house in Virginia and it is a 900 mile (14 hour) drive every chance we get. We spend about 3 months a year down there. Unfortunately at present we are here in western Virginia with six inches of snow on the ground and are currently getting freezing rain on top.
Fred: I am attaching a web link. Burnt Store is just North of Ft. Myers, Fla (25 miles). We can be sailing 10 minutes after dropping our dock lines. We are just off Charolotte Harbor. The mailing address is Punta Gorda, but we are actually about as close to Cape Coral. Nice location. Charolotte Harbor is easy sailing, and it is a ten mile straight shot out into the Gulf. We also have a house in Virginia and it is a 900 mile (14 hour) drive every chance we get. We spend about 3 months a year down there. Unfortunately at present we are here in western Virginia with six inches of snow on the ground and are currently getting freezing rain on top.
Rodney, beautiful. But,,,
We got ya beat! We can sail off of our docks or out of our berths. But only when the weather is nice. Maybe you've got me beat. *o
We got ya beat! We can sail off of our docks or out of our berths. But only when the weather is nice. Maybe you've got me beat. *o
Masthead cap
The mast cap is not removable from a mast climbing devise, or a boswain chair because all the lines cross inside the cap. Both Main and Jib halyards cross and the back stay and forestay are fastened to the cap. SOOO tahing the mast down (by professionals) is the way to do this repair. Sorry.
The mast cap is not removable from a mast climbing devise, or a boswain chair because all the lines cross inside the cap. Both Main and Jib halyards cross and the back stay and forestay are fastened to the cap. SOOO tahing the mast down (by professionals) is the way to do this repair. Sorry.
John, why does the cap have to be removed ...
to do the repair? Can he remove the anchor light fixture from the head? Ours is bolted on and when you remove it the wires are exposed. Terry
to do the repair? Can he remove the anchor light fixture from the head? Ours is bolted on and when you remove it the wires are exposed. Terry
Fixture not on Cap
The fixture is on a bracket attached to the mast below the cap and the wire comes out of a hole on the starboard side of the mast very close to the top. It has a lot of sealant around the hole. I am 900 miles away from the boat right now and cannot verify that the halyards come through the cap, as John suggests, but since it is a H336 we can be sure that a back stay does not originate there as he reported. Thanks for all the comments guys, Rodney
The fixture is on a bracket attached to the mast below the cap and the wire comes out of a hole on the starboard side of the mast very close to the top. It has a lot of sealant around the hole. I am 900 miles away from the boat right now and cannot verify that the halyards come through the cap, as John suggests, but since it is a H336 we can be sure that a back stay does not originate there as he reported. Thanks for all the comments guys, Rodney
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