Attaching Fittings to Mast or Boom

[Neil McDonald]

I am planning to upgrade my jiffy reef system to run a single reefing line back to the cockpit. There was a god article on this in a recent Sail magazine. I will need to attached various fittings to the mast and/or boom. Is it just a matter of drilling the right size hole, tap a thread and then use regular SS bolts? Will this be strong enough to attach, say, a turning block? What about using Locktite and or lock washers? I assume that blind rivets are not appropriate.Any tips?

 

[Ross in Tampa]

look into a rivet gun...

I have seen some relatively inexpensive rivet guns out there. I think that would be the way to go. My 2 cents.

 

[Hugh McCully]

Self Tapping Screws

were what I used when I attached turning blocks to my boom when I installed single line reefing. That was several years ago and the system is still going strong. Once you have that installed you will wonder why it took you so long to do it!

 

[Timo42]

What size screw, how thick is the boom?

The proper size and material blind rivet is superior to drilling and tapping aluminum, especially in thin sections, self tapping sheetmetal screws *yks Hugh, no offence, but those are an accident waiting to happen, 1 maybe 2 threads in the aluminum, dissimilar metals, low tensile strength. 1/4" rivets are very strong and don't come loose. Tim

 

[Ross]

If you follow the link to the McMaster-Carr catalog pages

You will find an array of rivet nuts that is comprehensive. And they have the proper tools for insertion. Don't buy junk. I will gladly travel to your boat with the proper tools and supplies and do the installation for you, for travel expenses plus lodging plus food plus 80 dollars per hour plus materials cost. OR you can spend 50-75 dollars for proper tools and material and do the job yourself.

 

[Dick Westwood]

for what it's worth

When I attach something to my boom or mast, I make a "backing" for it, cut out of a plastic milk bottle - so that the stainless steel of the hardware is not in direct contact with the aluminum of the spar.I've used both aluminum rivets (for my Garhauer rigid vang's attachment to the boom) and stainless self tapping screws (for example, for the rigid vang's attachment to the mast). In the latter case, with locktite. Both systems work just great in handling what has to be quite a bit of load.I'd go with rivets, if I were you. I haven't personally noticed the tightness problem that Liam mentions. Like Ross in Tampa states, you can get a gun (and a set of rivets) pretty inexpensively. And the riveting itself is really easy to do.

 

[Neil McDonald]

Thanks for the feedback

I think that we have beaten this topic to death. One last thought....one advantage of the pop (blind) rivet over the rivnut is that it does not need an experienced tool operator to properly set the inner (hidden) flange. Breaking the mandrel does this for you.