Before I Put The Mast Up

[Mickey Goodman]

I have a 88 Legend 37 which I hope to have the mast stepped at the end of April - first of May. Due to the mast being 59 feet tall I planned to have the boat stored during the winter without unstepping the mast.My question is two fold. 1. Should I put a lighting arrester on the mast? Is it really necessary?2. Since my plan is not to unstep the mast in the winter is there anything I should make sure is done before the mast is stepped? I boat didn't come with spreader lights which I am installing now. The boat did not come with a spinnaker and there is no spinnaker hallard on the mast, even though there is a roller at the top of the mast to accomodate one.Your help is appreciated.

 

[Stephen Ostrander]

mast

The term "lightning arrester" is misleading because there is no device that will prevent lightning from striking your mast. What the devices do is dissapate charged ions from your boat and/or the water around it so that lightning has less of an inclination to strike your mast. If you read the gaurantees of the products, they don't gaurantee that lightning won't strike your mast, they just promise to pay for some of the damages if it does. If lightning does strike your boat, its a good bet that your'e going to lose your electronics, with or without a dissapator. But the decision is yours, and I'm sure some other HOWies will check in with their opinions.I would inspect and lube all the sheaves and inspect and repair all electrical connections before stepping the mast. Test the wiring with a continuity tester and test replace any bulbs that fried. Now would be the time to replace any old or worn halyards. Also lube the mainsail slide track with an appropriate lube, but don't use a petroleum product or WD40 because it will gum up and stain the sail.

 

[Jay Hill]

Mast Base Chores

I would take the time to connectorize all the wires if not already done. It GREATLY reduces the amount of time required to step/unstep and if you're paying a yard to do it, well, you can save hundreds by having a connector for the wires. I'd also perform the weep hole drilling and thru-hose (spelled correctly) discussed here in HOW.

 

[Paul Akers]

Extra Halyard

I have a spinnaker halyard on my boat, but never use it because I don't have a spinnaker. I do take comfort in the fact that I , at least, have a spare halyard available if I need it. I even replaced it last year when I replaced my other halyards. Just be sure that it's tied off in an out-of-the-way place.