Can this mast be unstepped?

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markc1976

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Mar 21, 2010
16
Hunter H30 New Bern, NC
Hi All,
I have a 1979 Hunter 30 and this is my second year working on this darn thing. Last summer I swapped out the Yanmar engine and this is the summer to tackle some of the electrical problems on the boat. One of the areas of interest is the mast. Nothing works on it. The lights are out, the wind instruments are broken with parts missing and to make matters worse I have a jib halyard that has broken loose. Here is the questions I pose. Would it be better to go up the mast and work with fishing tape etc, go the route of the cherry picker, or unstep the mast. From a stictly labor standpoint I think unstepping the mast will make all things easier but I'm not sure how this can be done with this boat or mast. I've enclosed some pictures, anyone with any imput on how to best accomplish this would be welcomed. With this mast am I going to need to cut into the fiberglass or will I need to cut away the weather proofing and this will slide up? The work that I want to do is to replace the lights, replace the wind instrument (not the end or the world if I have to go without this), and replace the main halyard and halyard for the jib. With the replacements I assume that I will need to replace the wiring as well. Thanks for any imput.
 

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DannyS

DannyS

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May 27, 2004
933
Beneteau 393 Bayfield, Wi
Your mast is sitting on a deck plate that keeps it from shifting from that spot and is should be supported underneath in the cabin by a compression post.. It will lift out of that plate pretty easily once you relieve the tension on the shrouds and stays. Make sure you have the crane in place and holding the mast up before you undo the shrouds and stays. You'll also have to snip the wires.
 
Bill Roosa

Bill Roosa

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Jun 6, 2006
6,990
currently boatless wishing Harrington Harbor North, MD
This is a standard deck stepped mast. After disconnecting all the other rigging and the two wire looms the crane will just lift it off the tabernacle.
Fixing lights is pretty easy if you have a helper.
First figure out which wires are which and if there is power and ground to each on the boat side of the wiring.
Disconnect the two wire looms and turn on one of the mast lights at the panel.
Probe the boat side wires two at a time with the volt meter and determine if one combination has power/ground.
Write the information down on a piece of paper
Turn off the light at the panel
Repeat for the other lights
Note that there may (or may not) be a single ground wire for all the lights. You will be able to tell which is power and which is ground by noting the meter deflection (analog meter) or the negative sign (digital meter). The meter will deflect correctly/show no negative sign when the red probe is on the hot and black probe is on the ground. It will deflect down scale or give a negative sign if the probes are reversed.

Repair as needed to get at least one power and ground for each circuit (ground may be used twice ) If you had to repair the power reconnect the wires and see if the lights work. You may not have to go up the mast!!

With the boat side wires working correctly and connected to the mast side go up the mast with your volt meter and tools
Get access to the light socket
Have a helper turn on the light at the panel
Take the light out and probe the two terminals for power.
Repair as needed.
Note that the likelihood of the wires going bad in the mast is low and you probably only have corroded sockets or burned out bulbs. You can test the blub with an ohm meter. Should read in the 12 ohm range for a 1 amp light which is typical.
The anchor light is the most fun as you have to figure out how to see down into the socket to get any idea of what is going on inside. That means you have to either have your head above the mast head or use a mirror. The former is preferred as it gives you both hands to work on things.
While you are at the mast head repair the wind instruments or do an inventory of what you need. Some instruments have a quick connect so you can bring them down for the winter. This is handy for repair also.

Good luck
 
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