mast stepping

[beallright]

Hi folks
I've been boating my whole life but this is my first sail powered boat a Pearson 30 .I would like to rewire the mast and maybe change some lights and inspect things .The best way to do this is by lowering the mast .My question is how are some of the ways I can accomplish this ? is a crane my only option or are there other ways ? Thanks in advance.

 

[Gail R]

You'll need a crane

Yup, you're gonna need a crane. That mast is way too heavy to handle by yourself, even with a couple of your closest friends.

We step/unstep our Pearson 30 mast using a crane at our town dock. We're lucky that way. Most of our friends have a local yard step/unstep their mast at considerable cost.

If you don't have access to a crane, call around to various yards, or better yet, talk to local boat owners to see what they do about mast stepping/unstepping. Get some recommendations, because not all yards are created equal.

Most importantly --- BE THERE when the yard does the deed! Make sure they know yours is a deck-stepped mast and it WILL come crashing to the ground if they unhook all the shrouds before hooking it up to the crane. Don't ask me how I know this!