Noisy mast...help!

[Randy Eisel]

First a disclaimer...I love the pinging noise my mast makes when it rocks in the water. The mast head antenna knocks the inside of the mast. However, a resident near my slip space is spending his first season down here and this dingus bought a condo on a marina but doesnt like any of the sounds that resting sailboats make. So, I need advice on how to quiet my pinging mast before this clown gets me tossed. I tried pulling the cable tight at the bottom where it exits the mast and that didnt seem to help and I would rather not shoot foam into it if I can avoid it. That would be a nightmare later if it ever had to be serviced. Thank you all in advance for any advice! Randy Eisel "Event Horizon"

 

[Steve Dion]

assume that they are wrapped around the.......

spreaders on the outside or pulled away from the mast?

 

[bob skipper]

cable in mast

you could put tywraps about every foot on the cable and don't cut the tails off this will hold the cable off the inside of the mast.

 

[Anthony Bavuso]

More suggestions...

Randy,I riveted a PVC conduit onto the inside of the mast and ran all my cables through that. My biggest concern was the wires chafing from the internal halyards, but it also fixes the noise problem.I did this all when I had my mast down last winter. It was a pretty big job. I wouldn't recommend considering you don't mind the noise.I have also heard the suggestion about using the wire ties. What someone told me is to put three wires ties that form sort of a tripod every few feet up the cable that helps to keep the cable from banging into the spar. Someone also suggested that when the mast is down to put RTV on the cable and snake it into the mast and hope that some of the RTV bonds with the mast wall hence gluing the cable to the mast wall.Good luck.

 

[Peter Meyer]

Save your packing materials

Your mast might be a good place to get rid of all those styrofoam "peanuts" you get. Quiets things down, but still removable.Pete Meyer,"Clewless"

 

[BradO]

Is it the halyards?

Are you sure it is the antenna cable inside the mast? Mine is silent.The other thing is if you leave your main halyard attached to the mainsail headboard then you are going to make noise. I detach the mainsail halyard and reconnect it to the toe rail then snug it tight and lock it. The same is done to the spinnaker halyard.I used quality cable for my masthead antenna and have not experience any internal pinging.The next time your stink boat neighbor complains about pinging tell him he could always take his boat away from the dock....