Hielke van Oostrum
You were asking about raising the mast without a crane.
Albin sold some Vegas with a simple device to raise/lower the mast.
This was on our boat (no. 1492) when we bought it, and I have seen it
on another boat in Ontario. There must be other boats with it,
doesn't anyone else know about it?
The main part was a tubular stainless steel A-frame which could be
left on the boat if you wished, it fitted around the bow, just inside
the stanchions and pulpit. Each "foot" was attached by a bolt to a
very simple fitting at the base of the stanchions which were level
with the mast. In addition, there was a flat hook at the base of
the mast, at the back, which sat on a pin at the back of the
pedestal/tabernacle. It was also necessary to have some kind of
wooden crutch at the stern to hold the mast when it was lying back
along the boat.
With this, my wife and I can raise or lower the mast by ourselves,
and have done so many times. However it helps to have a third person
to watch for fouled wires, and to look after the electrical wires
coming out of the mast.
To raise the mast, the forestay is attached to the point of the A-
frame. The A-frame is vertical in the middle of the boat. The
mainsheet is attached to the point of the A-frame and to some good
fitting at the bow. At this point I get into the cockpit and
provide the initial lift to the mast, as it is hinged at the
tabernacle. That is hard, and it helps if the third person is on the
cabin roof and assists, then takes over the lifting. My wife stands
in the bow and with one hand, pulls in the mainsheet. After I have
heaved it up to a certain angle, she lifts the mast the rest of the
way to vertical. By this time, the A-frame has rotated to lie flat
in the bow.
Lowering it is just the opposite. The A-frame starts horizontal, and
my wife lowers the mast one-handed until I can reach it from the
cabin roof and let the weight down into the crutch.
The equipment does not have to be fancy. One year I was clumsy and
bent a leg on the A-frame so it would not take the load. We put up
the mast with an A-frame lashed together out of pieces of 2 x 4
lumber. Later, had another stainless A-frame made.
There are quite a few things that must be done right with shrouds,
etc. A few years ago, the American Vega newsletter published the
instructions along with my sketches. If anyone wants a copy of
these, let me know your mailing address or fax no.
John
J.B. Sprague, Salt Spring Island, B.C., Flagfish no. 1492
You were asking about raising the mast without a crane.
Albin sold some Vegas with a simple device to raise/lower the mast.
This was on our boat (no. 1492) when we bought it, and I have seen it
on another boat in Ontario. There must be other boats with it,
doesn't anyone else know about it?
The main part was a tubular stainless steel A-frame which could be
left on the boat if you wished, it fitted around the bow, just inside
the stanchions and pulpit. Each "foot" was attached by a bolt to a
very simple fitting at the base of the stanchions which were level
with the mast. In addition, there was a flat hook at the base of
the mast, at the back, which sat on a pin at the back of the
pedestal/tabernacle. It was also necessary to have some kind of
wooden crutch at the stern to hold the mast when it was lying back
along the boat.
With this, my wife and I can raise or lower the mast by ourselves,
and have done so many times. However it helps to have a third person
to watch for fouled wires, and to look after the electrical wires
coming out of the mast.
To raise the mast, the forestay is attached to the point of the A-
frame. The A-frame is vertical in the middle of the boat. The
mainsheet is attached to the point of the A-frame and to some good
fitting at the bow. At this point I get into the cockpit and
provide the initial lift to the mast, as it is hinged at the
tabernacle. That is hard, and it helps if the third person is on the
cabin roof and assists, then takes over the lifting. My wife stands
in the bow and with one hand, pulls in the mainsheet. After I have
heaved it up to a certain angle, she lifts the mast the rest of the
way to vertical. By this time, the A-frame has rotated to lie flat
in the bow.
Lowering it is just the opposite. The A-frame starts horizontal, and
my wife lowers the mast one-handed until I can reach it from the
cabin roof and let the weight down into the crutch.
The equipment does not have to be fancy. One year I was clumsy and
bent a leg on the A-frame so it would not take the load. We put up
the mast with an A-frame lashed together out of pieces of 2 x 4
lumber. Later, had another stainless A-frame made.
There are quite a few things that must be done right with shrouds,
etc. A few years ago, the American Vega newsletter published the
instructions along with my sketches. If anyone wants a copy of
these, let me know your mailing address or fax no.
John
J.B. Sprague, Salt Spring Island, B.C., Flagfish no. 1492