Mast Foot for more rigging adjustment

[multimedia_smith]

I was experimenting with mast rake for balance and I ran out of "play" in the forestay... so I ground a couple of threads off the ends going into the turnbuckle (almost down to the stop holes) and although I could get things pretty balanced and tight... I felt that I didn't have any margin.

The remedy?  Raise the Mast (albeit slightly)... I made a new mast foot out of 1" plexi and gained 5/8" over the (compressed) 3/8" plywood foot that was made by the PO... The plywood stayed wet anyway and was starting to corrode the bottom of the mast a little anyway.  The boat is balanced to perfection now and the new foot looks pretty slick.

For those of you who can't go sailing this week...
Here are a couple of photo montages of the project...
Enjoy..
Dale
http://www.com-pacowners.com/4images/details.php?image_id=488

http://www.com-pacowners.com/4images/details.php?image_id=486

http://www.com-pacowners.com/4images/details.php?image_id=487

[multimedia_smith]

here is the corrected link for the second image :?

http://www.com-pacowners.com/4images/details.php?image_id=488

[TroyVB]

Hi Dale,

The new mast foot looks great.  My CP16 does not have one.  It's such a neat piece of boat jewlery that I think she needs it and I've got quite a bit of winter left here in Northern Michigan.

Where did you find the 1" piece of Plexiglass?  It looks to me like you don't need much but I worry that a sheet would be terribly expensive.  If you could direct me to a source I would appreciate it.

The other question that I have is what do you use for software to put together your pictures?  You do a fantastic job of showing us your upgrades.  Keep up the good work.

[multimedia_smith]

Thanks... I use plain old Corel Draw to composite and add text... and either Corel Photo Paint or Painter (my favorite) for cropping and modifying images..

The 1" plexi is a good story...
I have been an A/V producer for several decades... back in the "salad years" of corporate extravaganza's, I was doing several recognition events for NYNEX... we would stage events in places like Bermuda, or Orlando... shoot for three days, edit for three nights and show a "capper" review of the event before people went on their way ("fun"?!).   Anyway we were in Palm Springs doing a site visit, and while we were walking the grounds to see where to do the outdoor laser and fireworks show... one of my "crew" mentioned (in front of the client!!) that it would be "neat to have the CEO walk on the water at the evening event"... the client bit on this and it involved hiring divers to build an underwater scaffolding in their pond (so as not to puncture the liner... this was the desert after all...) and making a platform of plexiglass just beneath the surface of the water... The Hotel had a waterfall in the lobby and a "moat" that came in and out as part of the glass wall opened up for it...  they made a little dock and the CEO was to pull up to the dock to toast the crowd and then (surprise) step out of the boat and walk to the shore... I never liked the idea and it was fraught with problems that I, as technical director and producer had to deal with... not the least of which was the fact that their "lake" was also the reservoir for watering their golf course...  this became evident on the afternoon of the show when we walked out to set up the pyro and the sprinklers came on... besides diving to cover everything... we noticed that the plexi ramp was now standing a few inches ABOVE THE SURFACE OF THE WATER!!!... we coordinated with the physical plant guys and the thing came off... and to make a very long story short... at the end of the gig (being the wasteful salad corp years) I asked them what to do with the plexi... and they replied to ditch it... well, I told the crew to load it up and I now have light tables made from it as well as a few scraps that I make stuff out of... but anyway it makes a good story... with much time to heal... :roll:
There are some plastics companies that have "cut out" bins... I have gotten pieces from them for decks on RC sailboats etc...