Sun Cat Mast Step

[Galnorth]

I have had a few sails in my recently purchased 2001 sun cat and noticed that the stays seemed pretty slack.  I assumed it was just the rigging working it's way out  and tightened up the turnbuckles a bit but when I went out today in moderate winds everything got loose pretty fast.  After returning to the dock and doing a full inspection it appears that the plywood supporting the mast step had failed completely allowing the bottom of mast to slide down.  The ply is wet and I assume absorbed water coming down the mast.  Has anyone else experienced a similar problem or has suggestions for the repair?  I'll obviously need to replace the ply but I'm a little surprised that it doesn't seem to supported by the hull on the bottom, just tabbed to the hull the anchor locker and forward cabin bulkhead.

[Shawn]

Check out post 18 in this thread:

http://cpyoa.geekworkshosting.com/forum/index.php?topic=3653.0

A Horizon cat owner had the same thing but he was dismasted when the step collapsed.

Shawn

[Tom Ray]

If you store a Sun Cat with the mast down, you have a mast-sized hole in the top of the boat. It needs to be plugged or covered somehow. It can allow in an impressive amount of water in a storm.

[steve brown]

On my new suncat NUNKI, I noticed a small amount of water got into the mast step locker. I looked up through the mast sail track and saw a bit of daylight. Hutchins fill this slot at the deck line with sealant but apparently missed a spot. I added some sealant for a fix. An easy solution for sealing the open mast against water entry: I cut the bottom off of a Goldbond body powder container 3 inches from the bottom, cut a small tab on one end to clear the electric wires (leave the tab on). this slips nicely over the mast stub. I plan to cover the boat for the winter so this a temporary measure until fall maintenance is complete. Lets hope next year is a better season here in the NE. Steve