Raising the mast

[philb Junkie19]

Yes I attached the the line from the gin pole to the loop around the mast, held by the cleated halyard and side to side by the short temporary stays.  Added is another pic as I lowered the mast last fall. I'd scoured the web for safe single handed raising ideas looking at all kinds of boats and techniques. Funny thing, most of what's here ended up coming from a description of a CP19. I'm not sure if I remember right but it seems that the writer was describing what the owner did. Maybe someone here recollects the boat and owner.  Using the mast step bolt for the gin pole pivot made this much safer than other many gin pole approaches and it proved to be easy to take out and put back in when the mast was raised and stays and shrouds attached.

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[philb Junkie19]

Trying again to post direct

[marc]

OK. I see what you did.

I think you may have used info I posted here in 2013. The gin pole construction, attachment and pulleys are a duplicate of what I had described and shown in my photos. Don't know what happened. I can retrieve my text but not my photos so good thing your pics are here. I was moving my mast without any temporary stays. Instead I let the mast lean against my body as the primary way to keep the mast centered as it was raised and lowered. Recently I got thinking that I ought to make some adjustments to my method to try to limit things that can go wrong. I will incorporate your system into my procedure this year.

Thanks, Marc

[mayrel]

Raising and lowering the mast is a factor for us too.  I recently purchased our 95' CP19 with a gin pole arrangement the PO fabricated.  He used the main halyard winch on the cabin top, ran the jib halyard to the gin pole and another line through the anchor bow roller to the winch.  It's a two man operation at minimum.  We also had a Montgomery 17 which the PO had installed a remote controlled electric winch on the trailer mast.  You would attach the winch cable to the jib halyard, stand in the cockpit and run the mast up, keeping it from swaying sideways.  This he accomplished by himself.  The only issue we had was the winch was permanently bolted to the trailer mast, even covered, was exposed to the elements.  He also had a motor mount on the trailer and steps up to the boat.  We replaced the winch with a four part tackle system using the cabin winch, but we were younger then.  We currently keep our CP19 in a marina and I sold the trailer.  Last night I needed to drop the mast to replace the steaming light, spreader covers and wind vane; I got help from two friends and it was quite easy to lower and raise.  If I were to go back to trailer sailing, I'd opt for the remote controlled winch system; making raising and lowering a smooth operation, albeit slow.  Hope this helps...John

[Shawn]

"Yes I attached the the line from the gin pole to the loop around the mast, held by the cleated halyard and side to side by the short temporary stays."

Another way to try it is remove the line from the gin pole and just use the jib halyard to the gin pole. That should reduce the effort a little more as you are lifting from the end of the mast instead of the middle. Baby stays would stay in the same place you are using them now.

Shawn

[mayrel]

We just lowered and raised our mast on our CP19.  The boat is in a slip, which makes it a bit more challenging.  The PO made a gin pole, but it's very heavy and awkward to use.  I decided to use a three part tackle which I attached to the eyelet on the bow sprit with the other end attached to the jib halyard.  To ensure control I ran the line around the cabin winch.  Lowering the mast is easy until it gets about 30 degrees from the bottom, then you realize the weight.  Mind you, we have a CDI furler which adds weight to the mast.  Raising is actually easier.  I used the tackle to raise it about 30-35 degrees from the bottom, tied it off with the winch and horn cleat, then stepped on the cabin in front of the mast and have it a healthy heave-ho and she came right up.  The most critical issue is being sure the shrouds and back stay are free, and the back stay turnbuckle is straight up.  The PO used the anchor roller, which would work as well.  I just didn't want to remove the anchor when I had a shackle I could attach the block to the bow sprit.
We had a Montgomery 17 which was fitted with an electric winch on the trailer bow tower.  The winch was remote control making raising or lowering the mast quite easy; a one person job.  Of course, the M17 had a tall mast crutch attached to the rudder gudgeons.  A friend of mine suggested using a step ladder in the cockpit on the CP19 which would work the same as a mast crutch.  Again, our boat is kept in the water as we don't have a trailer.  I believe a smaller gin pole made of a 2x4 would work as a good gin pole, or an aluminum pole; lighter and easier to store. Hope this helps.