These six photo composition pages all loaded smaller than meant to.
[ OK, screwed up. This is a first try at posting photos. This a group of six compositions.
They all loaded together like newborn puppies. So you will have to bear with us on this. The first Comp 1 is the first three photos, which I was told I had to text before blindly uploading. microsoft medieval managing]
Notice the 1/2" wood dowel in the top photo in relation to the level balanced on the track-flat?.....
That's how w a y off Pearson drilled holes for the spreader sockers & lowers..!
Next two shots show a sliding box jig marked with center-lines and hole locations. Multi-purpose.
The interior dimensions are straight lines, obviously, makes it real easy to find, for instance, the center line of the mast extrusion. Sides and front! Can be used to lay out any straight line along the mast, not just centers.
For example: not only were the factory spreader cup brackets crooked HORIZONTALLY - as seen by the wonkus dowel - but also VERTICALLY. Top bolt not in line with the bottom bolt. And not only that: the brackets weren't 'installed' on the centerline of the mast! Too radical to fix THAT. Can't blame it on a DFO, only four bolt holes showed when the mast was taken apart. Can see on the left foto of the box jig how OFF CENTER the oversized bolthole is. A compromise fix - because of the midmast concentration of fittings and holes.
There aren't too many 1/2" holes in the mast, guanantee matching 90degree guide holes in the sleeve jig were drilled on the drillpress - 3/4" ply sides stacked - before it was assembled. Obvious, but it works.
Photo on the right shows how the top pair of crooked holes were fixed OK by offset drilling using the jig with more alined larger ones. The larger hole fits a 3/4"OD-1/2"ID s.s. compression tube that the bolt for the lowers slips thru. Cut & polish the ends square for washers and tangs to seat on!
The tang's bolt in the tube can not be tightened so much as to deform the mast, because thread-end provides refusal. The tube also is a bearing in that it increases surface area for the active pulling on the bolt by the four lowers. Thought this a good solution because the new spreader bar, just above the lower shrouds, floats in its thru hole - using the slip-on spreaders mounted tight against the outside of the mast to keep the system from shifting.
Sleeve box jig is also a pattern for routing the 2"R quarter circle (out of the front 1/3 of the 6" length of the mast section) for SantaCruz/HuntingtonBeach FORWARD mast lowering. Jig also locates the off-set 'hinge' bolt that the Ballenger tabernacle requires. The mast rolls on its bottom for which a 3" thick G-10 insert to share mast load is provided (not shown.) Tabernacle is the essense of simplitity.
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Next four same size mast shots, from left to right:
1) Shows bar that hollow airfoil spreaders slip over. Also the new 3/4" tang-bolt hole for the lowers.
2) Shows the new Louchard Delrin sheave and new welded sleeve being fitted. Darker gray is reconstruction material on the track side of the mast at the head, and metal filler used to fair 45 years of squeezing & corrosion by the sheave bolt nut - that also tangs the upper shrouds that keep the mast up.
3) Opposite view of the sleeve. Jig was used at the mast head to check Pearson's hole drilling and slot cutting expertise. Good job there!
Helped layout the widened slot on the front side of the mast. Track flat side widening is a no-brainer.
New sleeve (with welded top & bottom pieces) bears on mast, provides extra support for the hard working 1/2" bolt. Imco, sleeve improves structure at the top of the mast by supporting sheave where the bolt load is. Except for the bolt, no other fastenings to keep it easy to disassemble for inside access.
4) Prepped mast mid-section just befor painting. Shows filled upper bolthole, and location of new spreaders in relation to the original double bolts.
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Next group: two shots of mishmash molding set-up for winch bases - cheekblock bases - and inside/outside electrical fairing fitting (meant to created a waterproof wire continuity thru mast and thru deck (not shown.) mylar and p.ethylene dimensional sheet provide mold release.
Shot with blue tape shows already hard inside/outside cookies taped together for drilling. The hole saw (actually two holesaws) were used (not on the mast there!) to make the thru-mast pad rings for the white Maralon thru-hull.
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[Sorry about the size. Zooming to 150% helps with the photos.]
Set of five showing the ballet of getting the famous Wichard Solent Stay Tang INTO the mast - thru that narrow slot. The two part butterfly tang is ingenious and French and customizable all at the same time. If anybody is interested in this, maybe we can figure out how to enlarge this set.....
1) Where to place the extra forestay? How we gonna run the fall from the masthead sheave?
2) Shows that when the tang is slipped into the slot, both flanges have sharp corners bearing on the mast inside that must be rounded over. Stainless wins over Aluminum every time. (A good portion of this fitting lives permanently inside the mast - any grinding must be buffed to a high polish to reduce chance corrosion that can't be seen.)
3) Showing that result.
4) Helpful scale drawing shows the tang as it will be when inside the mast - to accurately locate the offset for eight fastening holes that have to be drilled into the mast from outside. Fitting comes with holes already drilled in the flange(s) - they were redrilled and tapped for 1/4-28 machine screws. Holes in mast drilled for a slip fit.
5) Made easy hole drilling..... missed one anyway!
The diameter of that large hole for the stay (have seen pics of this tang with smaller diameter shackle pin holes) is 18.43mm[23/32"]
It requires a bronze bushing for any normal sized shackle or clevis pin. My rig terminates in 7/16" pins. Catalog McMasterCarr: 7811K17. Alloy 660 Sleeve Bearing for 12mmshaft[15/32"]. 18mmOD[23/32"]. Bushing length is 15/32", actually this 'width' fits snugly inside 7/16" strap-toggles. And bears well enough in the 1/4" thick hole of the tang's double plate.
Tang connecting pins, shackles, toggles will always hang straight. Good for a Solent stay that will be loose and tensioned intermittently.
Imco, the concept genius of the Wichard stay tang is how it mounts INSIDE the mast - depending on no outside mast fastenings to hang it. Does want those fastenings to lock in the narrow 2-part tang, and keep it from being pulled down the mast. Consider the Solent a backup forestay.
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Last three (reduced size) photos show the roll & tip mast. Numerous Aluthane and System3 WRLPU coats result in little buildup. Mast could almost be a new anodized stick. Little shot shows chain dragged thru the interior on the track side to break off worms from track hole filling. Some idea of a successful refurbish of the multi holed flat - and rebuild to top of mast. Jib-block tang won't go back there, unless a new design is made that gets support from the sides of the mast - it's not full restoration.
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