mast electric wiring

[ebb]

Jerry, that's a neat mast plate indeed.
I still have the front hinged Buzz Ballenger version (1/2" pin!) that has the top plate sit flat on top of the bottom one. Not using it.
I like your lofted version because it will allow having a taller collar fitting thru the deck. To resist incidental moisture. My new Huntington Beach style rolling mast sits on another Ballenger plate inside a couple tall vertical plates welded to it, that the bolt goes thru: thru both plates and the mast with the pivot at exactly two inches off the plate the mast rolls & sits on! The plate will most likely be blocked up to the correct height if needed.
So I might construct a collar of sorts. But it's not going to happen.

The possible hole for the wires, inside a very constricted mast footprint, will no doubt bend wires too radically when lowering the mast. A wire 'bundle' is not limp and rope-like They will bind. Maybe a TWO inch diameter scupper could lead unbending wires thru without hanging up anywhere? Yah sure! Waterproofing that would be no problem, would it?

Just checked back to your post. Good thing, because there I discovered that you are entering the mast wires thru the deck well forward toward your pivot. Why didn't I see that? Denial? Anyway that is the only place where there are less corners, so to speak, for the bundle to hang up on. It's only a few inches at the most but it obviously it'll be enough. And below, there's the aesthetic of dangling wires dang in the middle of it all.
Not possible for litlgull's mast because the front of it is cutaway into a radius. Have no doubt yours works as planned!
I'm sure you'll have it figured to lower & raise without messing with the wires at all! That's the deal.

Wonder if I'll be able to do something similar with a rubber umbilical hose off the side of the mast. That's the challenge.
One problem is to find a protective tube of great flexibility that will allow everthing to stay in place when bending through 90 degrees. Don't believe a super flexible UV stable rubber hose exists. Maybe bicycle tire tube?
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PVC TUBE INSTALLATION
A 'guest' was looking at an old thread: "All those wires inside my mast gotta go" on the whoz-online-page, so I peeked in.
It's the one Scott Galloway started. At the end of the second page, at post #26, bill@ariel231 shows a very neat (if a bit messy) way of attaching pvc tube to the inside of the mast - WITHOUT RIVETS. Thread dates from 2007. Wonder if it's still attached?
Have to go there to find out how........
[mmumble-snarf..how does bill the magician get 6 wires? for the steaming light that is half? the distance up the mast? to turn out the bitty? hole in the side? of the conduit - and then out? the side of the mast?...mumbull...ah humm...?]<brain drain in process.
Not even a well trained mouse with a messenger line taped to its tail could do it...
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way later EDIT: FullnBy Bill asked a direct question about getting the cast aluminum fitting out of the top of the mast. Running thru the thread
I realize he may not have been kidding.
A338 must have always been a saltwater boat. The masthead casting is rough pitted and shows its history.
It is visually still strong:
The stay clevis pin holes show minor wear after four decades. But the flanges the holes are drilled thru are gnawed and gouged.
Can't recall exactly, but having this fitting right here I can see that four of the six tapped holes have been drilled out. Two of the holes have the remains of the old screws at strange angles still inside the holes. There were also some added screws that may be remains of that jib-block tang that
caused disasterous corrosion to the aluiminum above the sheave box, eating it away. There was I remember a great white pad of oxide under the
tang. At the time I didn't understand what that stuff was, I thought it was some kind of bondo caulk!
Essentially the removal process was drilling out existing and broken screws with cobalt bits, probably with increasing bit sizes. It knocked out finally. But it was welded on and compacted with white oxide. These fasteners were/are right at the top of the mast, so I must have been as careful as I can.
The eight or so empty holes are now filled with LabMetal. The sheave slot - corroded open to the top of the mast - may have made it easier to knock out the casting. The casting is imco still pretty massive and heavy. Don't think it's crystallized. Originally a very nice casting. And amazing that rigging was directly connected to it all this time. Almag.
The corrosion up top may have been helped along by stray electrical currents from wiring. Almag cleats, in almost new condition, had to be destroyed to remove them, because the fastenings were corro-welded to the mast. Had to saw off the heel casting - nothing could be done to get that SOB out. In fact the corrosion and perhaps the immense pressure of the mast on the step belled out the extrusion all around the bottom - so it was really jammed!

I'm convinced that anytime we put any metal next to any metal - aluminum to aluminum especially - we must completely isolate the pieces. Decommissioning A338's mast is a great lesson in aluminum corrosion. Can't merely use tape to isolate. Use a teflon paste in every screw hole and between every piece of contact metal AND any other kind of material like winch pads and thru-mast fittings. Use 20mil underground plastic tape and
teflon gel.