Do you take your mast apart when trailering? My trailer has a mast rest, and so far, I've left the mast together, put it on the rest, and then balanced the back end on the rear crossbeam, then bungee both ends down. When driving, it only hangs about 2-3 feet off the back of the cat. Keep in mind that on my cat, both parts of the mast are aluminum. Another thing to keep in mind is that the halyard line runs inside the mast (in the same channel the sail rises up inside), so I'm not quite sure how taking the mast apart would affect the halyard itself.
Is there any danger in leaving the mast in one piece while traveling? If you take it apart, how do you then use the mast rest?
I'd like to thank everyone who's been taking the time to answer my newbie questions. You guys have been great.
Two-piece mast and trailering
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- Rank: Lubber
- Registered: Jul 24, 2008
- Last visit: Aug 08, 2008
- Posts: 24
Posted: Aug 07, 2008 - 09:52 PM
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- Rank: Mate
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Posted: Aug 07, 2008 - 10:04 PM
On my Playcat, I break apart the mast into the two pieces because it is easier for me to transport. There isn't any danger in leaving the mast in one piece as long as it is supported well enough during travel (and you avoid all those nasty potholes
). As for the halyard, it must be loosened out of the lower mast section just to get the sections to slide out, and if you want to store the mast sections more than a foot away from each other, then you would have to completely take the halyard out of the lower mast section. I wouldn't break it apart if I didn't have to because it is a pain at the beginning of the season to re-rig running rigging.
Yellowhulls -
- Rank: Lubber
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Posted: Aug 07, 2008 - 10:15 PM
It isn't supported anywhere except on the mast rest and on the rear crossbeam (nowhere else to brace it). -
- Rank: Master Chief
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Posted: Aug 08, 2008 - 10:18 AM
I would secure it VERY well... so well that if (and when) it separates in transit... it won?t fall off your boat/trailer onto the ground, or into another cars windshield.
I have had a Hobie 16 mast come off its cradle (after hitting a low tree branch) and hit a parked car. I NEVER used a bungee to secure it again after that... LINE... LINE.... LINE
We had a guy forget to secure his mast (on the trailer side) and it bounced off the cradle... swong out and KILLED an on coming car (impaled the driver throught the windsheild)...
With towing comes allot of responsibility to the other drivers... our mistake in securing our gear can cost lives....
gotta go with murphies law... if it can break, fall off, damage something.. it probably will... just to be safe.
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