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Upside-down hybrid mast

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  • 21 May 2020 02:41
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    Reply # 8983242 on 8982609
    Anonymous member

    Hi Jeff,

    Welcome aboard!

    From your profile I gather that you will be sailing on Lake Michigan. I am over on the other side of the lake. The Contessa 26 is one of the boats burned into my memory from reading John Vigor's Twenty Small Sailboats to Take You Anywhere over and over again before buying my first keel boat. It would be amazing to visit Navy Pier and see your junk rigged Contessa 26 underway from the top of the ferris wheel! 

    I just recently purchased a pole that I hope will be a mast some day. The company that provided the 6063 alloy tube is even closer to you, assuming you are in Chicago. If you are interested I can send you the contact information in a private message.

    I expect you will find many businesses willing to sell you a straight tube of stronger 6061 alloy. I think it might be less costly to build a hybrid mast, square or round, right side up or upside-down, with a straight tube. I may be wrong, but I also expect it will be more time consuming to build a hybrid mast compared to buying a tapered pole.
  • 21 May 2020 02:06
    Quote
    Reply # 8983190 on 8982609
    Anonymous member

    There is no reason why it would not work.  The advantages you point out are valid, and I often wish I had a nice timber mast inside the boat instead of a cold alloy one.  However, everything comes with a price.  The diameter of the lower section will need to be larger at the partners than it is with alloy.  Also, it will be more complicated, I think, the sort out the taper.  With the alloy section at the bottom, you use a straight tube for the bottom half, then add a tapered timber section above.  With the wider timber bottom section, you are going to have to taper it before it meets the alloy topmast, and match the tapers.  But I seem to remember it has been done.
  • 20 May 2020 20:50
    Quote
    Message # 8982609
    Anonymous

    I am working though the progress of designing a rig for my contessa 26. I have a sail plan for a split junk with an area of 305 sq. ft. My first thought was to buy a flag pole. I can probably get just about any size and dimension but everything is made of 6063 around here. And it ain't cheap neither! It is definitely still a possibility though.

    Arnie's hybrid mask seems like the way to go. I was thinking too hard today, and was wondering if anyone has built it the other way around. Wood on bottom, aluminum top section? My thoughts are...

    Wood can handle the high stress levels at the mast partner without work hardening.

    I can have a square foot and partner to distribute force over a larger surface area.

    I can access the wood section easily to keep it maintained.

    I can make a very good joint between the two by fitting the wood to match the ID of the aluminum. even offering of foot for the aluminum to rest on.

    Wood inside the boat looks nice, and I can hang a picture of Mom on it.

    The "lighter material" would be placed higher on the rig. ( I know this will make for a heavier mast potentially. With more wood, more weight) 

    This is just a wild idea I want to throw out there. I really have no idea what I am doing. This is my first post so I hope y'all can throw me a bone. 

    Jeff
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