jayhearts wrote:

I recently bought a Tartan 30, and I'm very happy with it. The noisy
mast however is driving me crazy. All the halyards run outside the
mast, and I can bungee them silent, but the masthead lights and
antenna are wired inside the mast and clang continiously.
Is there a standard fix for this? I am considering covering the
wires with foam pipe insulation and cable ties. Anyone out there have
any experience, suggestions or comments? Will I be trading thuds for
clangs?

Jayhearts

Glenn Ashmore wrote:
A couple of choices neither of which is easy and start by pull the
mast and removing the wire.

#1: Get some PVC conduit and assemble it alongside the mast with
junction boxes at the height of the spreader and steaming lights and
on up to the masthead. Roll the mast front side down and slip the
conduit inside the mast. Drill a hole along side the conduit and slip
a wire hook through to hold the conduit while you drill and pop rivit
the conduit in place then seal the first hole with a pop rivit.

#2: If you don't want to go to all that trouble, bundle the wires with
three heavy duty plastic wire ties every 3 or 4 feet with the tie ends
sticking out 120 degrees from each other. Leave the ends long and
pull the wire back through. The wire ties will hold the wires off the
sides of the mast.

#3) foam pipe insulation. I simply taped it closed as I pushed it up the
wires -- they didn't have to come out. (I DID have to clear some old
birds' nests before that worked, though). For the section above the
spreaders, take the head off and push down the wires. The weight is
negligible, perhaps half a pound in our case.

#1 has been called best by some experts, if you have a heavy boat and
already heavy mast and can drill the holes AND have the patience
necessary to support it. If the PVC bangs around, you get some real
noise. [That's the first time I heard of a junction box at the
spreaders: good idea, but that'll take some careful measurement.]

#2 is lightest, but if you have to replace one wire, you have to pull
everything out. Feeding to the spreaders & top of course requires two
pulling lines carefully coordinated

BTW, I stopped bungying (sp?) my halyards a couple of years ago: Got
three of the Shaeffer (I think) shroud cleats. Big eye for the shackle,
halyard gets tensioned and cleated off just behind. (We have wire/rope
halyards, so can't take them to the toe rail, my first choice.)

--
Jere Lull
Xan-a-Deux ('73 Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD)
Xan's Pages: http://members.dca.net/jerelull/X-Main.html
Our BVI FAQs (290+ pics) http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/