On Sat, 17 Nov 2012 18:30:37 -0800 (PST), Flying Pig
wrote:

On Friday, November 16, 2012 12:08:35 PM UTC-5, Wilbur Hubbard wrote:







Whatever happened to the mast steps you talked about about a decade or so ago

when you first hauled out?



--

Sir Wilbur

I found a mate nearly exactly a year ago, in the Vero Beach Cruisers Potluck Thanksgiving dinner flea market, to go with one a Seven Seas member had given me right after our wreck in '07.

My trips up the mast in the last few days have taken me right to the top, so I can't tell where they'd fit under the shrouds, as I can't quite reach far enough to stick them there without fear of dropping them. If they can be high enough to let me stand higher than I'd sit, I'll install them right under the shroud.

Being as large as they are means that the step portion will be fairly low, as the width makes the top of the step start well under the top of the shroud.

Ironically, timing wise, I've just had a note from someone who stumbled on one of my old posts somewhere (not here) looking for this type of step; he has 11, with the guard wire clips. 11's not enough for me, unfortunately, so I'll have to pass. They're NIB, including the advertising of the time, so he's had them for a very long while. If I trip over some others which can make up to a full set, I might install them. However, my trips up and down are a piece of cake with our windlass. Couldn't do that single-handing, of course, but that looks very unlikely.

I've also had a chance to climb a friend's mast equipped similarly to yours, I think. Cast aluminum, raise and turn 90°, and they mount, lift, raise and drop, and they're essentially flush, presenting ~1" or so. I wasn't uncomfortable with them, but the boat wasn't moving, either :{)) The guards outside the Pace Edwards (made in a triangle) minimize the potential for a side-slide, and are big enough for my 14's...

One or two more trips up the mast and I'll be finished up there; I'll see if I can use them on one of the trips now that I'm no longer carrying 25 pounds of tools, too!

L8R

Skip

The proper technique is to have a canvas tool bucket on one halyard.
Your "safety man" can fill the bucket and haul it up to you. Gets away
from the problem of arriving at the top of the mast only to discover
that you forgot the light bulb :-(

I also use an electrician lineman's safety belt and snap on when I'm
at the work site. It gives you something to oppose the pressure on the
drill bit or the screw driver (and it makes you feel safe :-)

The canvas bucket, by the way, is not only "salty" but doesn't ding
dents in the mast when it swings around.
--
Cheers,
Bruce