In another thread some mentioned lightning protection. There seem to
b e several schools of thought on the topic ranging from preventing a
strike to dissipating it when it happens. I really do not think there
is much you can do to prevent a strike on a sailboat except to be in
proximity to other tall objects. When you consider the voltages
involved, everything becomes a conductor which is why a tall tree gets
hit as often as a tower of the same height. I also do not think that
lightning dissipators work. In fact, they may make you more
susceptible to a strike by increasing the E field in its vicinity.
Given that the water is so murky on the subject of protection,, I
favor getting rid of it after a strike and attaching a small conductor
to your hull isnt the best way. You may end up with a hole in your
hull. Instead, I have a 2'X2' copper plate soldered and bolted to 00
gage tinned battery cable 20' long with an eyelet on the other end.
When in a storm, I throw the plate over the side and attach the eyelet
to the mast up high so as to minimize bends in the cable. I want to
have the current go through the cable while having the shrouds help
protect us inside them.
I once did a calculation on the probability of a lone sailboat getting
hit if out in a storm and came up with a number that seemed too high
yet when compared with insurance statistics turned out to be
reasonable. Basically, you should avoid being the only tall thing
under such a storm. Being one of many tall things is ok