| Author | Message | ||
     Scott Corder Moderator Username: Scott_corder Post Number: 23 Registered: 01-2005 Rating: N/A |
Mike, I would agree completely with Jeff that you should be concerned about the rod not seeming long enough. Something somewhere is deflecting to make this happen - and it is happenng in an area you don't want going soft. If the job is more difficult when on the hard, you should look at how your boat is resting in its cradle. It strikes me that you are probably resting too much on the pads - and not enough on the keel. As Jeff wrote, if the boat is truly resting on its keel, the job should actually get easier - not more difficult. Also, if you are actually able to "pull the cabin top down", you clearly have some stiffness issues somewhere. I would do a very thorough inspection of both the mast step and the collar areas. My hunch is that you need to re-build or stiffen the mast step area itself. Unless this has been done in a truly structural manner, there just wasn't enough structure there to begin with for it to withstand years of stress. Another thing to look at for a hint of trouble: are your shroud tunbuckles about mid-way in the threads when the rig is up and tuned? If not, this is another sign that your boat is deflecting somewhere. Finally, is it possible that the repairs you made around the collar resulted in the cabin top now being higher than before? I know it seems a silly question, but I had to ask - as it could also be a factor. Nonetheless, I'd get the mast step checked out by a structural proffesional. |
