1. SabreSailboat@groups.io
Topics

Mast step question

Carter Brey
 

Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
David Short, SV One Timer, 1997 362, Mt Desert, ME
 

Well  . . . . then  . . . . . you wouldn't have anything to do on the weekend

On 4/12/2020 9:08 PM, Carter Brey wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 

--

Dave Short

dhs.short@...

 
Jim Starkey
 

Carter, I can’t speak for your 38, but earlier Sabres had a solid mast step box made up from vertical stacked pieces of plywood.  Drilling any hole, including, specifically, the limber hole drilled by the factory left open the possibility of an unsealed crack that would let water seep into the plywood and rot the box from within (I won’t go into the issue of rot from within vs. precious bodily fluids, dealt comprehensively by Stanley Kubrick).  So there is a real possibility that drilling a hole could easily make things worse, not better.  If you have a trained rodent size XSmall skilled in that sort of inspection, drill away.

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 

--
Jim Starkey
Red Frog (S38-2 WK)
 

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?
I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

Randy

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
Michael Beers
 

I don’t have that exact picture, but this one might give you a better idea of what is going on. As you can see the mast step stringer is significant, but drainage is…insignificant. Keeping the too-small limber hole clean is a good practice.

Michael Beers
Exiit Strategy
Sabre 38 mk2


On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:39 PM, Red Frog (S38-2 WK) <ergoodman121@...> wrote:

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?
I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

Randy

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
Carter Brey
 

Michael,

That picture is worth a thousand words. Fascinating. Thank you.

CB
Red Frog (S38-2 WK)
 



Michael Beers... great picture;  Thank you.

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:48 PM Michael Beers <closereach77@...> wrote:
I don’t have that exact picture, but this one might give you a better idea of what is going on. As you can see the mast step stringer is significant, but drainage is…insignificant. Keeping the too-small limber hole clean is a good practice.

Michael Beers
Exiit Strategy
Sabre 38 mk2


On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:39 PM, Red Frog (S38-2 WK) <ergoodman121@...> wrote:

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?
I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

Randy

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
David Popken
 

Carter,

Our '87 38 MKI mast base is as Jim describes and came with a too small limber hole, which included a 90 degree bend.  I reached out to Glen Chaplin at Sabre and he provided a shop drawing of a more robust drain assembly without the 90 degree bend.  The fix was to drill a new hole diagonally from the top center of the mast step down to an exit point just above the bilge floor.  Obviously, one could not just drill a new passage and not expect the mast step to eventually rot, so I drilled the new shaft large enough to accommodate a section of 1/2" pvc pipe, which I installed with copious amounts of West System epoxy, then trimmed flush on top.  Problem solved and now that drain can be rooted out if needed with a coat hanger or such because its a straight run.

So, problem solved for water coming down inside the mast.  But what about water getting past the mast boot and running down the outside?  This is something that I have fought since we bought Orion.  I have a rubber mast boot made specifically for our boat, with rescue tape top and bottom and it still leaks.  My partial solution was to use some 3/4" x 3/4" aluminum angle to make a dam around the top of the mast base, with a "vee" cut in the stern end piece to allow it to drain into the bilge when water accumulated.  This does work, but recently I see some dampness in the cabin sole seam just forward of the mast.  I guess its time for Spartite.

Dave    

On 4/12/2020 8:08 PM, Carter Brey wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
Franz Alvarez
 

Good evening everyone:

 

Last year I bought my dream boat, an S-38 II, after I had told myself the aggravation at my engineering job was not worth it and to let go of the dream (since my early 20’s) and especially the career and be at peace. I was o.k. with that decision then Divine intervention stepped in two days later and presented an offer I did actually refuse.  Thankfully my wife had more common sense while trying to process where I was at mentally regarding career and the dream; she encouraged me to take the drive up to Falmouth and take a look at her or I would regret it for the rest of my life. The rest they say is history and I now have that dream winterized on the hard, just down the block from me and a 10 min drive from where Atlantea is.

 

I met Mr. Brey, whom I’ve observed and admired his journey with Atlantea since he purchased her some years back, as we crossed wakes last summer, waving at each other; I smiled thinking, this is so cool.  I was hoping to be in the same yard, but their management was busy absorbing boats from a competitor next door that retired.  O.k. there’s your intro.

 

As for the mast step,  the previous owner (another engineer – God bless) had the base drilled out to minimize the damage to the sole due to overflow, yet he acknowledged that when it’s a heavy rain, water will occasionally spit out in other places and to always make sure the limber holes and area under the mast base trim is free from dirt/dust. See photo below of base of unstepped mast in Falmouth. My understanding is that he followed Sabre’s recommendation.  Hope this helps, and look forward to a meeting you when the quarantine is over.

 

Franz Alvarez

S/V Tranquility

S-38 MKII

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

From: Red Frog (S38-2 WK)
Sent: Sunday, April 12, 2020 10:07 PM
To: Sabre Boat Group
Subject: Re: [SabreSailboat] Mast step question

 

 

 

Michael Beers... great picture;  Thank you.

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:48 PM Michael Beers <closereach77@...> wrote:

I don’t have that exact picture, but this one might give you a better idea of what is going on. As you can see the mast step stringer is significant, but drainage is…insignificant. Keeping the too-small limber hole clean is a good practice.

 

Michael Beers

Exiit Strategy

Sabre 38 mk2

 

 

On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:39 PM, Red Frog (S38-2 WK) <ergoodman121@...> wrote:

 

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?

I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

 

Randy

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:

Hi there, Sabre listers.

 

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

 

Attaching a photo for reference.

 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

 

Carter Brey 

S38-II Atlantea 

City Island, NY 

 

 

 

 


--
Franz Alvarez
S/V Tranquility - S38MKII
Carter Brey
 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 10:49 PM, Franz Alvarez wrote:

Good evening everyone:

 

Last year I bought my dream boat, an S-38 II, after I had told myself the aggravation at my engineering job was not worth it and to let go of the dream (since my early 20’s) and especially the career and be at peace. I was o.k. with that decision then Divine intervention stepped in two days later and presented an offer I did actually refuse.  Thankfully my wife had more common sense while trying to process where I was at mentally regarding career and the dream; she encouraged me to take the drive up to Falmouth and take a look at her or I would regret it for the rest of my life. The rest they say is history and I now have that dream winterized on the hard, just down the block from me and a 10 min drive from where Atlantea is.

 

I met Mr. Brey, whom I’ve observed and admired his journey with Atlantea since he purchased her some years back, as we crossed wakes last summer, waving at each other; I smiled thinking, this is so cool.  I was hoping to be in the same yard, but their management was busy absorbing boats from a competitor next door that retired.  O.k. there’s your intro.

 

As for the mast step,  the previous owner (another engineer – God bless) had the base drilled out to minimize the damage to the sole due to overflow, yet he acknowledged that when it’s a heavy rain, water will occasionally spit out in other places and to always make sure the limber holes and area under the mast base trim is free from dirt/dust. See photo below of base of unstepped mast in Falmouth. My understanding is that he followed Sabre’s recommendation.  Hope this helps, and look forward to a meeting you when the quarantine is over.

 

Franz Alvarez

S/V Tranquility

S-38 MKII

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

From: Red Frog (S38-2 WK)
Sent: Sunday, April 12, 2020 10:07 PM
To: Sabre Boat Group
Subject: Re: [SabreSailboat] Mast step question

 

 

 

Michael Beers... great picture;  Thank you.

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:48 PM Michael Beers <closereach77@...> wrote:

I don’t have that exact picture, but this one might give you a better idea of what is going on. As you can see the mast step stringer is significant, but drainage is…insignificant. Keeping the too-small limber hole clean is a good practice.

 

Michael Beers

Exiit Strategy

Sabre 38 mk2

 

 

On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:39 PM, Red Frog (S38-2 WK) <ergoodman121@...> wrote:

 

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?

I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

 

Randy

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:

Hi there, Sabre listers.

 

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

 

Attaching a photo for reference.

 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

 

Carter Brey 

S38-II Atlantea 

City Island, NY 

 

 

 

 

 


--
Franz Alvarez
S/V Tranquility - S38MKII

 Frank, cool!

Have a look at the photo I posted. You'll see a custom fiberglass "lip" running the circumference of the step. This was made by Johanson Boatworks when they had the boat, repairing storm damage. It was from them that I bought her. The custom lip manages the exterior mast leakage from the partners adequately, protecting the wood around it, although it has nowhere to go and eventually has to be sponged up. The water coming down the mast interior is another issue and seems to have been addressed by the P.O of your vessel. I hope he sealed the wood with epoxy! Randy's PVC technique sounds like a clever variant.

Great comments, everyone. Thank you.

CB
James Wilson
 

My '79 34' has a hole drilled into the step and box, which leads to the limber hole...the box still seems solid and not rotted...
***********************************************
James H. Wilson, Jr.
Attorney & Counsellor at Law
By appt. only:
4860 Cox Road, Suite 200
Glen Allen, VA 23060
804-740-6464
jameswilson29@...
www.virginia-lawyer.us
http://bankruptcydivorceblawg.com
http://twitter.com/jameswilson29
***********************************************


On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 11:16 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:
On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 10:49 PM, Franz Alvarez wrote:

Good evening everyone:

 

Last year I bought my dream boat, an S-38 II, after I had told myself the aggravation at my engineering job was not worth it and to let go of the dream (since my early 20’s) and especially the career and be at peace. I was o.k. with that decision then Divine intervention stepped in two days later and presented an offer I did actually refuse.  Thankfully my wife had more common sense while trying to process where I was at mentally regarding career and the dream; she encouraged me to take the drive up to Falmouth and take a look at her or I would regret it for the rest of my life. The rest they say is history and I now have that dream winterized on the hard, just down the block from me and a 10 min drive from where Atlantea is.

 

I met Mr. Brey, whom I’ve observed and admired his journey with Atlantea since he purchased her some years back, as we crossed wakes last summer, waving at each other; I smiled thinking, this is so cool.  I was hoping to be in the same yard, but their management was busy absorbing boats from a competitor next door that retired.  O.k. there’s your intro.

 

As for the mast step,  the previous owner (another engineer – God bless) had the base drilled out to minimize the damage to the sole due to overflow, yet he acknowledged that when it’s a heavy rain, water will occasionally spit out in other places and to always make sure the limber holes and area under the mast base trim is free from dirt/dust. See photo below of base of unstepped mast in Falmouth. My understanding is that he followed Sabre’s recommendation.  Hope this helps, and look forward to a meeting you when the quarantine is over.

 

Franz Alvarez

S/V Tranquility

S-38 MKII

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

From: Red Frog (S38-2 WK)
Sent: Sunday, April 12, 2020 10:07 PM
To: Sabre Boat Group
Subject: Re: [SabreSailboat] Mast step question

 

 

 

Michael Beers... great picture;  Thank you.

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:48 PM Michael Beers <closereach77@...> wrote:

I don’t have that exact picture, but this one might give you a better idea of what is going on. As you can see the mast step stringer is significant, but drainage is…insignificant. Keeping the too-small limber hole clean is a good practice.

 

Michael Beers

Exiit Strategy

Sabre 38 mk2

 

 

On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:39 PM, Red Frog (S38-2 WK) <ergoodman121@...> wrote:

 

Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like under the keel step - if you remove those 4 bolts & pull up the plate?

I am a relatively new owner.  This is the first picture I have seen of the keel step on a S38-2... very informative.

 

Randy

 

On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 9:08 PM Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:

Hi there, Sabre listers.

 

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

 

Attaching a photo for reference.

 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

 

Carter Brey 

S38-II Atlantea 

City Island, NY 

 

 

 

 

 


--
Franz Alvarez
S/V Tranquility - S38MKII

 Frank, cool!

Have a look at the photo I posted. You'll see a custom fiberglass "lip" running the circumference of the step. This was made by Johanson Boatworks when they had the boat, repairing storm damage. It was from them that I bought her. The custom lip manages the exterior mast leakage from the partners adequately, protecting the wood around it, although it has nowhere to go and eventually has to be sponged up. The water coming down the mast interior is another issue and seems to have been addressed by the P.O of your vessel. I hope he sealed the wood with epoxy! Randy's PVC technique sounds like a clever variant.

Great comments, everyone. Thank you.

CB

Randy Drummond
 

Shortly after we purchased Dazzle I learned of the drainage at the base of the mast. After a rain storm I noticed water at the base of the mast. After inspection I determined that it was from inside the mast . Which then lead me to why wasn’t it draining and the discovery of the weep hole in the bilge.  I promptly started  ramming a rod into the hole and thankfully this was the problem , A clogged drain. I keep a close eye on the base now and occasionally run a rod up the weep hole for good measure. We have one of the later 38 mk2’s so it appears the hole is diagonal emptying two thirds of the way or so down the stringer into the bilge. The pic pipe sounds like a smart way to go. 
Randy Drummond
Dazzle S38 mk2



On Apr 12, 2020, at 9:08 PM, Carter Brey <carter.brey@...> wrote:

Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 
<20200411_145321.jpg>
Jim Starkey
 

I like the idea of PVC pipe lavishly slathered with epoxy on the way it.  But I don't think there is much that can be done about the original limber hole -- sealing it would just lock in whatever water had already been absorbed.

On 4/12/2020 10:12 PM, David Popken wrote:
Carter,

Our '87 38 MKI mast base is as Jim describes and came with a too small limber hole, which included a 90 degree bend.  I reached out to Glen Chaplin at Sabre and he provided a shop drawing of a more robust drain assembly without the 90 degree bend.  The fix was to drill a new hole diagonally from the top center of the mast step down to an exit point just above the bilge floor.  Obviously, one could not just drill a new passage and not expect the mast step to eventually rot, so I drilled the new shaft large enough to accommodate a section of 1/2" pvc pipe, which I installed with copious amounts of West System epoxy, then trimmed flush on top.  Problem solved and now that drain can be rooted out if needed with a coat hanger or such because its a straight run.

So, problem solved for water coming down inside the mast.  But what about water getting past the mast boot and running down the outside?  This is something that I have fought since we bought Orion.  I have a rubber mast boot made specifically for our boat, with rescue tape top and bottom and it still leaks.  My partial solution was to use some 3/4" x 3/4" aluminum angle to make a dam around the top of the mast base, with a "vee" cut in the stern end piece to allow it to drain into the bilge when water accumulated.  This does work, but recently I see some dampness in the cabin sole seam just forward of the mast.  I guess its time for Spartite.

Dave    

On 4/12/2020 8:08 PM, Carter Brey wrote:
Hi there, Sabre listers.

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

Attaching a photo for reference.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

Carter Brey 
S38-II Atlantea 
City Island, NY 

-- 
Jim Starkey
Chris Mansfield, Elysium
 

My Sabre 34-2 doesn't have a limber hole in the mast step. Investigating the constant dampness at the base, I drilled a hole into the mast and it pissed about a gallon of water out. I drilled another 1/4" hole about 3/16" up from the bottom of the mast and inserted a thin-wall tube to drain it into the bilge. I also put rubber plugs in the slots where the shrouds with t-balls clip in to the mast. That seems to keep the rain water out. The step has stayed pretty dry and I have avoided the sole delimitation issue. It is easy to pull out and inspect for clogs. Since the Sabre 34 has a removable floor board it was easy to route the tube under it. You might be able to notch out the trim piece and use a bent tube. 
Mark Snelling
 

Carter,

 

My 38-II ( 172) has a very different mast approach.

 

The mast goes through the sole and sits on an I beam in the bilge.

 

Any water that comes down the mast goes directly into the bilge.

 

I am not at the boat, but will take a picture when I am.

 

Anyone else have this approach? It may have been done after delivery or custom.

 

Mark

1990 Sabre 38-II Incorrigible

 

From: SabreSailboat@groups.io <SabreSailboat@groups.io> On Behalf Of Carter Brey
Sent: Sunday, April 12, 2020 9:08 PM
To: SabreSailboat@groups.io
Subject: [SabreSailboat] Mast step question

 

Hi there, Sabre listers.

 

While doing other work on Atlantea yesterday my eye fell on the mast step. I asked myself why it was not standard practice,  either on the part of the factory or on that of owners, to drill a hole directly through the center in order to allow any water from the mast to drain directly and harmlessly into the bilge. It seems like a no-brainer. Is there something I'm missing?

 

Attaching a photo for reference.

 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

 

Carter Brey 

S38-II Atlantea 

City Island, NY 
LRG
 

Mark - I'd be interested to see how your mast drains as my hull #164 looks exactly like Michael Beers' setup - three small drain holes with the starboard side drain basically obstructed with the mast grounding wire. I've found it will drain decently as long as I keep the remaining two holes clear, otherwise water collects around the base of the mast and soaks into the flooring (not good).

Chris - Interesting comment about the shroud ends - I've wondered where all the water comes from. It would be nice to try to minimize the amount of water that comes in in the first place. Is there some kind of fitted rubber plug that can be used to plug that opening or did you improvise with something?

Randy
--
Sabre 38-2 #164
Michael Beers
 

Regarding the source of water, remember that we all have sheave boxes where halyards exit. These are great rain collectors, especially on days like today when it is blowing 40, gusting to 60 here in NY. There will always be water coming down the inside of the spar!

Michael Beers
Sabre 38 mk2 Exit Strategy

On Apr 13, 2020, at 1:17 PM, LRG <lgridley@gmail.com> wrote:
Mark Snelling
 

Randy,

My sole was redone at some point. I wonder if the solution was a longer mast so it could ride the I beam ?

I want to go to the boat now but not on the current agenda. 

Mark
1990 Sabre 38 MK II Incorrigible 


On Apr 13, 2020, at 2:17 PM, LRG <lgridley@...> wrote:

Mark - I'd be interested to see how your mast drains as my hull #164 looks exactly like Michael Beers' setup - three small drain holes with the starboard side drain basically obstructed with the mast grounding wire. I've found it will drain decently as long as I keep the remaining two holes clear, otherwise water collects around the base of the mast and soaks into the flooring (not good).

Chris - Interesting comment about the shroud ends - I've wondered where all the water comes from. It would be nice to try to minimize the amount of water that comes in in the first place. Is there some kind of fitted rubber plug that can be used to plug that opening or did you improvise with something?

Randy
--
Sabre 38-2 #164

LRG
 

T
--

This is what my mast base looked like after the mast was pulled to repair the masthead. I had drilled a hole at the base of the mast like Chris did and inserted the clear tubing you can see in the photos in hopes it would help it drain directly to the bilge. It did help a little, I think, but still didn't keep water from accumulating around the mast base in heavy rains and soaking the edges of the sole. It was interesting to see how much dirt had collected under the mast. This is a long time West Coast boat so I suspect the mast had not been out in many years. I cleaned it all up before we stepped the mast but now wish I'd maybe put a bead of sealant between the front and side tabs in the area inside the mast to try to encourage water to flow out the back.
Sabre 38-2 #164
Charlie McMillan
 

All,

I believe I have shared these images before but since the subject is back, here is what I did on Isle of Skye to fix the mast step problem and eliminate any water from the mast going anywhere other than the bilge.

The top image shows a piece I molded from West System and glass cloth. It creates a moat around the mast step that only lets water go back into the bilge over the shoulder of the mast stringer.

The middle image shows the new mast stringer laid up of 1” slabs of G10, laminated with West and glassed over. Note the limber hole barely visible under the cable and right leg of the moat was expanded to be roughly 1-1/2” diameter.

The bottom image has the new solid teak and holly floor laid, waiting trim and new facia over the bottom of the port bulkhead.

This has totally eliminated the leaks from the mast, any water coming in forward in heavy seas etc. Yep, it was alot of work but I sleep well at night. At least concerning water from the mast.


Charlie McMillan
Isle of Skye
S 34mkII
McMillan Group Inc
25 Otter Trail
Westport, Ct  06880
203-227-8696 office
203-291-9764 mobile 
www.mcmillangroup.com

On Apr 13, 2020, at 3:17 PM, LRG <lgridley@...> wrote:

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This is what my mast base looked like after the mast was pulled to repair the masthead. I had drilled a hole at the base of the mast like Chris did and inserted the clear tubing you can see in the photos in hopes it would help it drain directly to the bilge. It did help a little, I think, but still didn't keep water from accumulating around the mast base in heavy rains and soaking the edges of the sole. It was interesting to see how much dirt had collected under the mast. This is a long time West Coast boat so I suspect the mast had not been out in many years. I cleaned it all up before we stepped the mast but now wish I'd maybe put a bead of sealant between the front and side tabs in the area inside the mast to try to encourage water to flow out the back.
Sabre 38-2 #164

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