CD25 - Aft Lower Shroud Question

[Nigel Noble]

On a CD25, in order to have better control of the sideways movement of the mast when raising or lowering it, is it possible or even wise to keep the aft lower shrouds attached to the deck?

[greg phillips]

Nigel, I found it very helpful to leave them attached while raising or lowering the mast. I usually had at least three people and I tried to have the boat backed into her slip. One person on the dock directly aft who would begin the lifting process, one in the cockpit to lift after the guy on the dock could reach no higher and I usually hauled on the forestay from the bow. From the bow I could watch the proceedings and tell the others if they were raising the mast out of line with the centerline of the hull. As I pulled to a vertical position the shrouds stopped the mast from being pulled over the bow. Make sure the shrouds are not kinked so they won't bind before the mast is vertical. There have been posts on how build a crutch-type system to raise the mast as another method. You might wish to do a search to find those posts.

Greg Phillips

[Nigel Noble]

Thank you, Greg

[Mathias]

The aft shrouds definitely help you keep the mast stabilized side to side, but only if there is someone to pull on them. If you lower your mast in a crosswind, it will won't stay on the boat's centerline when coming down. The aft shroud will go slack pretty soon after the mast starts tilting aftwards, and that is when it is handy to have someone holding the windward shroud to make sure the mast comes down on center.

When lowering, you also can keep the backstay attached. That way, you know its setting exactly, and you remove the stay once the mast is down by its clevis pin. Now when you go to set the mast again, you can just pull it up until the back stay is tight and you don't need to find that setting again.

I use a bunch of fittings and pipe that technically would allow me to do the project alone, but until I gain more confidence and experience I use a second person and it works well. The fittings are sold by a guy out in the midwest and he calls the fittings Mast-Up. Google, and if you can't find it, let me know.

Good luck,
-Mathias