drilling a hole in the mast step

[Keith Newlin]

I'm about to rewire the mast of my CD 28. I'm thinking of drilling a hole through the mast step and running the wiring into the cabin this way, rather than out through the side of the mast and then through the cabin top. Doing so would keep the connections (and wire) out of the weather. I don't unstep the mast seasonally, so ease of connections isn't an issue. Has anyone done this? What am I likely to encounter between the step and the liner? Thanks.

[John D.]

I think the structural beam that supports the mast runs fore/aft between the deck and headliner. Running the wires through the mast step would require drilling through that beam. The original installation, offset to the side, avoids the beam.

John D.
CD27 #105
Whitehall Creek, MD

[Kurt]

Tim Lacky implemented a clever mast wiring solution on his Pearson Triton. He installed a small thru-hull fitting through the deck next to the mast with the barb coming up through the deck. He put a small length of hose over the barb and ran the other end of the hose through a large hole into the mast. Then the mast wiring was brought out of the mast at the hole...fed through the hose and down into the cabin via the thru-hull fitting. Then he mounted a small terminal strip inside the cabin near the wiring entry point to facilitate mast removal when necessary. If you go to Tim's website and search for it, the method is spelled out in more detail