Mast Man

The mast was left with the cross section of a hollow octogone in the last episode.  It is time to make it a round cross section.

More Facets

A five inch diameter disk was screwed onto the mast head to define lines turning the octogone into a sixteen sided polygon.  One facet of the sixteen sided polygon has been cut along the mast length in the above image.  The mast end and disk was sniped in this first effort.  Future cuts would use a hand plane at the ends to avoid such snipes.

A rule is placed against the disk to determine the dimension, equal distance from the apex, that defines the edges of the new facet.  A template was made to mark this dimension on either side of the apex along the mast length.  A line then drawn with straight edge, from mark to mark, defined the facet edges.  A powered plane roughed out the material between the lines followed by hand plane refinements.  I later learned there are better and easier ways to mark out the facets, but this is the method I used.  

Rounding the mast has created the most sawdust in this whole boat build.  I shall be chasing out sawdust from these operations for years to come.

Rounding

The newly created sixteen sided polygon required a round of sweeping before continuing with mast rounding operations.  An inverted sanding belt was placed around the mast and driven by a drill motor powered drum.  A length of pipe, slipped over the drive shaft offered a hand grip on the drum side opposite the drill motor.  This was a little tricky to operate but was manageable with some practice.  The facets merge into roundness as a finer sawdust re-permeates the entire shop.

Initially a smaller diameter drive drum was used that could not overcome the sanding belt friction against the mast.  A drive drum diameter similar to the mast diameter provided the solution.  The drum was wrapped in duct tape to improve traction with the sanding belt.  A day and one half effort with this tool produced the rounded mast.

Sheave Boxes

The plans call for a curved surface to be cut through the masthead for lines (halyards) to run over while raising and lowering head sails.  I chose instead to use a sheave box on the fore and aft masthead faces so the halyards will not chafe against a static curved surface.  The sheave axle is only captured by insetting the sheave box into the mast.

 A fare amount of work with a router, a drill and mostly a chisel produced the inset cuts need to receive the sheave boxes on both mast sides.  

Masthead Crane

The main sail has two halyards to position a gaff spar in the sail's head.  This requires a masthead attachment point for two blocks to receive the halyards and direct them down to the gaff.  The attachment is a thickness of plywood epoxied into a slot cut in the masthead.  The blocks are lashed to a hole cut through the plywood crane projecting past the mast circumference.  A later image will show this crane feature.

Cutting this slot required the router fixture shown in the image above.  The fixture is held to the mast by wedges pressing against the mast and oversized holes in the white mounting fixtures.  Raised edges, on the surface the router rests on, control the slot width and length.  A similar smaller fixture was used for the sheave box insets.

 The router fixture worked very well creating this large deep slot.

Masthead Plate

The masthead will be covered with a stainless steel plate for mounting the navigation/anchor light and other future items.  Power leads supplying the masthead mounted items must be clamped so the lead weight does not placed loads on electrical connections.  To that end the conduit lead exit points have been modified with upward sloping slots that keep the leads below the masthead plate.  The sloping slots also inhibit water from entering the conduit runs.

Here the navigation/anchor light is mounted on the masthead plate top.  Wedge shaped blocks are epoxied to the underside and fit into the masthead sloped slots.  The screws, supplied with the light, are just long enough to barely start into the light's threaded base.  I need three longer screws, but I could not source them locally.  The next shipment will supply me with 100 screws, I'll be set for a lifetime!

The masthead plate is installed on the masthead top.  The plate's wedge blocks will be cut down and allow electrical leads to pass underneath.  A clamping force is provided as the masthead plate is screwed to the masthead.

Sheathing

I could look at the above image and wonder "What kind of animal is this?".

The mast was sheathed in carbon fiber fabric and coated with a fairing compound.  The mast was supported in three places to maintain straightness as the epoxy cured on the fabric.  Wheels supported the mast so it could be rotated as sheathing was applied.  The sheathing was applied in stages so the wheels would not run on wet epoxy and become adhered to the mast.  The wheels were later repositioned to run on a cured area while maintaining straightness so additional fabric could be applied.

I considered using a carbon fiber sleeve to sheath the mast all at once, but this would be an intense amount of work for one person at one time and the wheels might become bonded.  I wonder if this conductive fabric might limit the effectiveness of the internal radar reflectors.  This tall conductive stick may also increase the chances for lighting strikes.  I could fret about many things, but rest easy knowing I have a strong long stick.

On the right end is the mentioned masthead crane where the main halyard blocks attach.  The four horn shaped projections restrain the mast support shrouds that loop around the mast and extend down the side opposite the horn to anchor on the hull shear (hull upper edge). 

Completed Mast

The mast has received two coats of primer, three coats of top side paint and two sheave boxes.  The mast construction is done and I await an additional hardware shipment to raise the mast on the boat for the first time.  That will be a tale for the next episode.

Who was that mast man?  

The End Nears

 September 2025 marks the eighth year of this boat construction project.  I am now willing to offer an answer to the most annoying boat question I previously railed about.  That question is; when will the boat be launched?  I can now answer; in the coming new year, 2026, the boat should launch.  I realized this as I began construction of the last major boat component, the mast.

I have chosen to deviate from the plans to build a traditional bird's mouth octagon hollow mast as shown above.  The plans detail a mast round mast starting from a hollow square cross section.  The bird's mouth mast employs a special router bit and is a more complex construction method than that detailed in the plans.  The mast is composed of eight staves 3/4" thick and 26 feet long.  The inscribed circle defines the material to be removed producing a round mast five inches in diameter.

It is desirable to have a mast that is light as possible.  The locally available wood is on the heavy side with the exception of spanish cedar which has properties similar to sitka spruce often used in marine spars.  I procured enough spanish cedar to build the mast and milled it to the correct thickness and width.  In this process it was revealed that some of this material was unusable with voids of rot.  I continued on, scarfing the usable material into 26 foot lengths.  A search for additional spanish cedar proved fruitless as no one is farming these trees.  I now have a pile of wood that I have no use for and an alternative is needed.

Mahogany proved to be the answer.  I estimate that a mahogany mast will have a weight penalty of 18 pounds over the spanish cedar mast, but will be stronger.  I will not end up with a racing boat, but perhaps an overweight cruiser.  The milling, cutting to length and width as well as scarfing into 26 foot lengths was repeated.  This also required another lumber yard trip as one length was not usable.

The shop has become increasingly chaotic as this project continues.  There are various finished parts, components and machinery scattered around.  These items have to be repeatedly relocated to accommodate the various stages of mast construction.  Hopefully, these items are readily located when needed. 

Cut the Bird's Mouth

Two passes through the router table cut the bird's mouth into one edge of the 26 foot staves.  In the foreground is a feather board that presses the stave against the fence.  Two blocks are screwed to the fence on either side of the router bit to keep the stave against the router table face.  This arrangement assured the cut was uniform along the length.

Assembly Fixtures

A short mast length was constructed from spanish cedar to test if it could be assembled to the expected dimensions.  This also helped to define the U shaped assembly fixture on the right.

Above the assembly fixtures are aligned and installed on the bench.  A fishing line tensioned between the mast foot and masthead defines the fixture's horizontal position using a round wooden gage between the line and the fixture.  A six foot level spans four fixtures to set the fixture's elevation.  The fixture's vertical rotation, relative to the mounting block, is adjusted using a small level is placed across the upright fixture legs.  A change in one setting influences the other settings so much back and forth adjustment is required.  

Mast Assembly

The mast was assembled in two sections, one with three staves and one with five staves as shown, partially assembled, above.  This approach allowed the installation of the mast foot,  masthead and other items in the mast internal volume.

The upper end of square mast foot has been cut into an octagon shape to fit inside the mast.  Two electrical conduits are installed along the mast length.  One conduit will supply power to the masthead navigation/anchor light.  The remaining conduit is for future purposes.  The three stave section lays next to the five stave section in the assembly fixtures. 

Radar Reflectors

It is desirable that a wooden boat is visible to larger vessels on radar.  To that end, five radar reflectors were constructed for installation high in the mast.  The reflector is basically an empty box with equal dimensions on all faces that is cut in half corner to corner.  The box interior is covered with aluminum to provide a radar reflective surface.  In this case the cut in half box sections are conjoined to provide larger reflective surfaces.  A radar pulse entering the reflector may bounce around the reflector a few times before it is redirected to the source.  Effective reflections are possible over a 90° angle to the open face.  Given this and the internal mast geometry constraints, five reflectors were constructed to hopefully provide radar returns 360° around the boat.

The orientations of four of the five radar reflectors can be seen as installed just below the masthead.  The fifth reflector is installed similar to the one marked 4, but the open face is turned 180°.  It remains to be seen if this is effective for all around radar returns.

The masthead is a lamination of solid mahogany octagon shaped to fit inside the mast.  Two grooves were cut into this lamination to extend the conduits through the mast top.  The lamination will later receive large screws holding shrouds and forestay fixings to hold the mast upright.

A friend and neighbor, a vigorous 80+ year old man, helped with epoxying the mast sections together.  I could not have completed this without his help as the high temperatures would set the epoxy before it could be applied and assembled.  He also helped with cutting the bird's mouth in the 26 foot staves.  We are sure to enjoy some beers and boat rides in the future.  In the nearer future I'll be enjoying turning this 26 foot octagon into a circle, but that is for the next episode.

Trampolines

The fore and aft web mesh trampolines have arrived and test fitted on the boat.  They should look really triffic when properly laced and tensioned in place.  The boat will be disassembled before launch to complete the painting and lacing holes.  I specified the optional protective UV coating to extend the trampoline life.  This coating is surprisingly sticky in the newly coated state.  

After living in Belize for nine years I've almost achieved permanent residency.  This is something I could have done after my first year here, but kept putting off.  I've paid all the fees, submitted and resubmitted paperwork while I await the residency card to be mailed to Corozal.  I no longer have to go through the immigration shuffle while paying $200 BZE a month to live here.  Also there is no fear of being disappeared by masked men while going through the legal process as in one North American country.   

 Fixings and Fittings

A couple of years ago, a good, long time friend came to visit me in Belize.  He made a prediction that boat parts will begin to occupy my living space ....

He was right as this niche in my living room shows!  These items include: Sail bags containing the main and jib sails - A burgundy main sail cover - A waterproof and sun light readable navigation tablet - An inductive charger to maintain the tablet's waterproofing and charge - A mast head navigation and anchor light - Two electric outboards, batteries and a motor controller - A solar charger and AC chargers for the motor batteries - A jib roller furling rig - Not to mention a composting toilet in the closet.  I expect to add a few more items to this collection before the boat is fully assembled for the first time.

The last episode detailed the construction of the mast tabernacle.  Here the primered tabernacle is installed on the forward cockpit beam along with the associated hardware.  This hardware facilitates sail raising and lowering by halyard lines that extend to the mast top.  The halyards pass through the black "rope clutches" and around the blocks below.  A lever on the clutches releases the grip on the halyards so the sails may be raised or lowered as required.

The mail sail is gaff rigged; that is to say there is a spar at the top of the sail.  The gaff requires two halyards, one at the throat adjacent to the mast and one midway along the gaff length.  This employs two of the four clutches.  The jib sail only requires one halyard and clutch.  The fourth halyard and clutch may not be used unless I get a wild hair for a reaching and/or downwind sail.

Jib control fixtures have been install along both cabin sides.  The jib will have blocks installed on the clew (the jib's lower corner control line attachment point).  The jib sheet (control line) will attach to the eye on the fixture's forward end, pass through the clew block and return to the adjustable position fairlead block before the sheet enters the black cleat on the aft end.  This arrangement will give the sheet a 2 to 1 mechanical advantage on the force applied to the sheet.

For those not familiar with sailing or sailing terminology my clarification attempts may not have hit the mark.  An explanation of how this hardware is used may be more useful.  The fairlead is repositioned along the track by lifting a pin and moving the fairlead to the desired position and releasing the pin into a hole along the track.  When sailing into the wind the sail needs to be pull in as close to the boat's centerline as possible.  This is called close hauled, beating into the wind or hard on the wind to name a few.  The fairlead is moved as far aft as possible and the sheet is pulled in tight to be held by the cleat.  As the boat is sailed off the wind the sheet is eased and fairlead is moved forward until it is moved fully forward when sailing down wind.

Here the jib control mounting fixture is being adhered to the cabin side.  The plans called for backing plates to be installed on the cabin interior but this was detailed in a section not associated with the hull construction and was not incorporated into the finished interior.  My work around was to laminate a two and one quarter inch thick mounting beam.  The mounting surface was cut at an angle to match the cabin slope.  This provided a large gluing surface and a stiff fixture to distribute the load.  The adjacent large fillets attaching the roof and the interior bulkhead will help in caring the load.

To assure good adhesion primer paint was removed from the cabin side.  Standoffs, from the bimini fail, were repurposed to hold the mounting fixture in position as the epoxy cured.  A line around the hull helped to press the fixture against the cabin side.

There remains a hollow wooden mast to construct before the boat is completed.  My attempts to obtain the required material have not yet been successful.  Once the mast is rigged, the boat will be dismantled to begin the laborious process of (re)painting the crossbeams, cabin sides, mast and cockpit.  Before launching my slip must also be prepared with a dock, a boat lifting/launching mechanism and a paved area for haul outs.  There are also the hoops of registering a self built boat, obtaining a captain's license and assuring the boat can transit the silted canal with the overhanging mangroves.  All this leads to the most annoying question of when will the boat be launched.  Hell I can't know as there is much I don't control, but it is somewhere on the horizon.  

Much Doing

 Following up from the last episode where the solar panels were installed .....

A 100 ampere hour LiFePO4 battery rests comfortably in its' new home in the starboard hull. The solar charge controllers attached to this battery have Bluetooth. This feature allows me to monitor the battery's state of charge as well as the solar output through a tablet in my living room.  These days I'm up before the sun and have watched the solar system go through the off, bulk, absorption, float and off states of charge.  This might be the sort of thing that only an engineer would enjoy and find highly gratifying as the system works  perfectly.    

It seems I have some wires in the background lacking neatness.  This adds to things on the needing attention list.    What should be done with the newly installed power?

 The goose neck lamp and power outlets are functional.  I learned that the lamp has a dimming function for those who wish to set a mood.  It also has a red light to preserve night vision or to better establish the mood.  Long time readers may remember that the power outlets have a USB outlet and a 12 volt cigarette lighter outlet.  These could be useful elsewhere.

Outlets are located fore and aft in the cockpit.  These outlets will keep the navigation tablet powered as well as powering cockpit lights while anchored.

 I was surprised to learn that I had bought more outlets than I intended.  Outlets are now installed in both cockpit aft lockers.  These outlets could be used to charge the outboard batteries over a period of several days, but I consider this an unlikely event.  Lights and other rechargeable items could be plugged in and locked up while the boat is unattended.  I've developed a wish list for items I might leave plugged in here.  There are electric thrusters that strap onto your arm and pull you through the water like a one armed superman.  Electric air pumps allow you to stay submerged for extended periods.  These are just a few ideas if I should be on your Christmas list.

There is no shortage of available outlets.  The power available in this small solar system is sure to impose limitations on what can be accommodated from my wish list.  

Gluing jigs are sometimes necessary when assembling items.  Here the outlet boxes are surrounded by scrap wood screwed to the table to hold the pieces square.  Rubber bands provide a clamping force.  The scrap wood is covered with packing tape to prevent adhesion to the outlet boxes. 

I decided to deviate from the plans here and build a mast tabernacle.  I believe the tabernacle will provide a more stable configuration as I single handedly step (raise) the mast.    

The squared off section is the beginnings of a mast.  The tabernacle saddles the mast step on the forward cockpit crossbeam .  In time a clamp will be replaced with a through bolt after the tabernacle is epoxied together.  The mast will pivot on the through bolt as it is raised from a horizontal position to a vertical position. 

The plate facing the cockpit will receive hardware for handling the halyards (sail raising/lowering lines).  I await the hardware to complete the tabernacle in the next episode.

My remaining marine plywood is 3/8" thick.  I didn't feel like this thickness was enough for the loads encountered so two thickness were laminated together to achieve a 3/4" thickness.  Thanks to router patterning bits it is easy to turn out identical parts.

Not shown in this initial stage of the parts bearing the word master, is a square cut out that allows the mast to pivot to a horizontal position. 

Here the tabernacle parts are having six ounce fiberglass applied to the edges.  Push pins hold the fiberglass in place as the epoxy is brushed on.  Cuts are made on both sides of the fiberglass where there is a transition from a straight run to the curved section.  Epoxy is applied to the straight sections first to stabilize the fabric's position then the push pins are removed and additional side cuts are made along the curved section so the fabric will lay down against the piece.

The tabernacle "fork" pieces on the right hand side received stiffening from the application of 1708 fiberglass fabric on both faces.  1708 is a much heavier fabric that I applied in three layers to protect the keels in groundings.

On the left is the electric outboard control unit.  The throttle levers are too stiff to operate without the unit being tied down.  In operation, this unit is held to the aft cockpit locker lid by a thumb screw.  The thumb screw goes through a hole in a plate extending below the control unit's base.  This plate does not allow the control unit to sit stable and flat when stowed away.  

To the right is the control unit stowage stand.  The slot receives the projecting plate and limits fore/aft and side to side movement.  The remaining elevated surface supports the control unit base.

Here the control unit rests on its' stowage stand just behind the motor battery.  This large locker is getting filled up before I'm even started.

Here we are again with gluing jig and the beginnings of the stowage stand.  What is different is a white template under the plastic that directs part alignment.