Drilling & tapping boom and mast

[diamondjim]

On my restoration of my e28+, I would like to drill and tap a few holes in the boom, mast and possibly the spreaders to install new running rigging. I have also seen other masts with holes drilled at the bottom to allow water to drain. I cautious about drilling and tapping too many holes for these projects and wonder what the prevailing wisdom is on this. So far as I can tell this boat was bare bones when built and none of the previous owners did any upgrades and therefore the boom/mast are void of any stray holes.

 

[Loren Beach]

General guidelines are that you should never have openings in the same plane. Holes are less-critical, due to small size.....
That's why the exit slots for the halyards are always well-staggered.

Only caveat I can think of is to avoid having to change hardware locations later. Plan well, with lots of pics of sisterships to consider, and mock-ups and on-site marks with pen on tape....

There should already be a factory notch in the rear (or front) of the mast extrusion for rain water to drain.
When the spar is out for maint., clean the step area and be sure that drain is functional.
Be thankful that you found a boat without a bunch of ham-fisted old hardware installations, now aging badly, from several prior owners...
Nice to put new stuff on, and have a fresh start!


Best,
Loren in PDX

 

[gareth harris]

Another suggestion - if you have internal electical wires that run down the mast and through the deck, a piece of pvc pipe around the wires as they go through the hole through the deck, sealed to the deck with appropriate sealant, that sticks up just a couple of inches above deck level, will ensure that any water inside the mast flows out the intended path and not through the deck with the wires.

Gareth