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Mast stepping on E-25CB - which way is best?

Mblace

Member II
I am at the point in the process of refurbishing my E-25 that I have to decide whether to set up the mast for stepping it either from the stern or from the bow. I have a Dwyer mast hinge coming soon, and am well aware of the factory stepping process. Since my boat came with a fixed tabernacle and no fittings for stepping at the launching ramp, I am free to do it either way. It seems to me that most modern trailerable sailboats (Hunters, Cats, Macgregor) use a gin pole and pulley setup to hoist the mast into position from the bow (mast led aft). I have gone thru the process on a Hunter 260 and it seemed very straightforward and stable - never worried about damaging the boat, crushing the tow vehicle, or hurting anyone. The original Ericson stepping process just plain scares the crap out of me, since so much mast is hanging out front at the moment you have to secure the pin in the hinge. I am also very worried about damaging the foil on my roller furler doing it the original way (I have a Hood furler with rigid tube foil) - seems I’d need at least 4 people helping me and even then it would be precarious (my wife already said to leave her out…). My idea is to use an A-frame secured to deck fittings (shroud chain plates?), attach the bottom of the headstay (with furler base) to the top, and pull it with a 4-1 or 5-1 block and tackle secured to the stemhead chainplate or a use second winch on the trailer bow post. I also plan to use a triangular mast crutch aft (maybe pinned in the rudder gudgeons) to hold the mast while preparing to lift it. I made a small model of this arrangement and it seems to be very stable - a lot more secure than having 20+ feet of unsupported mast wagging around over my truck…. Anyone tried this setup? I’m open to advice, opinions, tales of woe, since I haven’t started cutting or drilling yet! Thanks.
 
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gabriel

Live free or die hard
I use the original system and it works brilliantly with some minor upgrades to make things go faster. I’ve stepped my mast solo, it’s not that bad. Ericson did know what they were doing.
 
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Mblace

Member II
I use the original system and it works brilliantly with some minor upgrades to make things go faster. I’ve stepped my mast solo, it’s not that bad. Ericson did know what they were doing.
Do you have a rigid roller furler? How do you keep it from bending as you set everything up and lift the mast into place? That’s my biggest concern.
 

Shankara

Member II
A friend and I stepped the mast on my 25+. We did not have any experience doing this or any guidelines. We did try it from the stern and quickly realized that the curve on the bottom of the mast was there to allow stepping to be done from the bow. Resting the mast on the bow pulpit required one person to hold on not damage anything, this was the wrong way to do it.

We made it up as we went along, using a spinnaker pole as a makeshift gin pole. Ropes where used and levers were invented on the fly. It was possibly one of the most dangerous sketchy things I have done in my life. I think I may have herniated a couple discs in my back.

I searched far and wide for a detailed instruction guide on this process. It is hard to find info on this topic.

After the fact I did find a resource which is very detailed and quite long here: https://www.ericson25.com/2015/08/spars-mast-stepping-tutorial.html?m=1

I have a few takeaways from this experience
– Not knowing exactly what you’re doing can cause damage to both you and the boat, as it did to me.
– The mast step seems like it was tweaked during the process, as well as the pulpit and possibly the deck of the boat.
– Perhaps 40 year old fiberglass, resin, and wood is too old for manual mast stepping.
– If I would’ve waited till the following Monday, I would’ve had an option to have the harbor maintenance crew use their crane to lower the mast down for me, this option would have been a far better idea. I will be doing it this way from now on 100% of the time.

If anyone out there has proper detailed instructions for Ericson mast stepping, I’m sure it would be an incredibly useful resource.
 

Mblace

Member II
A friend and I stepped the mast on my 25+. We did not have any experience doing this or any guidelines. We did try it from the stern and quickly realized that the curve on the bottom of the mast was there to allow stepping to be done from the bow. Resting the mast on the bow pulpit required one person to hold on not damage anything, this was the wrong way to do it.

We made it up as we went along, using a spinnaker pole as a makeshift gin pole. Ropes where used and levers were invented on the fly. It was possibly one of the most dangerous sketchy things I have done in my life. I think I may have herniated a couple discs in my back.

I searched far and wide for a detailed instruction guide on this process. It is hard to find info on this topic.

After the fact I did find a resource which is very detailed and quite long here: https://www.ericson25.com/2015/08/spars-mast-stepping-tutorial.html?m=1

I have a few takeaways from this experience
– Not knowing exactly what you’re doing can cause damage to both you and the boat, as it did to me.
– The mast step seems like it was tweaked during the process, as well as the pulpit and possibly the deck of the boat.
– Perhaps 40 year old fiberglass, resin, and wood is too old for manual mast stepping.
– If I would’ve waited till the following Monday, I would’ve had an option to have the harbor maintenance crew use their crane to lower the mast down for me, this option would have been a far better idea. I will be doing it this way from now on 100% of the time.

If anyone out there has proper detailed instructions for Ericson mast stepping, I’m sure it would be an incredibly useful resource.
This is what I was thinking of. I have the tools and local sources to fabricate pretty much any “helper” hardware.
 

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klb67pgh

Member III
I have a 25CB and Harken MKIII rigid furler. Look at the bottom of your mast. Mine has a foot of sorts that is clearly designed to help the mast stop at vertical when raised from the bow up. I couldn't raise my mast from the stern up, I don't think.

Using the boom as a gin pole and the mast winch and main sheet, I can do all of the raising myself, with one other person on the ground holding the furler and helping it move through the process. I like being at the mast using the winch and mainsheet (run backwards sort of) to raise the mast up - I can stop at any time and assess any adjustments needed. A system my PO added helps steady things and works really slick. Two lines are clipped to the end of the boom and run forward up each side to the outer stay. A nylon sheave rides on the stay, and a fork attached to the sheave with a clevis pin, with the stay running through the fork and on the sheave, and the fork has a hole towards the stern of the boat allows that line to run through it and then back to each winch and cam cleat. The sheave rides up the stay as the mast comes up and keeps the stays in some tension. Tightening the line on the port side winch brings the top of the mast to port, and vice versa. It really helps steer the mast a bit, especially when its at 45 degrees to 60 degrees if wind or slope cause it to lean a bit and just gives it better support. Using the mast winch to raise allows me to cleat the mainsheet on the mast mid hoist and go back to the cockpit to tension one of the lines on the winch to adjust the position of the mast, or make any other adjustments or clear any stay tangles. When the mast is vertical, I can also cleat in order to install the back stay and head stay. There's not much drama involved, other than the pucker factor with the mast initially hanging over the tow vehicle. A big key to that is having a ratchet strap or two from the toe rail, up over the mast and down to the other toe rail. Keeps the mast held down when fully extended into lifting position but before you get the tabernacle bolt in. I actually use 2 straps, hooked to the forward stanchion I think.

At the bow, my PO made a rest that holds the mast higher than the bow pulpit. I think the bow pulpit would support the mast, but this rest works better and allows me to slide the mast forward easily without it shifting from the centerline of the boat.

I need to get some pics of the sheave system and post them here.


I used to use my jib halyard to raise and secure the mast when lifting it forward on my O'Day Daysailer II, much like you describe. I had to lift the mast myself fairly high when in the cockpit - not 45 degrees, but probably close, before the jib halyard provided any lifting force - of course when the mast is parallel to the ground, the force is all linear - you need to get the mast top up before it starts to pull forward.
 

klb67pgh

Member III
A few things I forgot to mention - I use a few lashings to make sure the gooseneck is locked solidly into its position on the mast and cannot slide. When raising the mast, it is helpful to have a second person on deck to install the boom, as it needs to be vertical to start, and holding it in place and getting the gooseneck located can be tricky. I also failed to mention what hopefully is obvious - the main halyard is run to the aft end of the boom and cleated on the mast. Thus as the main sheet is winched, it pulls the end of the boom down and thus raises the top of the mast up (when raising). When lowering, you are easing the mainsheet to lower the mast.
 

gabriel

Live free or die hard
This is the factory original mast crutch/support thingie (there was also a rear one but I don’t have it and it’s not useful since in order to use one has to remove rudder), since it’s equipped with a roller I can relatively easily roll the mast forward to align the mast base and step:

5E000001-78F9-4E95-9A4E-D3649FBBA524.jpeg

I do have to lift the mast to clear the steaming light and spreaders.


i bought these to replace the mast guide wires which were held in place by clevis pins. They’re one hand adjustable and make setting up the boom solo a lot easier:

 
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klb67pgh

Member III
Since this weekend was the end of the season, I took a few pictures of the system I use to lower and raise the mast. Apologies for the less than ideal focus in a few. See my post above for the narrative.

Boom as gin pole/mainsheet routing. Main halyard is attached to the rear of the boom and cleated on the starboard mast cleat. Note the gooseneck lashings - it cannot slide.

Boom gin pole.jpg

Outer stay guides (I remove the inner stays before raising/lowering and loosen the outer stays). These lines on the upper stays steady the boom and are used to tweak the path of the mast. They are admittedly much more useful during mast raising than mast lowering, especially because they keep the boom vertical before the mast is raised.

Mast raising sheeve system.jpg

Sheeve/line detail

sheeve detail.jpg

I have been taking the drum and line off of the furler, which makes handling the foil much easier and less likely to bend. I still have someone on the ground to manage it but could probably handle it myself from the deck with a line or two tied to it and tied to the lifelines for easy access and adjustment.

With this set up, to lower the mast, I stand at the mast winch, hold the mainsheet in my left hand and use my right hand to slide the line around the winch (keeping 3 wraps, just rotating the wraps counterclockwise around the drum). There is very little force and it works well to slowly lower the mast. If I need to stop and tweak anything, I can cleat the mainsheet on the mast. When raising the mast, I just use the winch handle to winch the mast up. I didn't grab a picture with the mast down and boom vertical - you can use your imagination. I had not yet disconnected the furler or removed the inner or disconnected the back stay legs yet. One other tip on the mast lowering - I bring the back stay, legs and adjuster and lower stays forward and lay them on the deck - that way they are out of the way during the lowering process.

Ericson side view.jpg
 

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Mblace

Member II
Excellent discussion. Great pics! I really appreciate the ideas.

I remove the rudder to trailer, so for me an aft crutch would be functional. My mast was not set up with the factory stepping gear (hinged base, etc.) so I got the Dwyer hinge and have to custom make the crutches. I like the idea of removing the furler drum - my furler foil was bent just above the drum assembly from leaving the drum in place while stepping and storage by the PO. I rebuilt and straightened the whole furler system, and removing stress points is the key to not damaging it In the future. I also rebuilt the spreader setup with Dwyer bases and stainless pins so I can remove the spreaders to trailer, and I plan to use PVC tubes to hold the shrouds while trailering in order to protect them and the mast from chafing.

I scouted the city boat ramp in Sorrento ME (where I will launch/recover) and have realized I need to mod my trailer to allow adequate aft clearance on the bunks to float it off. Probably also need to use a tongue extender. Still lots to do this winter… Is your boat kept near Pittsburgh?
 

klb67pgh

Member III
Excellent discussion. Great pics! I really appreciate the ideas.

I remove the rudder to trailer, so for me an aft crutch would be functional. My mast was not set up with the factory stepping gear (hinged base, etc.) so I got the Dwyer hinge and have to custom make the crutches. I like the idea of removing the furler drum - my furler foil was bent just above the drum assembly from leaving the drum in place while stepping and storage by the PO. I rebuilt and straightened the whole furler system, and removing stress points is the key to not damaging it In the future. I also rebuilt the spreader setup with Dwyer bases and stainless pins so I can remove the spreaders to trailer, and I plan to use PVC tubes to hold the shrouds while trailering in order to protect them and the mast from chafing.

I scouted the city boat ramp in Sorrento ME (where I will launch/recover) and have realized I need to mod my trailer to allow adequate aft clearance on the bunks to float it off. Probably also need to use a tongue extender. Still lots to do this winter… Is your boat kept near Pittsburgh?

Yes, just northeast of downtown Pittsburgh about 10 miles. I'm lucky in that I found an unused heated indoor large garage to rent to store my Ericson and other boats about 10 minutes from my house. My rear mast support built by the PO is a treated 2x6 resting on the cockpit seats just aft of the cockpit locker doors with bunk carpet to protect the gelcoat, and 2 more 2x6s made into an X brace that slide together, and the mast rests on the upper X gap. It works really well and is a great place to bungie the shrouds to as well. It comes apart and stacks as 3 2x6s for storage. 2 ratchet straps from the toe rail up to the X on either side over the mast and back to the other side secure the mast and X brace when towing. I'll grab a picture tomorrow when I'm back to my boat garage.
 

klb67pgh

Member III
20211031_105639.jpg
I had already started to disconnect some items from the trip home, so it is less organized than I had it, but you hopefully get the idea.
 
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