Mast Wedge Wood Type?

[BAD ORCA]

I have a keel stepped mast im going to be pulling soon. I cant tell but it looks like it may have Spartite holding it in but i have never pulled it before so im not 100% sure what it is. If it does and it comes out in one piece i will re-use it but i want to be prepared and have a 'Plan B' ready to go if not. Yard and crane time is very expensive here.

I am making an external profile template of my mast this weekend and i will remove the boot on deck to try and determine how much space i have to work with. I will use this template to make custom fit wooden mast wedges and shape them to the curvature of the mast for a nice snug fit.

It seem white oak and teak are preferred but i couldn't find much opinion either way if one is better than the other. Any experienced opinions one way or the other? I can get both woods locally.

[Orion Jim]

White oak will rot if not treated. Teak lasts nearly forever in this application. I have some spares made out of Philippine mahogany but I’ve used the same teak wedges for the last 14 years on a mast which is removed annually.
This is actually a great use for teak scraps.

[Cheechako]

Teak. But if it's Spartite it will come out fine, that's cast able urethane and tough as nails.
make a couple cheap wedges as backup and you can center your mast like usual if necessary, then fitting permanent wedges later at the dock.

[Manateeman]

Bad Orca. I’ve seen just about every wood used. When all we had were wood spars, pine or white cedar which swells a bit, were used. The important thing is not to wedge too tightly. Brian Toss used a piece of spaghetti to illustrate. Put one end on something firm, press the top. That’s two point fixity. Hold the spaghetti between your fingers gently with the other hand. Three point fixity.
Where the forces in the mast push against the deck, you want to spread the load evenly as possible. The vertical distance should be a mast diameter if possible.
Preventing water coming down the mast is a different issue.
There is a company in Houston, Industrial Polymers, who can whip you up a batch of two part stuffing of any hardness you like. Somewhere I had the durometer of the expensive marine stuff. I’ll see if I can find it. Make sure whatever stuffing is on the mast now is not stuck to the deck as well. Loosen up your rigging and use a wide strap to put a itty bitty strain at the deck level and see if you can see strong light at night or stick piano wire in. Lot less expensive than what the crane can do if the mast is glued to the deck.
Happy trails to you
Mark and his Manatee crew.

[dkenny64]

I'd say IPE. harder than teak. just as weather durable. if not more.


-dkenny64

[BAD ORCA]

Thanks all for the advice. I'm going to go with teak tghen and i'll be careful to not make them too tight.

Per the requirements of the yard i have to have a professional rigger present at the time they pull the mast, so i'll try and get him/her to come and visit my boat before we haul out to help me and give me additional advice. i know i will have to remove sails, boom a such before haul out.

I'm a little worried about this rubbery stuff thats in place now. If i have time tomorrow i will dig around and try and determine if its adhered anywhere. fingers crossed.

additional question. if i end up using the wood wedges, what prevent them from sliding around or moving up/down while sailing? is that just a non issue or do you put a hose clamp or tape around them?

[BAD ORCA]

Originally Posted by dkenny64

I'd say IPE. harder than teak. just as weather durable. if not more.


-dkenny64

What is IPE? Is that a type of wood?

[dkenny64]

yes its a brazillan hardwood. one of the hardest known woods. its so dense it doesn't float. termites don't eat it.


-dkenny64

[Flatswing]

IPE aka Ironwood

[Scott Berg]

We use Starboard... cuts into good wedges easily with a jigsaw, never rots, and is dense enough to work; the 3/4" size usually...

[wingssail]

I gave up on wedges years ago. They would work out and allow the mast to move around in rough weather.

Replace wedges with plywood plates.

My solution will work if you have, like I do, a rectangular mast collar which is an opening in the deck for the mast. It is a box of aluminum plate welded up, and it actually protrudes up from the deck about an inch and it is some what bigger than the mast, on all sides.

I made marine plywood plates, about 3/16, that slip in between the mast and the aluminum box walls. The plywood plates have "ears" at the top so they cannot fall down.

I pull the mast forward with the a halyard (shrouds loosened) and put in plates in back of the mast. Then I pull the mast back with the main halyard and put in plates in front. Side plates I just drive in with a light hammer. In this way the mast is held in position. You can vary the number of plates in front or back to adjust prebend in the mast. When I am satisfied with the mast tune I lock the plywood plates with screws drilled through the aluminum into the plates but not into the mast. Because of the ears and the screws they will not fall out.

Sealing to prevent water ingress:

Since the mast collar protrudes up from the deck about 1 inch I am able to wrap a layer of neoprene around the mast and clamp it tightly with long hose clamps both to the mast collar and the mast itself up about 6" (after previously filling the mast track groove with a gob of silicone sealant).

Then I have sewed a sunbrella boot for sun protection which goes around over the whole thing and extends a few inches higher than the neoprene. It has velcro to hold it and a tight bungie at the bottom and top. A band of neoprene at the top, inside the boot further seals the assembly.

Benefit

The type of mast boot holds the mast in position, won't fall out, and keeps the water out and protects the velcro. It is also removeable and reusable and adjustable.

[garyfdl]

I'd recommend 'black locust' if you can find it. Possibly more rot resistant than ipe and not as 'environmentally' sensitive - it doesn't come from the rain forest. It's used locally for in-ground posting for vineyards, ginseng plots, and hops farms; the adage is: "when you set the post, put a rock on the top. When the rock crumbles, the post has 20 years of life left." It is so rot-resistant that the University of Wisconsin is studying it to try and determine why, and then replicate and develop a process to pressure treat other woods instead to using toxic chemicals.

A more practical suggestion might be to soak the new wedge (regardless of what wood you use) in very thin epoxy to essentially 'petrify' it and make it virtually impermeable to water.

[garyfdl]

Originally Posted by dkenny64

yes its a brazillan hardwood. one of the hardest known woods. its so dense it doesn't float. termites don't eat it.


-dkenny64

You have termites on your boat???

[Smokeys Kitchen]

We just had our mast pulled and the rigging shop numbered the original teak wedges and plans on reusing them. We had a double collar / boot wrap, both secured by long hose clamps around the mast and have had no water intrusion through there since we have owned the boat.

[AndyEss]

Originally Posted by garyfdl

I'd recommend 'black locust' if you can find it. Possibly more rot resistant than ipe and not as 'environmentally' sensitive - it doesn't come from the rain forest. It's used locally for in-ground posting for vineyards, ginseng plots, and hops farms; the adage is: "when you set the post, put a rock on the top. When the rock crumbles, the post has 20 years of life left." It is so rot-resistant that the University of Wisconsin is studying it to try and determine why, and then replicate and develop a process to pressure treat other woods instead to using toxic chemicals..

Well, if you put a piece of Cambrian aged 500 million year old sandstone from the Driftless Area of SW Wisconsin on that fence post, the total lifespan might be 20 years - and 6 months

Yes, boats get termites. Cheeseheads of the Northwoods only have to worry about mosquitoes and deer flies - maybe Asian ladybugs. Those cold winters do a pretty decent job of suppressing insect pests.