Out with the old.... Mast!

So, we finally decided to go ahead and refurbish Bela Vida's mast. Not a small undertaking, as it turned out?! You see, we weren't entirely sure just how old the standing rig was. 8 year, maybe 10? Anyway it was time!

We decided to pull the mast at Williamstown just across the channel from her home in St. Kilda. Pricing was a consideration as we weren't sure just how long it would take, along with secure space, distance from home by car and access times. In the end, Royal Yacht Club of Victoria got the tick.

I had a great friend with me (thanks Bruce) and also found a local rigger to help, as it was a requirement to have a rigger present during removal and install... who knew?!? He seemed approachable and competent enough and was happy to help us at short notice, which was much appreciated. I thought we were on a good wicket, but then, during the mast removal, my back went. DAMN IT!

Anyhow, we placed the mast and rigging onto a couple of rolling uprights and moved it to it's prep place in the back of the car park. Took off all the good bits from the top of the mast and then took Bela Vida back home. Must say, without a mast, the boat feels very different. No roll, but faster motions. I am so used to her, it was strange and it didn't feel like her. Anyway, I digress!

Following day, removal of all fittings from mast and boom. I used ziplock bags to group and label

parts and screws, which worked quiet well. Amazing was finding a 'birds nest' of wire inside the mast, near the very top of it. Looks like a previous owner tried to re-mouse a halyard with the wire and lost it into the bowels of the mast, where it sat, tangling up in god knows what halyards and strings? (as an aside, I have heard that fishing line with weight on the end works best, but I haven't had to work that angle yet.)

Now comes the sanding, sanding and sanding. Must say, after a few days of working by myself, it was so much more fun working with Danni by my side. My back wasn't getting any better either and the work was interrupted many times by chiropractor, MRI scans, physio and Dr. visits. Slow going and standing on tarmac also doesn't hep this issue either. Slow and steady going at best. A couple of times I ended up talking to the local anifoul and paint guy at the club, just to be social and also for advice to see if my approach was on the right track. My back was worsening, my pace was slowing to a crawl, along with actual crawling and rolling flat on the ground to stretch. Must have been a sight from elsewhere! LoL

We finally got everything down to bare metal and will be using and HiChem Super Etch Primer and two coats of International Perfection, which is a polyurethane based two-pack paint...

There is more, much more!