MAST SUPPORT PROBLEM ON THE WESTSAIL 32

A number of owners of Westsail 32's have complained of their rigging being continually loose after tightening it, and also of the fiberglass surface of the cabin top mast base being dished down. The cabin sole around the wood mast support post also has shown signs of being dished down. The wooden mast support post is normally 1-3/4” wide, with the top cut back to about 1-3/4” fore and aft, and it must be checked to see if it has crushed into the underside of the deckbeam. The cabin top can push down with the load of the mast and rigging and crush the mast post up into the deckbeam. Additional evidence is the deckbeam trim at the upper corners of the cabin sides separated from the cabin side because the deckbeam has pushed the cabin side out. Also, the space under the cabin sole at the mast post should have solid blocking down to the top of the ballast. I have seen some boats where this blocking is loose, has gaps in it, or was never installed. The main bulkhead is hidden behind the deckbeams, and it usually does not go all the way up to the fiberglass underside of the cabin top, but is about 1/2" shy of hitting the cabin top. The deckbeams were usually fastened with screws into the bulkhead, and these bend with the load. The beams should be bolted through the main bulkheads, as well as up through the cabin top. There are bolts put through the cabin top, and you can see the carriage bolt head on the cabin top, or on some boats, a countersunk flat head bolt. Usually no horizontal bolts were put in, but sometimes screws were used, but these are subject to bending, and will not support the load. If you have indications of the cabin top being pushed down, the fix is to loosen the rigging, jack up the deckbeam at the center with a hydraulic jack and a post, then put bolts horizontally through both deck beams to capture the bulkhead. The bolt holes should be drilled between the lower two laminations of the deck beams that are on either side of the main bulkhead. Drill four 5/16" holes on the port side, and one on the starboard side of the passageway door opening. Install the carriage bolts with the heads of the bolts in the main cabin, and the washers and locknuts in the head area and passageway. Slip a piece of brass or stainless steel into the gap between the deckbeam and the top of the mastpost, then remove the jack and re-tighten the rigging. Distributing the load onto the bulkheads with the bolts will prevent this problem. The space under the cabin sole at the mast post should have solid blocking down to the top of the ballast. I have seen some boats where this blocking is loose, has gaps in it, does not extend far enough aft, or was never installed. If this is the case, fit some blocks in place and seal with epoxy. To take care of the problem of a dished down fiberglass base on the cabintop, a fairly easy repair can be accomplished with the following procedure. Take the mast off, and remove the aluminum base on the cabintop. Carefully cut the fiberglass just inside the exterior line of the mast base with a router. Remove the fiberglass piece, and remove all of the soft plywood, possibly going all the way down to the fiberglass on the inside of the deck lamination if necessary. Saturate the area with epoxy resin. Build up the removed wood area with solid wood, saturated with epoxy resin, then stick the fiberglass piece back down. Fill the routed groove with epoxy putty. Now reinstall the aluminum mast base, and since it covers the groove, there will not be any gelcoat repair necessary.

Parts available:

• Set of 5 stainless steel carriage bolts, locknuts, washers

Email or call for an exact quote - randy@westsailparts.com 415 254 7296

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