Any reason to keep my mast/boom?

Thinking about removing my mast and boom. The only thing mounted to it is my anchor light, spreader lights and some kind of round antennae that is not in use.

Thinking about either not have a mast at all or a much shorter mast that wouldn't have all the wire stays running on the upper deck. Maybe have the standard base mount and another solid mount around the mast to connect it to upper deck/aft house area.

If I did shorten it by about 5 feet that would keep my air draft to around 15 feet and if I did need to lower it it would not cut my aft deck in half. I'd still have good visibility on my anchor light.

I plan on adding davits on the stern someday so would not necessarily need the boom.

But I dunno......

The round thing is either going to be the RADAR oe TV antenna

OldDan1943 said:

The round thing is either going to be the RADAR oe TV antenna

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Definitely not radar(I wish), probably TV I'm pretty sure it's a Shakespeare brand on it.

Nothing wrong with shorting it as long as the anchor and steaming lights are visible as needed for the nav rules.

Use the search function. You will find several threads on masts. Your question is unique only in asking whether to have a mast. The answer to that lies in your intended replacement locations for the nav and anchor lights and maybe the deck lighting.

My recommendation is to shorten the mast as you have indicated, to dispose of the stays, to capture the mast at the edge of the upper deck and step it on the lower deck. Mine is that way and supports lights, flags, radar and a lifting boom. I have lifted my Laser, which has leaked most of its life (not at this very moment) and so that lifting boom was called upon to lift the 150# boat+ up to another 150# of water. For that lift I ran a line from the base of the radar to the base of the helm chair and it was sufficient.
If you don't rig a lifting boom, no worries at all about being unstayed.

Comodave said:

Nothing wrong with shorting it as long as the anchor and steaming lights are visible as needed for the nav rules.

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I believe I will be all set with lights. I'll be sure to put my white all around/anchor light back on top of the shortened mast. I also have the forward facing white light on the fly bridge and a white stern light above the transom.

Thanks Keith, what you describe having done is what I am leaning toward.

I did first search for mast removal or something similar and nothing was found.

CharlieO. said:

Thanks Keith, what you describe having done is what I am leaning toward.

I did first search for mast removal or something similar and nothing was found.

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My mast step failed while lifting a Sabot. Cass rules mandate the minimum weight for a fully rigged Sabot at 52#. That mast step failed lifting just the empty hull. It was a cast Aluminum step. I replaced that, then the mast. I now have more height, a long enough boom to reach the centerline of the Laser beside the boat and all the previously described add ons. My welder used an Aluminum irrigation pipe, 3" diameter. He moved the step down a deck and added a mast capturing gizmo attached to the upper deck using the bolt holes the old step was in.
My criterion was to eliminate stays, as they act to decapitate anyone rushing from or to the upper deck, elevate the lights a bit, lift the Laser, fly some flags and elevate the anchor and steaming lights a bit.
All working well after ~25 years.

Without it's mast it's not a Marine Trader 34 DC, the world's most popular trawler.



It's just a short, fat, old powerboat that looks like it's missing something.

alormaria said:

Without it's mast it's not a Marine Trader 34 DC, the world's most popular trawler.



It's just a short, fat, old powerboat that looks like it's missing something.

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Like me!

alormaria said:

Without it's mast it's not a Marine Trader 34 DC, the world's most popular trawler.



It's just a short, fat, old powerboat that looks like it's missing something.

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Perfectly said!

alormaria said:

Without it's mast it's not Marine Trader 34 DC, the world's most popular trawler.



It's just a short, fat, old powerboat that looks like it's missing something.

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No offense meant, said in jest.

Without it's mast it's not a Grand Banks, the world's most popular trawler. But a Marine Trader 34 DC, who would notice.

Keith, my mast is already mounted to the lower aft state room roof, I think I'll look into a bracket off the rear fly bridge deck to allow me to remove my cable stays. I'll still need the bracket so I can occasionally lower the mast.

I must admit I do like the classic look with the mast.

CharlieO. said:

Keith, my mast is already mounted to the lower aft state room roof, I think I'll look into a bracket off the rear fly bridge deck to allow me to remove my cable stays. I'll still need the bracket so I can occasionally lower the mast.

I must admit I do like the classic look with the mast.

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It is also a great help on special days when you want to fly your signal flags.
For lowering, I have an "A" (not Russian) that I pin to the mast as it lowers toward the deck, where it provides support so the radar and masthead are both as low as the top of the venturi. My shelter isn't quite that low, but it gives me the access to everything fastened to the mast without needing to scale it.

CharlieO. said:

Keith, my mast is already mounted to the lower aft state room roof, I think I'll look into a bracket off the rear fly bridge deck to allow me to remove my cable stays. I'll still need the bracket so I can occasionally lower the mast.

I must admit I do like the classic look with the mast.

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Without stays where will you put the ratlines?

Yours look great Al, maybe after I add the crows nest.

Think about radar.

You can get along well without a mast, but consider what it does for radar: The higher the better. We have big lakes, big ships and it is nice to have long-range radar.

I use mine for lifting my skiff,my stay sail,also have radar and tv antenna,just redid all new turnbuckles on the staycables,plus they complete the trawler look

When you raid and pillage towns and fishing villages, how will you intimidate without a mast?

Being in a heavy US Navy exercise area with fast moving destroyers when I bought my woodie trawler, the fist thing I mounted as high as I could get it was a radar reflector. In later years I moored it under a covered slip, but did not want to cut it off or down for too many reasons to enumerate here (but one was the lovely proportions of the boat with mast). Lowering it to 45 degrees solved the covered slip iss with 17 feet of air draft. I also lowered it to that position when in the ICW in south florida with all its 24-foot bridges (air draft was 26 feet with mast up. I was once timed, unbeknownst to me) at 2.5 minutes to raise it and have all four stays secured when exiting my slip. At that angle it did not get in the way of anything.

Custom mast

I removed and stored the original mast, boom and sail from our Monk 36. I laminated spruce 2 x 6's into a custom " shorty" mast that carries the radar just above the flybridge enclosure. Anchor light is solar, and velcroed to radar dome. I put a small horizontal spreader near the top and that is where AIS antenna and anemometer are mounted.
It's worked perfectly. No cable stays to duck under. Air draft is now 16ft 6in instead of 21ft 6in. Hinged mast is easily lowered by one person and air draft goes to 14ft 6in for those low Erie Canal bridges. When boat is sold, new owner gets both masts.

alormaria said:

Without it's mast it's not a Marine Trader 34 DC, the world's most popular trawler.



It's just a short, fat, old powerboat that looks like it's missing something.

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Really? I think the GB folks might disagree.

rgano said:

Being in a heavy US Navy exercise area with fast moving destroyers when I bought my woodie trawler, the fist thing I mounted as high as I could get it was a radar reflector. In later years I moored it under a covered slip, but did not want to cut it off or down for too many reasons to enumerate here (but one was the lovely proportions of the boat with mast). Lowering it to 45 degrees solved the covered slip iss with 17 feet of air draft. I also lowered it to that position when in the ICW in south florida with all its 24-foot bridges (air draft was 26 feet with mast up. I was once timed, unbeknownst to me) at 2.5 minutes to raise it and have all four stays secured when exiting my slip. At that angle it did not get in the way of anything.

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Can you send me pics on how you did this? I have a 26-ft air draft as well and want to get under our local covered slips. Thanks!

I think the masts "make" some of them. The smaller MT Trawlers especially. Mine would look almost silly without a proper mast and boom.

CharlieO. said:

Thinking about removing my mast and boom. The only thing mounted to it is my anchor light, spreader lights and some kind of round antennae that is not in use.

Thinking about either not have a mast at all or a much shorter mast that wouldn't have all the wire stays running on the upper deck. Maybe have the standard base mount and another solid mount around the mast to connect it to upper deck/aft house area.

If I did shorten it by about 5 feet that would keep my air draft to around 15 feet and if I did need to lower it it would not cut my aft deck in half. I'd still have good visibility on my anchor light.

I plan on adding davits on the stern someday so would not necessarily need the boom.

But I dunno......

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I'd go the other way and ask "Any reason to take off my mast and boom"

Reading your post it sounds like it'll cost you money to do, so there's reason #1 why not to.

Redhook98 said:

Can you send me pics on how you did this? I have a 26-ft air draft as well and want to get under our local covered slips. Thanks!

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That boat's mast pivoted on the aft cabin top several feet below the flying bridge - a critical characteristic to the success of my rig. Boat is long gone, but a couple of surviving photos help illustrate the description. Stainless collar placed around the mast above the yards with a double sheave block with becket attached. A single block was attached to either side of the flying bridge deck about six feet forward of the mast. I rove the 3/8 Dacron sheet line (did not want a lot of stretch going on here) as folows: Becket down to one side block, back to mast block and down to other side block before returning to the second sheave of the mast block before coming down to the bitter end in my hands as I stood on the FB. A hefty cleat attached to the fowd side of the cleat at about chest high assisted in the controlled lowering.

IMO, I would investigate building a new medal mast and store the original mast for the new owner. It may be a tad bit expensive but, you may want to go back to the original mast after awhile.

Reason to keep mast and boom

A mast and boom on a proper trawler is.... "The Way Life Should Be"!

My rebuilt mast

I just rebuilt my wood mast. Water was getting in at the top where the wires came out and had several large cracks. Base had been repaired previously .... it was wet. Took about a month to get it dried out, lots of gluing grinding sanding and painting it's finally done. I might have gone with an aluminum mast but had no luck finding one or anyone who was willing to make one. I am sure this was much cheaper too. First picture is without the mast...looks odd to me. Plus where would one put the radar, lights and such? I saw a MS390 with an arch that I thought was very functional but looked odd. The boom was gone when I bought the boat. What I did for what it's worth.

rgano said:

That boat's mast pivoted on the aft cabin top several feet below the flying bridge - a critical characteristic to the success of my rig. Boat is long gone, but a couple of surviving photos help illustrate the description. Stainless collar placed around the mast above the yards with a double sheave block with becket attached. A single block was attached to either side of the flying bridge deck about six feet forward of the mast. I rove the 3/8 Dacron sheet line (did not want a lot of stretch going on here) as folows: Becket down to one side block, back to mast block and down to other side block before returning to the second sheave of the mast block before coming down to the bitter end in my hands as I stood on the FB. A hefty cleat attached to the fowd side of the cleat at about chest high assisted in the controlled lowering.

Click to expand...

Great info, thanks!