M mast support

[Russ]

Do you keep the mast support attached or remove it?

I've been contemplating removing it when the boat is in the water to remove extra rigging. But then I'm thinking it might be good to keep attached and hook stuff onto it.

What say you M owners?

[Shane]

I think most leave it on. We do. It's not in the way of anything, and we use it for mounting our GPS and VHF antennas. The roller 'V' also is an easy place for me to hang the dinghy painter. Besides, by removing it, that means 4 more sets of nuts & bolts to drop/lose/misplace, as well as yet another thing to store (and most importantly -remember to bring when you do decide to lower the mast!).

Regards,
Shane

[KayakDan]

That mast support arch is great. I mount flag staffs to it,and soon it will be part of the base for holding a solar panel. I also have a tube attached ,holding my stern anchor and rode. Others have used it to mount barbeques,and dinghy motors.
Leave it on,and you will find it very handy!

[Russ]

All good points.

I'll leave it up.

[School House Steve]

I have mounted the VHF antenna, CB antenna, GPS receiver, and Anchor light to mine. Now may have the answer for the stern anchor mount and the dingy motor mount. Be careful when raising mast not to get stays tangled in all that stuff.

[baldbaby2000]

I always leave mine on. I mount my flag to it and sometimes hang things on it when anchored.

[Terry]

I sure wish the '03 had that arch but alas, I have the pedestal pole arch. I suppose I could fabricate an accessory pole tree to insert in the pedestal for instruments with some imagination but for now I have a SS loop on the insert that I clip the mainsheet on when not sailing to keep the companionway clear.

One other thing I did do for a lower trailering profile is that I cut about a foot off that pole so that the mast, when trailering, is low enough that the helm seat just clears it when I raise the seat up. I notice in recent pics that the new M masts are angled quite steeply aft and to the sky. Has anyone contemplated cutting the ends of the arch to have it sit lower?

[jeffz]

The BWY Bimini folds up nicely to it and is secured by 2 bungees.
If you have such an animal

[John Christian]

2 Rod holders, boat hook and throwable horseshoe preserver, and room for more!

Reading these posts I wondered if the support attach bracket was open ended or closed? My is in storage so I can't check it right now. If it is open you should be able to drill two new holes and drop it down 10"-12". I Probably dont want to permanently lower it but it would give you a little more clearance on the trailer.

[Russ]

I now see the merit of having this thing back there. On the trailer, I find myself using it constantly for boarding.

Now, I've got some ideas for that thing. I'm thinking of some kind of LED cockpit light and an anchor light.

[Loefflerh]

It's not open ended, itis recessed into the sidewalls. To lower it you have to cut it shorter and drill new holesinto the arch
I have a similar concern - there is one bridge in the way I frequently go which causes a problem at high tide. With the X I just mounted a support bracket to the side of the pedestal pole, about 2 inches from the top and that was always good. Just before the bridge I just lifted the mast with one hand while steering, put it on that "sidemount" and after clearing the bridge the mast went straight back to its normal position.
With the M I have to find a new solution, I hate to cut the arch shorter. What I most probable do is to built a temporary (shorter) arch out of galvanized tubing to see how it works. 10' tubingx 1inch = 3.87$ + 2 elbows =5$ + 2 connectors 3$ - I think that is well invested before cutting the original.
Hans

[tangentair]

What I most probable do is to built a temporary (shorter) arch out of galvanized tubing to see how it works. 10' tubingx 1inch = 3.87$ + 2 elbows =5$ + 2 connectors 3$ - I think that is well invested before cutting the original.

I have considered prefabing out of hard copper - and then if it works pouring a mix of chopped fiberglass and resin and maybe a channel for wires just to stiffen it up. Heated copper would make complex bends easier and if you covered it with a vinyl or wrapped cordage it would look quite spiffy. You could make a rather complex rear arch easily but I have not figured if the cost of the stiffing materials would bring it up to SS prices

[Loefflerh]

Done - and it looks good, will post pictures later today. 14.95$ total and about 1hr of work. Mast sits now really low on the boat, I guess even lower than on my X!

[Loefflerh]

Here are pictures:

[Boblee]

I removed the original arch and made legs to use the BBQ on land out of it, then made the arch in the photo out of aluminium, between it and the stern rails which are slightly different to yours they are probably the most useful additions to the boat with what you can hang there.
My problem was different to yours as I wanted the mast higher when camping on trailer and lower when travelling on the road.
The mast support is on the front side and raises or lowers 12'' which gives good head room.
There are also lights, GPS reciever and 12v power on front.