Mast Hardware Puzzler

I'm rebuilding my 55' mast and have encountered something I can't figure out.

Rather than being tapped or riveted, most of the hardware is attached to the mast with machine screws/bolts and nuts. Sometimes the nut is on the outside and the bolt is on the inside. Sometimes the machine screw is on the outside and the nut is on the inside. The holes are not tapped and the fasteners seem to be bedded in something like boatlife. This was done by Lee Creekmore in the early 80's

I'd like to remove the hardware, paint, then re-attach, but I can't figure out how to get the nuts on and off way up inside the mast. There are no access holes, and some of them I can barely see, much less reach. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it. A ratchet with a 25 foot extension perhaps?

There must be a trick.

 

I don't know about the ones with the bolt on the inside but the ones with the nut on the inside might be RIVNUTs by BFGoodrich.

 

I was able to speak with the man wo built the mast. He said he attached a ratched to a long piece of PVC. He placed the wrench in the correct location on the outside of the mast and marked the length on the PVC. Takes two people and plenty of patience. Using this method I've removed some of the nuts, but there are a few that are way up in there >20' that should be challenging. I may have to attach a web cam with a long extension cord and a flashlight to the wrench so I can see what's going on.