Considerations With New Mast

I have a 1962 28' Pearson Triton sailboat. The mast was damaged, and I have found a potential replacement. The original mast was teardrop shaped, 6" X 3 1/2" The mast I'm looking at is more oval and measures 7" X 4 1/4"

How can I decide if the new mast is too large of a section? I know it will add a little more weight and windage aloft. Do I need to know the moment of inertia figures for my boat and the new mast section?

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Jay

 

Gee...what is the weight difference ?

 

The new mast is about 28 lbs heavier.

 

28lbs is substantial but not dangerous. You could shave weight aloft by using a fabric back stay , fabric diagonals lighten the boom, use smaller high strength halyards... lighter battens in the main.....many small things. If the mast were cheap Id use it.

Check out this fabric rigging to see if its cost fits your budget.

http://www.colligomarine.com/vmchk/Colligo-Synthetic-Systems.htm

 

28 pounds spread on the mast will make little difference. A heavier section mast may be able to use lighter standing rigging. Also, changing the old wire halyards to synthetic will save some weight. Boats that had masthead instruments and a VHF antenna on the top would have about the same moment of inertia as the new mast you are looking at.

 

Btw the Dynex Dux that Colligo uses is amazing, and not just for racers.

 

The new mast will be considerably stiffer and it is possible that your sails will not like the additional stiffness. It depends on how your sails were cut when they were built. Consult your sailmaker for an opinion on this variable. Worst case scenario is having to recut the sails. Probably not too big a deal.

 

Unless you are racing, in which case you wouldn't change the mast, it is irrelevant.

 

I'm a little bit curious how you came up with the 28# figure.