Bent Mast

[Jim@sea]

I am in the process of buying a 24ft yacht, from a distance it looks as if the mast may be bent slightly, backwards to the stern.
Could it be just the fact that the mast is lying on top of the boat perhaps not resting very well and I could assume that I dould pull the mast straighter when fitted.

Prefer not to list the make of boat untill actually purchased.

 

[johnalison]

My 34ft boat's mast had a marked bend from new. This was reduced a bit by the riggers but people still comment on it. It doesn't seem to harm the performance, which compares well with its sister ships. Many masts are set up with a slight bend, if only to protect them from a reverse bend which is definitely bad, so what you see may be normal. Any mast not properly supported may have some bend, and you would be unlucky if this deformed it permanently, but it should be easy enough to manually lift this mast at the end and see what shape it develops.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

If it's laid down and not evenly supported it will definitely sag.

 

[Catalina36]

There's a big difference between a curve and a bend. A metal tube can flex without damage - think of a length of copper tubing. On the other hand if it's locally point-loaded it can buckle irretrievably. Is its wall crippled/creased anywhere?

 

[Rappey]

if the mast may be bent slightly, backwards to the stern.

Isn't a little mast bend desirable ?
I would also go with the unsupported so it will naturally sag/ bend under its own weight
A larger mast will also bend, probably more pronounced as it's longer.

 

[William_H]

Yes my mast although probably much lighter than the one you are looking at does sag a fair bit when supported at bow and stern. In my case the aft side of the mast is always down. I imagine this one is also so blame gravity. Mast is probably perfect however any small bend can be straightened with rig tension. Usually end up with some bend middle forward. ol'will

 

[davidpbo]

Doesn't it also depend on rig type? I have a 24ft Jeaneau Tonic with a fractional Bermudan rig and adjustable tension on the backstay which is intended to put some curvature on the mast. The same does not happen with a masthead rig or at least not to the same degree.

My 10m mast is currently on top of my boat supported about 1.5m from the front and about 3m from the back with no significant visible bend. As others have said, there is a difference between a bit of flexsion and a bend which may show signs of creasing. If in doubt get a surveyor or rigger to have a look at it.

A few years ago I went to see a Jeaneau 24.2 as a replacement. Aside from the face it had far less stowage than the Tonic, the mast was broken and repaired towards the foot. If it might be that I've P.M. me.

 

[Norman_E]

Even curve = no problem.
Sudden sharp bend or kink = big problem, and a probable failure point..