Falmouth Pilot 6 ton & mast problems

[nandtatno7]

I have just bought a wonderful Falmouth Pilot 6 tonner. Very pleased with her in all respects but one - the wooden mast (two years old) 'whips' at the hounds when pitching. Have I set the rigging up wrong? If there is anyone out there with a Pilot, or any advice, I would be glad of a a chat!
Nick

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[Stuart_Wyatt]

This is how I set up the rigging on my wooden boat and all seems ok so far:
Set up tension in the rigging by starting at the bottom of the mast and working upwards. I.e, do the shortest shrouds first. Keep sighting up the back off the mast to be sure you don't pull it backwards or sidewards or create a bend in it. According to Eric Hiscock (from his bible "Cruising Under Sail"), the tension in the shrouds should be such that when sailing in a stiff breeze the lee shrouds should feel slack but not look slack. The forestay should not sag much to leeward when you look up it, but neither should it be bar taught, and the backstay/s should oppose the pull of the forestay equally. Start with low tension and increase it as you get more confident, but never tighten it anything like the bar taught tension you feel on many grp boats. The shorter inner shrouds won't need to be as taught as the longer outer shrouds because they have less length in which to stretch. If you have twin back-stays remember they are opposing a single forestay and will not feel very tight by comparison. Before feeling confident that I could set up my own rigging I wandered about a marina comparing the tension in other boats rigging. Best not to be seen feeling many other boats rigging. And my final advice is this disclaimer. Don't take my advice. The worst downside of getting it wrong is too awful to contemplate. It would be a shame to: loose the mast overboard, or spring the garboard plank, or snap any rivets, or generally pull the boat out of shape, etc.. Maybe it would be best to get the services of a good rigger first time and then DIY after that.

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[johnlilley]

I used to have Fern, a six ton Pilot and I also found that the mast would appear to whip forward at the top when in strong windward sailing. What was actually happening was the mast was bowing aft at the spreaders. The forward lowers have to be tighter than the aft lowers. In Fern's case that cured the problem. Regards. John Lilley

<hr width=100% size=1>John Lilley, John Lilley & Associates, Web site www.seasurveys.co.uk for osmosis /timber problems

 

[nandtatno7]

John
Many thanks for your reply - I will try your suggestion.
A supplementary if you see this - I see from the Pilot drawings that a wedge is supposed to be driven under the base of the mast. On Pavane there is no gap (less than a couple of millimetres) to get a wedge in. What was the set up in the tabernacle on Fern? Did she have a wedge at the base? And did she have more than the single pivot bolt to hold the mast in? I notice that there is another set of bolt holes just forward of the mast below the level of the pivot. Hoping you can help.
Also - do you know of Fern's current location / or that of any other Pilots?

All the best
Nick


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[Porthandbuoy]

Have a look at www.classicmarine.co.uk They've got an excellent article on masts, rigging, etc. Basically there should be no weight on the pivot bolt; the mast must be chocked/wedged once vertical.


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[johnlilley]

Fern did not have any wedges fitted, but the bolt hole in the tabernacle forward of the mast is for a bolt to prevent the mast toppling forward if you were to unstep the mast without a hoist. The reason for tightening the fwd.lower more is because the triangulation of the stays is a bit limited and beacause the fwd lower is only a short distance fwd of the mast it requires more tension to prevent mast bending under load. The spreaders are straight and not swept back. Swept back spreaders tend to push the centre of the mast fwd when loaded. I can remember Pavane I saw her afloat in the Solent a while ago I am sure. Wasn't she at Redclyff in Wareham a short while ago. Fern is now moored at Ridge at Wareham. I can remember several 6 tonners and when I sold Fern I hoped to buy a 9 ton Pilot but could not find one. Blue Pilot is moored in Chichester area I believe, Bilberry used to be in Weymouth but unkown now, Teasel a Ten ton Pilot may still be at Keyhaven, Aeolia used to be at Wooton Creek but last heard for sale in Hamble somewhere. Eventually bought a 12 ton Hillyard. The Pilot is an excellent seaboat and I was always surprised how well it sailed in all conditions. The build quality is good but keep an eye on the plywood coachroof close to the windows and the floor bolts cannot be replaced without dropping the keel which is a bit of a pain. I replaced some stem scarf bolts on Fern but these are easy and required after about 35 years. Keelbolts check one every two years until they have all been checked. The worst one is the one aft of the engine under the prop shaft. This ties the stern knee to the keelson and is the longest and one most likely to be ignored. The other areas include the ferrous bolts that tie the transom to the internal fashion pieces corrode and allow the planking to come away slightly from the transom, the usual sign is a paint crack that keeps occuring at the transom hood ends. Easily remidied.
Have a good time
Regards John Lilley


<hr width=100% size=1>John Lilley, John Lilley & Associates, Web site www.seasurveys.co.uk for osmosis /timber problems