Lost Mouse line in mast

[Col661]

Hi All,

I've attempted to replace my anchor/mast tri colour and thought I'd replace the cable as well. The mast is off the boat and I thought this would be a simple task! I taped plenty of tape around old cable and onto new. From the top of the mast entry I pulled from the bottom. There was a fair bit of resistance and the cable exit at the bottom of the mast (just under) has a really small exit hole. Unfortunately, I lost the join and have had to pull both cables out.

What is the easiest way to run a new cable inside the mast from top to bottom with the mast off? I have a steel mousing reel that possibly could go length of the 12m mast but I have no idea how to get the cable out through the small holes top/bottom! Should there be a cover or cap or do I have to take off the masthead to run the cable?

Very confused how to achieve this.

Thanks for any words of advise.

 

[andsarkit]

You should be able to remove the mast heel (depending on the design of mast). You will then be able to see if you have a conduit for the cables. On some masts you can remove a cap on the top of the mast.
With a steel mouse it should be easy to run a new line as long as you can avoid getting tangled with any internal halliyards.
If you don't have a conduit it might be a good idea to push some pipe insulation up the cable to stop the cables slapping and keeping you awake at anchor.
If you replace the heel plug with some sealant this will help to prevent corrosion .
It is possible to use magnets or wire loops to catch the mouse line without opening the mast but I think this is more likely to lead to a lot of frustration and wasted effort.
A photo might result in more relevant suggestions.

 

[William_H]

If the hole is tiny at the bottom of the mast then that is where you need to feed in mousing reel assuming you do not have an internal conduit. This will mean you have remove the mast top assembly. Hopefully not too corroded on. The mast bottom fitting is more likely to be corroded on but any casting of ali into mast will be a devil to remove. There may also be sheave boxes in the mast near the top that can be removed to give an access hole to fish out you mousing reel. ol'will