Mast Step

[davidhand]

Can anyone give the pros and cons of deck step vs keel step masts. I have always owned boats with keel stepped masts and when I go onboard an otherwise substantial vessel and see a deck stepped mast I just cringe. I believe most Moodys and Westerlies have deck stepped masts and they try to convince us they are more soundly constructed than their European counterparts.

 

[DoctorD]

I would think that in a properly constructed boat it should not matter much. But I much prefer keel stepped - to me it just has to be a stronger way to do things. All racing boats I have been on have keel stepped masts. I guess one of the reasons may be that it must be hard to engineer a desk stepped mast with an appropriate rig to allow significant mast bend.

 

[pjohnst]

I sail off the West Australian coast with average summer winds of 20-30 knots and the majority of yachts have deck stepped masts. I guess this inevitably means that heavier rigging has to be carried, but this does not seem to be a problem. Also, the deck would need to be adequate to withstand the stresses. Although many boats are maintained in marinas on the coast, a significant number are kept on the Swan river and to access the Indian Ocean involves negotiating 3 relatively low bridges, requiring lowering of mast(s). This would be impossible without deck stepped masts and tabernacles. I suppose this is why we tend to choose deck rather than keel stepped masts. Additionally, should the ultimate misfortune occur and you lost the mast, it would simply fall over the side, whereas with a keel stepped one, it could substantially damage the deck.
Peter Johnston

 

[Twister_Ken]

Logic would seem to suggest that keel-stepped is a better engineering solution, but OTOH you have got a permanent hole in the deck, and the potential for a lot of damage to the deck/coachroof should the mast ever go. This would be particularly worrying in a capsize.

In my experience of boats, it's often a size related thing - smaller boats - deck, larger boats - keel.

 

[Rob_Webb]

The Westerlies I had all had a large stainless steel post running from the cabin roof to the sole, directly beneath the mast. This goes a long way to achieving the desired affect of transfering a significant amount of mast weight/load directly down to the bottom of the boat.

I always assumed that any minor cracking in the deck around the mast was a sign of localised 'panting' of the GRP and not an indication that the mast was about to disappear down through the boat - I hope I'm right.....!