[C320-list] Rigging a wind instrument

[Utility Email]

Bruce,

Last summer I shipped my boat and derigged and rerigged the mast. My boat has the Selden in-mast furler.  

While it was in the yard on sawhorses, I installed a TV antenna about 3 feet above my radome. Bases on my being able to closely examine the mast and inside when it was on saw horses, it seems like you could run a wire using a messenger from the top of the mast to the deck. Don't forget to also run a new messenger line with the new electrical wire.  

The inside of my mast has PVC pipe in it for routing the instrument and nav light wires to protect them and keep them from slapping inside the mast.  Of course this was in a furling mast, so if you don't have a furler, it seems like their would be even more room to route your new wind instrument wire while the mast is stepped. 

Now getting from the deck to the bilge through the deck fitting and the compression post seems like it would be much harder. If I had to do this, I would probably use a steel electrical fish tape and try to fish it up through the compression post up through the deck fitting from below. The mast base on the deck has a lip on it on the top to presumably allow deck water to not wash into the hole. I think fishing the wire or fish tape through this hole from the access hole inside of the mast would be more difficult. 

Anyway. I hope some of this explanation helps you in your efforts. 

Good luck!

Dave Swanson
S/V Emily Ann
2007 C320 MK II, No. 1107
Mukilteo, WA


On Apr 13, 2011, at 7:40 PM, "Bruce Stumpp" <bstumpp at comcast.net> wrote:

> Has anyone out there ever pulled a wire cable down through the mast without
> dropping the mast?  I recently purchased a complete wind instrument kit and
> was wondering if it is possible to pull the cable without dropping the mast.
> There is a messenger string already in place but I'm not sure if there is
> anything inside to complicate the issue.  Anybody?  
> 
> Bruce Stumpp
> #647, Adventure
> Frog Mortar Creek, Maryland