Tanzer 16 a respectable last place - that mast must go!

Tanzer 16 a respectable last place - that mast must go!  -- August 30, 2014 -- Thursday was the last race of the season, and only our second time racing this year-broke my arm in May the night of the first race.  We were last, but it was a respectable last--the committee folks weren't drumming their fingers waiting for us to finish. Participation was light so we were up against the best sailors who had something gain--no low fruit to pick*.  We got very respectable starts on a skewed starting line--nobody could start on starboard tack and those that tried had to jibe behind the fleet or endure penalty turns for tacking in front of and touching other boats. (*Actually we beat a couple of boats but we didn't do the last of the three races; it was getting dark, and the boat had to go back on the trailer.)

We were just starting to bear off--we missed the C-Lark by about an inch.  

More room than I wanted to give him, but we were early on the line so 

we needed to kill a few seconds.  He had to luff to not cross early, and we

started dead even on port tack.  We were going faster at that moment.
He was about 60 -90 seconds ahead of us at the windward mark.

That is the value of racing; we were up against the best of our little fleet--we didn't make any mistakes.  We now know for sure that our boat is just a little slower than the others and points a little lower than the others, probably two or three degrees.  The new main has helped a lot, but there is more to do.  We never could get the main quite flat enough or get the boom all the way up to the center line on windward legs--the wind was about seven knots.  In our races that all added up to more than 90 seconds on the first windward mark.  We gained on the downwind legs but not enough.  Bright spot, our tacking and jibing have smoothed out so we don't lose time there. (And, we don't look like clowns.)

I have already stripped the boat and started working on next year's improvements.  It's early.  We could sail for two more months.  But, I am sick/tired/frustrated about the Tanzer 16 mast.  The Tanzer is a wonderful boat--but I hate that mast.  It is tall; it is heavy; and the base attachment to the keelson is impossible.   The portable hinge makes it tolerable--but just barely tolerable. The mast must go!

This is the new (used) mast.  The bottom fitting for the keelson has been
removedso that we could machine plugs.  They will attach the mast to the
two parts of the hinge--after we cut the mast.  In subsequent posts, you will
see step-by-step how the project unfolds. 

This is going to get fixed.  There is no sense starting and ending every sail with the dreadful task of dealing with that mast.  It is going to become a hinged mast like the early Tanzers and the Overnighters.  The parts are made and a spare mast is hanging in the storage area.  The most difficult part was machining the plugs that will attach the mast to the hinge.  A friend made them on his Shop Bot (plotter with a router).  The second most difficult part was an extra mast.  We found one down in Vancouver, Washington. (If you have to buy a new mast, a blank--no fittings is about $400 plus $200 or $300 shipping.)

I will explain the mast modification as the project proceeds.  I know this isn't just my issue.  Raising the mast and the cost of boats are the two most popular parts of this blog.  Lots of us must have trouble with this 31-pound, 24 foot piece of metal.  Wish me luck!

The to do list:
1) add hinged mast for easy raising with a gin pole
2) move halyards to centerboard cap; add cam cleats and a winch so it is easy to raise, lower, and adjust halyard tension underway
3) add additional blocks to traveler to gain 2:1 mechanical advantage so it will be easier to adjust traveler in brisk wind
4) add spinnaker pole
5) get new Genoa
6) paint deck, including filling holes left by previous owners
7) add new rub rail
8) do a little cosmetic repair to hull in bow area--somebody bashed a lot of docks
9) clean up trailer, paint, and new bunks
10) install cunningham with 2:1 mechanical advantage
11) refill the hardware box with shackle pins, rings, and cotter pins (lots of borrowing by others has depleted the spares)

That's a lot of stuff--but this boat is worth the trouble.  It is simple, roomy, easy to sail and very well- mannered.  Great design--crappy mast.

Today's Cliche:  Problems are just undiscovered opportunities.