Can I fit a tabernacle?

[jackal]

Wow, drilling right through the raised lip. That doesn't leave too much room for error. I'll be sure to keep my drill bit from "walking." What size are the bolts? 1/4", 3/8"?

On my boat, the cheek blocks lead the halyards aft to two cleats on top of the cuddy deck. Moving the blocks up the mast wouldn't be a problem. The current ones are pretty worn out and it would be a good excuse to upgrade.

In regards to pictures, I've noticed other users have personal albums. At what point may I be allowed to create such an album of my pictures? Or does posting them automatically create the album?

Thanks!
Matthew

[GreenLake]

I don't have the boat where I can double check, but from memory I'd say 1/4" or less, 3/8" seems more massive than I remember. Some of the holes are kind of at the outer edge of the lip. Just close enough that pulling the bolt tight won't really bend the disk.

About your blocks. Remember to allow for your vang. But I'm sure you'll find a solution that works for you.

There are two ways to post pictures, as attachments in a post. Those can only be accessed via the thread they are in, or by clicking on the blue "Gallery" next to the "eye" icon above and then follow the link to "personal album". Or from your user profile. Those can be referenced from any thread by clicking on the gray "Gallery" button in the editor. More info under "website info" in this forum.

[Bill Tatum]

When I had one of these contraptions fabricated from stainless steel, it was built with the hinge attached to a piece of 1" wide mental instead of being attached to a wooden block. I'm having major problems with the mast binding in the "cup". You mentioned that you had to deepen the groove in your wooden block to eliminate binding. Does the deeper groove simply give you more "wiggle room" to get the mast properly aligned? Also, my understanding is that the mast will not drop through the opening unless it is vertical over the hole (mast partner??) and that once it has dropped through it has to be tilted backwards a few degrees to line up with the mast step. How do you do all that alignment when you're standing on top of the cuddy? I think I'm making this process harder than it needs to be.

[GreenLake]

The opening through the cuddy deck should be shaped so that you can drop the mast at the correct angle (tilted just slightly off the vertical).

I inherited the setup that I document, but I had to rebuild it due to the original wooden block failing over time (rot or splitting or both). When I did that, I ended up with the entire sleeve so tight that the mast would not slide through it, so I had to re-file the groove. A slightly wider groove is also more forgiving when the hinge and the cuddy opening (partners) are not lined up perfectly (what you call "wiggle room").

Fore-and-aft angles aren't an issue, because the hinge accommodates those, but if the groove is way too shallow it would position the mast in front of the opening, not over it - that may have been an issue as well. I have a 4ft or so mast section that I use as a mast support when trailering. That's been a great tool in checking tolerances etc, because other than a shorter length (and therefore easier to handle) it's just like the lower end of the mast.

I don't stand on the cuddy

If I did, I would use a spotter.

As it is, I use a spotter when I have one, because I usually lean over too far to see the mast step. However, the partners will hold the mast well enough that I can let go one hand and take a peek - especially if sound tells me I'm nearly on the step and just need a bit of a wiggle to make the mast foot slide onto the mast jack.

Having everything aligned so that the mast can only go down in nearly the correct angle helps as well.

With time, I got better at aiming....

[GreenLake]

I found a photo that I didn't know I had.