mast footing

[Guest]

On my DS2 I have noticed some up and down movement of the mast footing when underway, maybe 1/2 inch. Is this normal? The footing is solidly attached to the floor.

Thank you

Larry Boley (lboley-at-aol.com)

[Guest]

How old is your DS II? I had to replace the plywood pad under the cuddy floor after it rotted out and allowed my mast step to break through the cuddy floor.
On my boat, the cuddy flor had broken before and the previous owner tried to glass over the crack. This repair failed the first time that I sailed the boat!
The only hard part is that you need to gain access under the cuddy floor, I cut and access panel and did the work under the decking (floor), I also added an aluminum plate 1/4" thick between the maststep and the cuddy floor.

Rod Johnson (rjohnson24-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

My boat is a 1982. When I purchased it, the inner hull had a considerable amount of water in it from sitting outside with a open access port for about a year. Inside the cuddy is an access port. Should I at least be able to see if something is wrong? Is there a support between the hull and the cuddy floor?

Thank you

Larry Boley (lboley-at-aol.com)

[Guest]

I had a similar experience with my '80 Day Sailer II. Not only had the plywood base rotted out, but the spoot that supports the mast between the hull and cuddy floor was not under the mast base. My friends built platform of structural aluminum which would cantilever across spool and the mast base on the cuddy floor after rebuilding the wood support under the floor

Sam Boman (Sam.Boman-at-ecunet.org)