racing mast

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racing mast

Postby scitfrostbite » Mon May 19, 2014 10:30 pm

Is there someone out there who can detail the tapered racing spar reputations?
Like which is regarded as fastest, which are still made, lightest weight, etc, etc.

Do all DS tapered spars have a 5' taper?

Thanks
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Re: racing mast

Postby Adams » Sun May 25, 2014 10:16 am

I'm very interested in this subject and judging by the number of views, others are as well.

I recently changed from a deck stepped, non tapered spar to a very old tapered Proctor.
In my situation, I'm very pleased with the weight loss aloft. But the greatest benefit is the adjustabilility tuning the mainsail. I have a newer Intensity and an older North. I wasn't pleased with either till I rigged the " Noodle" . Now I can get the shape I wanted in all conditions I've tested. I can flatten the main and get balance without having to reef in winds towards 20+-. Nice since I singlehand and prefer heavy wind sailing.

If I ever have to replace this old mast I'd like to know what's availible " off the shelf", hopefully someone will chime in.
Heidt
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Re: racing mast

Postby Mike Gillum » Sun May 25, 2014 1:47 pm

As far as I'm aware the only option for a new tapered DS Mast is either Selden who bought Proctor several years ago and Superspar. Expect to pay somewhere around $1,500 depending on rigging and shipping.
I have a tapered Ballenger Mast that came from another DS as it was my reasonable option in easily upgrading to a tapered Mast without spending a small fortune.
Ballenger Spars no longer builds DS Masts as Buzz Ballenger had to buy fifty (50) extrusions before he built the first mast then sit on the remainder of stock until the next order.
The Ballenger Boom was actually a stock Thistle Mast extrusion but as was the case with the DS Mast Buzz stopped making Thistle Masts several years ago.
Last year we stripped the original rigging from an old original silver anodized tapered Proctor Mast from an old DS sitting in my side yard, cut-out the old sheave box, welded all of the old holes, sanded all of the welds smooth, cut about 10" off the rotted stump off of the Mast and sleeved a new replacement section to the bottom before delivering it to our powder coater to be lightly sandblasted and powder coated silver making it look like new.
Then we installed a pair of used Proctor Spreaders powder coated along with the mast, new stainless steel Shrouds & Forestay with T-Terminal Ends, all new Harken sheaves for the halyards & topping lift, new Selden/Proctor Gooseneck for a used Proctor Boom I had stashed away and a slightly used three-sheave Proctor Base.
After all of that work and about $500 out of pocket we had a "new" tapered DS Mast similar in bend characteristics to my Ballenger.
The only drawback to the Proctor is the overly large sail slot just above the gooseneck that originally allowed for the Jib & Spinnaker Halyards to run down the sail slot along with the boltrope for the luff of the Main that doesn't easily allow for a floating Tack Slug commonly found on most all of the new Mains as either a short piece of Spectra or a web loop with Velcro closure will be needed.
Most all of the tapered DS Masts have a welded taper approximately 5' long allowing for the top of the Mast to bend at about the same rate of the rest of Mast that is being bent by a combination of rig tension, boomvang and mainsheet.
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Re: racing mast

Postby scitfrostbite » Tue May 27, 2014 10:49 pm

I believe Zephyr Spars at Cape Cod Shipbuilding still sells tapered DS spars.

I've heard there is an old tapered spar called the Proctor E (?). I've been told that it is heavy and too bendy. So I guess there are some not worth it.

Is the Ballenger the one that people are looking for? Is this the old gold mast that some people seem to want?

Great stuff. Thanks
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Re: racing mast

Postby bluesman » Mon Jul 14, 2014 1:18 pm

Yes Zephyr Spars at Cape Cod Shipbuilding still sells tapered DS spars. I have one and the quality is excellent. It is stepped and not folding and has internally run halyards
Cape Cod Shipbuilding DaySailer
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Re: racing mast

Postby aggiesailor65 » Tue Jul 15, 2014 7:57 am

I am also considering replacing my mast with a tapered racing mast. I received a quote from Selden for $800 plus shipping; however, the halyards are run externally. The Selden mast is significantly cheeper than the mast from Cape Cod. Are the internal halyards really worth the extra money?
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Re: racing mast

Postby bluesman » Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:23 pm

In my limited opinion ( I have a tapered racing mast) I think I would save the money, I don't think they are worth the premium
Last edited by bluesman on Tue Jul 22, 2014 10:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: racing mast

Postby Bob Damon » Tue Jul 15, 2014 9:23 pm

check with Lawton Connelly at Selden US in South Carolina, email is lc@seldenus.com. Internal halyards are much easier to care for and keep the mast and deck clean. The big difference between the Selden and the one at Cape Cod Zehyr is weight. The Selden is easy to step and lift and the Zephyr was much heavier to lift and fit into the partner. I spent a lot of time with Mr. Connelly making sure the measurement issues were correct when Proctor shifted over to Selden. Good luck.
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Re: racing mast

Postby scitfrostbite » Fri Aug 08, 2014 1:01 am

What's opinion of the Super Spars mast? Fast, slow? Heavy,light? Bendy, stiff? Thinking about getting one. It's a fast section in other classes.
Thanks
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Re: racing mast

Postby Mike Gillum » Sat Aug 09, 2014 12:22 am

The few Super Spar Masts I've seen appear to be as good as the Proctor/Selden and Ballenger tapered Masts.
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