by GreenLake » Tue Jan 25, 2011 5:35 pm
Do you have a keel-stepped mast or a deck stepped mast?
In case of the former, the location of the keel step would give you an approximate starting point for mast rake (I say approximate, because the shrouds could bend the mast a bit). Assuming, of course, the mast step location is not itself under suspicion.
Sorry, this isn't a more complete answer, but first, a totally vertical mast is very probably incorrect.
You measure the mast angle by dangling a weight from the main halyard and measuring the distance that it hangs behind the mast at deck level (when the boat is levelin the water).
If all else fails, I imagine you could use temporary stays (rope) to get the mast into an approximate position, measure the lengths, and then do actual adjustments with turnbuckles.
I have the original mast-jack system where the shrouds are fixed length and the mast is raised by turning a large nut. I assume you don't, is that correct?
~ green ~ lake ~ ~