I bought a parts hobie 18 and unfortunately the mast is slightly bent (4" over its length). This is unfortunate since my comptip is cracked and i was hoping to use the all aluminum mast...
can this mast be straigtened? I was redaing somewhere that it should be OK as long as there arn't any kinks, which there isn't. Any recomendations on how to strighten? I was gonna lay it between two blocks and push on it... Should I apply heat?
I have heard of people using two trees and a come-along to straighten a mast.
Thomas Griffin Parrish
Do not apply heat
Terry
Nacra 5.2
Buddy of mine had that happen. He took off all the wires, put the mast on two sawhorses under the eave of his garage and adjusting the sawhorses back and forth and walking back and forth holding on to the eave for balance. Maybe even using a little "bounce". Jumping off frequently to check his work with the "ol" eyeball, he gradually massaged it back. Bridle wires go back on and tightened...been going strong for over 20 yrs. Good old Redneck engineering never gets enough credit!
I did mine just pushing down real hard. You need lots of room, these things bend a lot. Make sure ypu put something to spread the load where the mast is supported, on the sawhorses or, in my case, over the edge of the deck. I used about a two foot long piece of 2 x 10. If you put a kink in the mast or a dimple it's dead. Just an accident waiting to happen.
Shut up, sheet in, trap out.
4 inches over 28 feet isn't very much, maybe it's the diamond wires causing the apparent bend? Try loosening both diamonds and check for bend, then crank down on the wires on the outside of the bend to see if that can fix it.
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Damon Linkous
Thanks guys, I was really hoping this thing could be straightened.... It's not the daimond wires, the wires are loose and the mast is still bent.
The bend is not over the entire length of the mast, the bend is concentrated around where the top of the diamond wires attach to the mast.
As long as the sail track is not pinched don't worry about it. Mine has a bend like that from the previous owner dropping it. Bought a comp tip to replace the top but never installed it. Don't notice any issues
raising the sail or while sailing.
H18m
p16
Venture15