Subject: Re: [Catalina-22] [GEAR] -- Mast Gates

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2007 12:06:02 EDT

Definitively famous last words: "I've heard "splash" too often by now not  to 
be!".
 
Bayard Gross
CTYH9911M81B
BABY BLUE

http://tinyurl.com/4qaq7
Greenwich, CT
In a message dated 3/27/2007 8:07:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time,  
[email-masked] writes:

On last Wednesday, Robert  Bemben wrote (Subject:  Jack Lines):
 
"I was just lamenting the  lack of a better mast gate design, I suppose. It 
seems to me someone should be  able to come up with a spring-loaded, latching, 
hinged gate that allows the  sail to be removed."
 
On Saturday, I wrote Joe  Martinek out in Colorado, designer of the mast 
gates now marketed through  Catalina Direct, the following message (cc'd to  
Robert):
 
"Joe, I agree with  Robert -- if this is possible on your end. Still, your 
mast gates are the best  thing that's happened to us who keep our masts raised 
all season! Love  mine!" 
Joe called me over the weekend,  but I wasn't home.  He left his new phone 
number, but called again  yesterday, and made some good points. 
1)  Constructing the mast  gates as they are is difficult, time-consuming. 
2)  Their simplicity is  what makes them desirable, and less costly. 
3)  Selling them  one-at-a-time was sort of a nuisance; he's glad CD took 
over  distribution. 
4)  To attempt designing  them with a latch would defeat their simplicity and 
cost more.  He doubts  there's much of a demand, so why bother? 
5)  There's only four  screws involved in removing them.  Is this in itself 
not  simplicity? 
Joe suggested for anyone who  finds this difficult or a nuisance that, 
instead, they cut a hole on the mast  track beneath the boom's gooseneck enough so 
they can lower the boom and  detach it there.  Put a knurled-knob boom-stop 
between (which I already  have) to keep the boom at its proper height.  Simply 
drop the boom-stop  to the foot of the mast when you want to remove the main 
sail, and lower the  boom to this new slot.  His suggestion seems to work for me. 
 You  can then leave the mast gates in place; lower the boom lower than its 
now-slot  to its new-slot and remove it entirely. 
Personally, I'm with Joe:   four machine screws aren't much of an ordeal.  As 
he noted, lose  one and it's one bounce then splash, but what's new?  I'm 
awfully  careful when I install/reinstall mine.  I've heard "splash" too often by 
 now not to be! 
Chip Ford --
Marblehead,  Mass.
1974 Swing Keel "Chip Ahoy" #3282
CTY032820374
Chip Ahoy  website:  _www.chipford.com_ (http://www.chipford.com/)  

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