Tony, My mast was 'worn out' - tired, beat up, and I wanted to change over to a tall rig. I was not happy with the soft and flexible extrusion of the original mast section so I contacted Bill Ballenger at Ballenger Spars in Watsonville CA. After a bit of discussion we agreed on a mast section (4026) and I supplied the dimensions for the tall rig (21 inches longer) I noted the location of my gooseneck and halyard exits and he built me an excellent mast. I provided a drawing of the masthead dimensions and they built a welded fitting with replaceable sheaves and axles! Jerry M. made the shrouds and stays and we have been happy ever since. If you look on the MSOG site - M-17's 'LB/GF!' (looks bad/goes fine!) check out the couple of pictures there - fixed airfoil spreaders, doublers at butt and spreaders - super fine workmanship and VERY fair price. The location of the spar manufacturer relative to your location can be important, as the freight on a 20'+ tube that needs to be 'top load' can get quite expensive. FWIW NFIW -just really good service and a great product - (I sold boats for +30 years - I am particular about boat parts!) {;>) Check them out if you are interested. _www.ballengerspars.com_ (http://www.ballengerspars.com) The pre-feed on the throat of the sail track is worth the 'price of admission'! Picture of the rig from 2013 LHPCC is attached. GO M-17t sail # 354 In a message dated 7/19/2013 9:33:32 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time, cox.tjg@gmail.com writes: GO, I live in Silverton, Oregon. My boat is moored on Detroit Lake. Tony Cox M17 294 On Fri, Jul 19, 2013 at 7:58 PM, <GILASAILR@aol.com> wrote:
Tony,
What part of the countryside are you located in?
GO M17t sail #354
In a message dated 7/19/2013 7:27:34 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time, cox.tjg@gmail.com writes:
Roger that Ron, not a fun day.
Thanks Tony Cox M-17 294
On Fri, Jul 19, 2013 at 7:06 PM, Ronald McNeil <ronaldwmcneil@yahoo.com>wrote:
Och! That happened to us on my buddy's Windrose 18 last year. In our case both turnbuckles on the port side came undone one right after the other. Not a fun day.
Regards, Ron McNeil M17 675
________________________________ From: Tony Cox <cox.tjg@gmail.com> To: montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Sent: Friday, July 19, 2013 5:51 PM Subject: M_Boats: Mast failure
Unfortunately had mast failure today on my M-17. Portside lowerstay snapped at the speader, then it all came down. Need a new mast and should replace the standing rigging. Jerry, you out there? Where do you suggest I go?
Tony Cox M-17 #294
