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Hatch is now also the mast step

I met with Rod Carr yesterday and he is going to work with me to make a new rig instead of using the standard Star 45 rig. This way we can make the jib larger and the main smaller. This will give the boat more luff which should help it upwind.

However, it also moves the Center of Effort (CE) forward so the entire rig needs to be moved aft to better balance it with the Center of Lateral Resistance (CLR) of the hull, fin and rudder. What that means is that the mast step needs to be on top of the hatch. So instead of screwing down a piece of metal I simply drilled holes in the top of the hatch that the mast step can fit into. Then I backed it with a larger piece of 1/32" ply and then a smaller strip of 1/16" ply.

Then I taped the hatch down quite strongly so that the hatch curves more. Hopefully I'll introduce a bit more curve than I had before so that the neoprene is held down firmly enough at the edges.


You can see in the picture that I gave myself a LOT of holes. This is a one-of-a-kind boat and we aren't exactly sure of where the best place for the rig should be, so I just decided to give myself a lot of options for moving the rig around. If I or anyone else ever makes this same design then by then we should have a much better idea of where the mast goes! :-P 

An addition advantage of having the step on the hatch is that the mast will put a lot of downward force on the hatch keeping it closed. I'm still considering what to do with the hatch as far as holding it down. Might still use screws but will wait until I see how it sits tomorrow and after I glue on some neoprene which won't be until after I start painting. 

I forgot to take a picture of the underside of the hatch but will try to show that tomorrow when it's dry.

Hope this works!


Peace!   _/)


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