[C38] mast step

[phil317 at sunflower.com]

> I'm new to cat38s, just bought one last month and spent 25 days in Cracker Boy yard addressing structural problems.  I put in a new mast step.
the old one consisted of three transverse pieces got out of 4x8x12 mahogany and a forth piece laid flat on top.  There was nothing holding the pieces together.   I pulled the tank and laminated up mostly 25mm brunzyle mahog. ply but I was a bit short of it so there are two lifts of 2x12 PT up near the top. I Protected the forwardmost keel bolt with a small cup then bedded the new step in a quart of thickened polyester resin.  I managed, with difficulty, to get a piece of 1708 biax to stick to the bottom of the floor which had cracked badly. the laminations and biax were done with Fasco epoxy. At around $40 a gallon its the best deal I've found. I tabbed the step in port and starboard.  The one I took out  only had a little tabbing on the port side, none  to starboard. The old step had rotted to the point that the mast had pushed down through the floor and I had to rework quite a bit of the floor support to get everything back in place.  The REAL GOOD news was that my new standing all fit when I was done! 

Phil, owner of Our Tern