Forums, Mast, Rigging and Sails, Mast Wedges/Chocks?
19:26 16 October 2023
Mast Wedges/Chocks?
Stargazer at 18/03/2020 23:25:41
Evening all,
I’m a newbie to the Contessa fleet and want to know what other owners use to wedge their masts ….
I’ve been offered rubber ‘wedges’ by Jeremy Rogers – they supply 10mm or 20mm rubber blocks which can be trimmed to size. The blocks aren’t tapered, they’re just a slab of rubber either 10mm or 20mm thick. (I tried to load a picture, but can’t get it to load). The price seems rather steep though – £33.74 for the 20mm block, £28.32 for the 10mm block, and £18 (!!!) for delivery. Does anybody use these?
It seems to me that hardwood wedges would serve the purpose just as well for a fraction of the price. (e.g. 50 hardwood blocks, 100mm long x 20mm wide x 15mm tapering to 2mm from Amazon for under a tenner)
Or am I missing something?
Thanks, Simon
19:26 16 October 2023
Mast Wedges/Chocks?
Alan Dixon at 27/03/2020 16:14:21
The wedges were missing when I first bought Charlotte, I tried with wooden wedges with only limited success after a while they crushed and moved fell out and it was a constant annoyance. Some four years later I had the mast out for maintenance and installed the JR rubber blocks. Difference is amazing eleven years later the mast has never moved and the blocks are still in place. Well worth the money
19:26 16 October 2023
Mast Wedges/Chocks?
SealionK5199 at 12/05/2020 13:44:21
I have had a set of the rubber chocks from JR for about 14 years now. To fit them I put in the aft chock and then have to put a line from one of the coachroof winches around the front of the mast and back to the other winch, harden that up to pull the mast back compressing the chock. Only then can I get the forward chock in. They don’t move all season!
They don’t quite fit in at 12 and 6 o’clock…..more like 1 and 7 but my mast has never quite seemed to be exactly central in the deck hole anyway!