Anonymous wrote:

Hi Andrew,

the most obvious idea would be to set up a simple A-Frame with two long poles. 

Thanks Paul. I've used an A frame many times as a pivot to pull the mast up on its base but I've never used one as a lift.

I guess that means I have to rig up something around 5m long, as the mast will be 10m. I suppose I might get away with 4.8m lengths of timber as the mast will be much heavier in its lower half.

I have been toying with some sort of telescopic arrangement but without trying it I have no idea if it would work.

I've touched on this before but it's a very big factor in my conversion plans.

I'm on a really tight budget and planning on winter storage in Looe boatyard, however this means unstepping the mast as there's a bridge in the way!

It will mean unstepping the mast on the water, or at least tied up at a pontoon, before motoring around to the boatyard.

Any ideas how to make stepping and unstepping very easy. I do have a sturdy tabernacle which I can move to the new mast position. The mast is likely to be a series of decreasing aluminium tubes. I can probably enlist another willing pair of hands.

Thanks.