Hardware in General - Most hardware needed for the hull or rig is available from Graham Bantock at SAILSetc in England and a catalog can be obtained by Email, the web site at SAILSetc, or telephone at 44 (0) 1376 570583.  Much of SAILSetc equipment is stocked at Great Basin Model Yachting in Las Vegas at GMBY including complete rig kits, you only need to assemble and add sails. SAILSetc has an excellent rig drawing available, also carried by Great Basin Model Yachting. 

Masts - are available in both 6061-T6 and 7075-T9 aluminum alloys and either will serve you well. The 7075 has a higher strength, but that is a measure of resistance to permanent deformation. Both have about the same stiffness, the resistance to bending that we are interested in. Therefore, neither will allow higher backstay loads without bending.  Many masts are often supplied in 36 inch lengths and are usually shipped with a 4 inch (100 mm) joiner piece, which is approved for the class and has as much strength as will ever be needed. (An added convenience, with two part masts and a little time, your rigs can be shorter than your boat, and can be packed with it.) If you want some technical, metallurgical information click the word.

 If the main object is to get the stiffest mast, then the cross section has more bearing than the material. The 1/2-inch mast will be significantly stiffer than the 7/16 inch, if the wall thickness is relatively close. However, some are now opting for the least stiff mast with lower shroud attachments to allow the mast to bend off in a gust, to depower the rig.

• Grooved Bantock section, 6061 aluminum, SAILSetc or  Great Basin Model Yachting

• 7/16 or 1/ 2 diameter 6061 aluminum available from many sources including Great Basin Model Yachting

• 7/16 diameter (11.1 mm) 7075-T9 aluminum Stocked by Great Basin Model Yachting, however it is stocked in different length combinations. The cost varies by size and shipping, check the web site. Good for all three rigs, but I favor the 1\2 diameter for the A rig. The A rig mast comes with a joiner for the two pieces.

• 1/ 2 diameter (12.7 mm) 7075-T9 aluminum This mast is excellent for a #1 rig. No booms are included but comes in two 36-inch pieces with a joiner. Again, this material is stocked by Great Basin Model Yachting, however it is stocked in different length combinations.

Some people set up the 1/2 inch mast without spreaders for the #1 rig, although others question this practice and maintain that spreaders are vital to rig stability. 

Putting a prebend in the mast in the forward direction is something suggested in the SAILSetc rigging drawing. This prebend allows higher backstay tension resulting in higher jib stay tension. The 7075 with its higher yield strength, not stiffness, is harder to permanently bend, but while this is not a drawback, neither is it an advantage.

Booms - A good source of booms is your local archery shop. Get some arrow shafts. The best are usually from Easton and are made from either 7075-T9 or 7178-T9 aluminum alloy, don't get carbon fiber as they would be illegal for out class. Both alloys are probably going to be legal under the revised IOM rules in the section relating to the amount of aluminum required in an alloy. The size you are probably looking for is 2514 (25/64 or about 3/8 inch with a .014 wall thickness). Some bad news is that arrow shafts often are packaged by the dozen. If you do not want to start from scratch, boom kits available from either SAILSetc or Great Basin Model Yachting are:

• Lightweight #1 jib boom kit is  a 3/8 inch diameter arrow shaft

• Main boom kit, using a  Bantock extrusion

Fittings - Most of the specialized fittings can be obtained from Graham Bantock at SAILSetc or  Great Basin Model Yachting  General requirements are:

• Mast: Gooseneck/kicking strap, Mast head fitting, Backstay crane, Spreaders, Sail luff rings, Beads for internal shroud attachments or hooks for external attachment, Wire and crimps for shrouds, Rigging screws for shrouds, Bowsie for backstay adjustment, Line for backstay adjustment, Hook for sail head attachment, Hook for backstay attachment and ties or wire loops for attaching the mainsail to the mast

• Main boom: Outhaul (grommet), Sheet lead boom band, Sheet adjustment line, bowsie and hook, and Mainsheet to winch line

• Jib boom: Outhaul (grommet), Sheet lead boom band, Sheet adjustment line, Boom swivel point and attachment, Forward end fitting, Jib stay wire and line with bowsie adjustment and mast hook, Jib aft end topping lift, attachment, line and bowsie adjustment, Jib sheet to winch.

Rig Fittings Total - You will probably want to order the total kit from a reliable source. Of course you may find some items locally but most will have to be ordered or will come with the boom kits. A good source of complete rig kits is Great Basin Model Yachting.

Line for your running rigging - Although seemingly trivial items, the line and wire on your boat are important to the integrity of your rig and moving the sails. You will hear of kite string and fishing line the most. Many of the materials are familiar on big sailboats but there are also some interesting other products. The bowsies sold by SAILSetc show the small size will use 18 to 53 pound test Dacron and  66 to 110 pound Dyneema. The large bowsies will use 53 to 80 pound Dacron and 110 to 165 pound Dyneema. This comparison gives some idea of the relative strength to diameter of the two lines. For some technical information about lines press this Link. 

• Dacron line, one of the oldest synthetic lines, is used on large boats and is reputed to be strong and stretch only a little. The cut ends can be sealed with a match.

• Dyneema line, Sufix Herculine, recommended and carried by SAILSetc can be found in a fishing tackle store, usually on special order. It is extremely tough and difficult to cut. It will  melt, but a neater cut can be made by sealing with glue. It is hollow so you can make a neat eye by using a large needle to take the end back into the empty core, and then wrapping the throat with thread. Some manufacturers say this is the strongest of the fibers, but who knows. Check it out at the Sufix web site.

• Kevlar line, a product that is also used on large boats has the advantage of nearly no stretch but does break at sharp kinks.

• Spectra line, another product used on large boats is available as kite string and fishing line. It melts like Dacron, so is easier to handle than Dyneema, and has about 3% stretch listed in some fishing line information.

Wire for your standing rigging 

• Seven-strand Stainless Wire leader material is readily available in both coated and non-coated varieties. I have used both and am now contemplating going back to coated wire and stripping the area where the crimp is located, (oh, yes, you also need the right size of crimps). Bare wire in contact with other metal pieces causes RF interference and sometimes causes your receiver to make your winch jittery. Be sure you either buy or borrow good, compound action crimpers for the crimps that hold the wire to the fittings, cheap ones will only allow crimp failures and slippage at the fittings.

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Groovy Mast from SAILSetc

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01/09/2006