and realized that somehow the circular clevis pin which attaches to and holds up the shroud came off and only the pin part was attached to it, with nothing preventing it from popping out, and the mast to come crashing down. It was after some speculation that I decided that all of my stupid litlle pins had to be replaced with someting easier to use. My question is if anyone uses or knows of an easier type of pin to use? I am fed up with these pins because I have lost about 8 of them in two sailing trips alone.
Up in my neck of the woods we call those split rings "Jesus" rings because that is what you say when you drop it in the water. Most sailors "religiously" tape the rings to prevent them from being snagging. After dismasting a couple of years ago because of this sort of pin failure I decided to replace the split ring setup with screw type shackles. Use a wrench to screw them up tight and worry no more.
