I just tried raising the mast on my H Tiger and failed.

Any suggestions on how to do it? How many people? Can you use a vehicle to pull it up once it is started?
I did a search on "raising the mast" and it turned up nothing useful.

I have no problem raising the mast on my 14'Hobie.

You need to turn the mast sideways, and install the 1/4" bolt (I use a good quality Philips screwdriver cut to the correct length instead of the supplied bolt and nut, it's easier to put in and out once the mast is raised), then raise it like your H-14, but with 2 people, once the mast is standing, the 2nd person can hook up the front stay to the bridle.

Thanks Kenny.
I took your suggestion and brought along two friends and we were able to get it raised.

Another question, is it advisable to keep the mast restrained from rotating when not using the boat?

Not really sure, but personally, I would not pin it while it is idle. Wouldn't want to put any extra strain on the mast step hole than necessary.

There are several methods for assistance raising the mast. Most people I know do actually grunt and push it up. However, I use a winch mounted on the mast support on my trailer. I attach the winch to the end of a trapeze wire. After I begin the hoist and get it raised to about my shoulders the helper starts winching. I can dead lift the mast but I have thrown my back out doing so previously.

Another option is to have the boat off the trailer and have an assistant grab one or two trapeze handles. Once you get the mast started, they stand at the front beam between the hulls and help provide lifting assistance by pulling on the trapeze wires. It's very important for them to remain centered with the boat because any side force they give will make the mast want to swing to the side. You can also lower the mast quite easily this way.

Excellent info Jake. Appreciate and will use it.

Jake,

Another way to go is to use the spinnaker halyard. Using the upper tang gives you much more leverage. I use it to raise the ARC 21 beast, I mean mast.

I just raised my Spitfire mast singlehanded, using tips from this forum and friends. The Spitfire mast is quite light, but the principles are the same (I also have a Nacra 6.0 and would use the same method if necessary, since the issue is not abouth strength but about handling a long unsteady object around your delicate boat in a safe manner, and keeping an upright pole steady while you wander off to attend to the forestay - especially if you have a lot of mast rake as the Spitfire does). It was really easy:

First of all, despite what I said, you need to make a friend: Mine's called Billy. He's a tripod constructed from three wooden battens about 2 metres in length. Drill a hole 9 inches or so from one end of each leg, and cut one 'leg' down to within a an inch of this hole. Drill another hole roughly in the centre of each leg. (The tripod's not yours!). Pass a short piece of rope through the end holes and knot off both ends, leaving a little room for movement. Stand your tripod up and pass another piece of rope through the central holes and knot off the ends, to stop the legs from spreading any further. You've now got all the assistance you need, and it can be folded up and stored in your trailer box without taking much room or drinking any of your beer.

So now you arrive at the sailing venue, and you've got no mates (or your crew isn't arriving until the next day, in my case!). Out comes Billy Tripod, dutifully standing to one side of the rear beam ready to take the rearmost end of the mast after lifting it from your boat. This allows you to lift the front end of the mast from the trailer mast support, and put it on the ground gracefully. (I tried it without Billy one time a while back, and wow, what a mess I got into...).

Now you can get the boat off the trailer, ideally leaving it just behind the trailer. Remove the wheels, etc, if you are on a hull friendly surface, so that the hulls are stable and as low to the ground as possible.

Reposition the mast on the ground alongside the boat, so that the mast foot is in line with the front beam. Move the tripod so that it is directly behind the rear beam, in line with the ball on the front beam, and far enough back so that it is positioned between the mast tip and attachments i.e. about 18 inches or so from the tip. Place the top of the mast on the tripod. Make sure it IS free to slide back and forth (a little) i.e. not fouled by the main halyard etc.

Lift and place the mast foot onto the ball on the front beam. I was able to twist mine through 90 degress and secure it with the pin, thanks to the clearance Billy was giving me. Attach the shrounds and do all the other things you need to do... spinni halyard, etc, light the barbi, take the beer out of the coolbox in anticipation of future success, and so on until you are ready for the lift.

I left a trapeze line free and attached a length of rope to the handle. This was brought forward, passed round a strut on the trailer (still in front of the boat, and too heavy to be moved by a mast). Bring the rope back to the front beam, and this is the clever bit... through a cleat, such as the spinni tack or even the downhaul on the mast.

Keep loose hold of the rope and lift the mast from the rear beam (usual warnings here about cables overhead, electrical storms, low flying aircraft, passing flocks of geese, small children flying kites, and the potential for death or serious injury). Since Billy T is still doing his job at the mast tip, this lift should be relatively easy as the mast is already a good way above the beam, allowing you to "lift with your knees and not your back". Push the mast all the way up, and now use a spare hand to take up the slack in the rope. Now the mast is up and due to the friction of the rope round the trailer as well as a fitting on the boat, you'll find the effort required to hold the mast up with the rope alone is very small. Cleat it off and the mast will stay upright while you stand back and admire it, put the burgers on the barbi and open the beer.

Now all you need to do is attach the forestay, remove the pin, adjust the rig tension etc and finally remove the rope from the trapeze and trailer. Now for the burgers and the beer...

My mate attaches a line to the forestay and passes it through the bridle and back to the beam avoiding the need to involve the trailer - I prefered keeping things separate so that I could work with the forestay, safe in the knowledge the mast wasn't going anywhere while I did so.

Another method I saw at the same event left me speechless: One chap had two helpers and still needed more. He was holding has mast upright, obviously having done the lift. One friend was at the port end of the front beam, holding a trapeze line AND a shroud. You've got it, his other friend was holding the other trapeze line AND shroud at the starboard end of the beam. Man with mast in hand was trying to keep it upright while directing his mates forwards and backward to try to balance the whole thing. Lord knows what he was going to do next but it seemed as though he was intent on having his mates hold the mast aloft by the shrouds while he went forward to attach the forestay. I didn't know whether to be dumbstruck or awestruck at some technique with which I was unfamiliar, but at least my mate realised that the appropriate action was the former and immediately waded in with some helpful advice before someone or their car got hurt.

HTH
Simon

I use Jake's method of the winch. I have a nice stainless ring that is attached near the top of my mast support. The line from the winch goes through that before I attach it to the forestay (trap wire okay too). This way the line can pull as much up as possible. The boat is usually still tied to the trailer so it will not pull forward. By te way I also loosen one side of the shrouds so the rig will be easy to put all the pins in. My crew Eileen (125lbs) holds the top part of the mast while I set the base in. I do not use the pin or anything to keep the mast in. I crank on the winch until the mast is light in her hands when it is over her head, this keeps the mast in. Then when I get on the boat to guide the mast up I do not have too much weight to hold (it is preloaded) while she goes to the front and cranks the winch. I do not have to muscle the mast at all this way. When the mast is straight up there is nothing to much to hold. She then can take the winch line off and attach the bridle wire. We tighten the shroud after the mast is up.

The mast is not as heavy as a 20, the boat we had before, but I still use the same method...I like it.

Later,
Dan

Ooooo...great point Dan. Boat MUST be secured firmly to the trailer if you are going to use a trailer mounted winch. I once forgot that while lowering and the boat lurched foward when the mast was nearly down. No damage resulted but it was scary!

Great ideas.

Anybody ever try an electric winch to pull it up? Princess Auto here in Canada has a 1500 or 2000 lb one on sale for 65. CanD every once in a while. This one has a corded remote but you can also get them cordless.

thats more than enough.

you'll still have to guide it up more than likely and getting it down may put a lot of wear on the electric winch clutch.

Use a gin pole..I raised the mast of my Nacra 6.0 all the time by myself.. Check out these photos:
http://aquarius-sail.com/default/images/arc22/ginpole/index.htm

Wow that is the answer. What is the ratio on the pulleys?

How difficult does it have to be ????.

I sail a singlehander with spinnaker and its easy ,with boat on trolley -forward and stern supports, fit both shrouds on loosest setting each side
tie spinnaker head end of halyard to either forestay shackle/fitting, leave rigged as normal on mast .
put mast foot on ball - no pin (for poofs only) lift mast at rear beam as high as poss one handed, pull up slack on halyard through cleat , stop ,halyard will hold mast , steady with one hand to stop swing ,step up over rear beam , start lifting again and take up on halyard , move forward etc etc until mast fully up ,leave halyard cleated (loosely ) wander forward and fit bridle ,tension shrouds, works for me , helps to have carbon mast !

Take a close look at the speeds on that winch - they are very slow - you'll be standing there a while to haul up that mast.

I just started trying the Gin Pole. I did not get a chance to raise it as I had to go to work, but I think the Tiger is maybe different than your boat because it is turned 90 degrees (sideways) when resting, so the gin pole is actually sitting on one side at the start of the raising. Seems to me it would slide off when the mast started to rotate as it came up. Will continue trying again when I get back tomorrow.

Am not confident of the strength of the balcony that the spi rope goes through and the wimpy little block it goes through at top.

My nacra 6.0 also needed the mast at 90' to raise. on the nacra there is a bolt through the mast and I drilled a hole in the end of the gin pole and fitted it over the bolt. Then to stop the mast rotating I cleated the mast rotator.
This will be different than your boat since you don't have the positive rotator system that the nacra 6.0 does, however I have also seen people use a U shaped piece of pipe on the end of the gin pole as well. You may still need to stop the mast from rotating..not sure..

A friend happened by to help raising the mast but I want to solve this for subsequent raising / lowering. I am working on using a combination of using the mast rotater affixed to something, and the placement of the ginpole as you did on the bolt for the mast rotater. Maybe weld the ginpole to a platform, face it with rubber and put it over the mast rotater...

If this is a no go then I will use a double ginpole going out to each end of the Xbar.

Is 1 3/16" EMT strong enough for the ginpole?