New spreaders!
Goodbye, rotten spreaders
The wooden spreaders I had were really rotten. Following rigger’s advise, I decided to replace them with lightweight aluminum spreaders so after removing them he shipped them off to so new parts can be fabricated.
What I learned today:
- Lower shrouds are enough to keep mast in place without load of sails i.e. it’s actually possible to replace upper shrouds without taking the mast down. I was always sure that if a shroud would break the mast would come down. Not true!
- If your rig is configured right, you can use turnbuckles to tighten upper shrouds even with spreaders removed.