INVESTIGATOR 563

Another issue. I think i will have repaired and refurbished the entire boat when I'm finished! I'm now sure this boat had close to zero maintenance for quite awhile. Anyway i was raising the mast today and was thinking about the mast step. I have some cracks around,it and there is some delamination. Some of this is due i think to the rotted compression post which was doing nothing for some time. Note I know these boats dont have compression post as standard but it seems they need it to tension the rigging properly. I will now investigate whether the step has rotting timber and address that problem. I have seen the posts about this. This caused me to look closely at the mast base fitting which i now see is quite different to standard. Of some concern is the mast seems to be about 100mm further forward than original and is actually cantileved over the mast step molding. See picture. This seems very odd. Maybe it was done to reduce weather helm and improve speed and handling. Anybody have any idea why it would it would of been moved like this? I am tempted to return it to original when i pull the fitting off to check for rot.

Regards Andrew

That is unusual, Teria has a standard mast step and feels well balanced under sail. The standard step is on top of a strengthened thick part of the deck which transmits the down-force to the archway bulkhead below.

Hi Andrew. Thanks for your response. All the reviews suggest it is well balanced too. Maybe they changed it because the
sails were getting old and draft aft. There have been other changes to this boat such as relocating the mainsheet traveller to the companionway which i have reverted back. There are also winches on the coaming so i get the feeling it may of been raced sometime in its previous life. I have almost decided to move the mast step back to original. Mainly to remove the current compression post and open up the interior. I have designed a mod that will transfer compression loads via a beam and struts to the main part of the bulkhead and to the hull sides without impacting on the archway access at all. I quite like the oriental style opening.

Regards Andrew

It's certainly better as the original design with the mast support arch (no post). But delamination or core-rot in the deck around the mast could have happened to many boats considering their age now. (hence some adding compression posts below?)

Probably the best way to fix it, as described by Peter T, is to use WEST epoxy system, syringed into the deck void through many holes drilled in the deck. The deck is taped over, plugs are used to prevent the lower holes from leaking resin out and removed after the resin gels enough.

i'm planning to do this repair to Teria after the Northern monsoon season is over.

Hi and good luck with your mast step. I would strongly suggest to look at my posts on this subject as it is a critical safety issue to not loose your mast at sea. If you have cracking around the bast of the mast of throuout the cabin roof around the mast step, then I would not go sailing unless you do or have the whole area checked thoroughly , completely dried out is there is a wet core and at a bard minimum, inject epoxy into all of the core areas of that area. As per my posts.

Good luck

Peter T wrote: ↑Tue Apr 22, 2025 7:20 pm Hi and good luck with your mast step. I would strongly suggest to look at my posts on this subject as it is a critical safety issue to not loose your mast at sea. If you have cracking around the bast of the mast of throuout the cabin roof around the mast step, then I would not go sailing unless you do or have the whole area checked thoroughly , completely dried out is there is a wet core and at a bard minimum, inject epoxy into all of the core areas of that area. As per my posts.

Good luck

Thanks Peter, I've begun this job, preparation/drying stage now. more detail on the "Soft core and mast step repair" thread viewtopic.php?t=1305&start=10

Not going to rush into it, as epoxy novice here
Cheers

Also, on another post I put on here is a link to a very good video on U tube regarding testing of various methods of core repair. Well worth a read. Also check out my posts on mast step repair. It's a fiddles job but well worth a look if you have soft core or cracking around the mast step. In fact, if you have a soft core on the cabin roof around the mast step, then it's nearly a 100% chance that the timber in the mast step is also wet or rotten.
With you mast step location in your earlier post, if you happen to have the investigator which was lengthened by a previous owner, then this could be a reason for requiring a different mast position. Just a thought.
Cheers