My Mast suffers from the PAST

[GilStump]

Hey guys. We are finally working on our poor old mast. (1977 Orion S&S 35)
Almost have all the paint stripped off. It's pretty under there. I have noticed a small bit of pitting at the base and the beginnings of some around the spreader plates. How do I fix it and prevent more? I am pulling all the fasteners and rebedding with tefgel. Should I sand the pitted parts away? It is slight.

[pedcab]

Originally Posted by GilStump

Hey guys. We are finally working on our poor old mast. (1977 Orion S&S 35)
. Should I sand the pitted parts away? It is slight.

IMHO you should...

Sand it until all the white oxide deposit is gone (ideally you should grit blast it), fill with thickened epoxy and then paint...

[tommays]

IMHP most mast walls are so thin i would clean BUT not sand away as there is not a LOT of extra in most mast extrusions and sanding of .035 could be a big deal around a speader

I cleaned up and painted and used a UHMW Tape on the underside of all the SS fittings to stop any more problems