[MarkCK]

I purchased a new to me Bauer 12 yesterday. Today's post was supposed to be "hey look at my new boat." Unfortunately I am posting about how to repair what I tore up while trying to rig it. Or I might be asking did I even tear anything up at all.

While trying to rig my Bauer today a gust of wind knocked over my mast. The mast is attached to the boat on a swivel. The only thing that holds the mast to the swivel is a pin. When the mast went sideways it expanded the hole at the bottom of the mast a little. My question is, once the mast is fully rigged does it matter that the hole at the bottom of the mast has been enlarged. Or was it just supposed to be two round holes and not the way it looks now. I have attached a couple of pics to help explain more of what it looks like. Unfortunately I don't have much in the way of pictures of the swivel.

 

[krisscross]

It looks fixable, but once the mast is up and stays are in place, the shape of these holes does not matter much as the mast is held in place by the base and wire stays.

 

[MarkCK]

So once I get the mast up I don't have to worry about the holes. I think they were slotted all the way down to begin with. The slot is just a lot bigger now.

 

[krisscross]

Yes, the pin will still work with these holes. The important part is making sure the stays are well tensioned and have no slack with the mast up. It is not a very strong mast so you have to be careful not to bend it. Loose stays make mast bending more likely in stronger winds.

 

[MarkCK]

I will give another shot to rigging the boat on Monday and see what happens.

Does anyone know of an owners association for Bauers? I have searched the net and couldn't find anything. The Good Old Boat website lists one but doesn't provide link to it. If there isn't, are there any other Bauer owners out there that are interested in starting one. Something pretty informal with a low cost (free) startup? Heavy emphasis on the free.