How To Install Hardware On The Mast

One strong opinion I've formed after sailing for much of my life is that running lines back to the cockpit is foolish. Unless you have a lazy jack system, you're going to have to go to the gooseneck anyway to flake your sail, and even lazy jacks aren't going to work properly in the worst conditions, when you least want to go to the mast. Having lines running along the deck is like trying to walk on marbles. If the lines can be run through enclosed tubes inside the deck structure, I'm all for it, but I've never actually seen this done. My halyards all exit the mast around 6 feet above the deck, and clutches on the mast stop the halyards. I can run the main and jib halyards, on the starboard side of the mast, through blocks in the foot to a winch on the cabintop, but normally pull the tails back to the mast afterwards. My mast is fairly thin-walled. It might be possible to drill and tap holes and simply bolt the clutches to the mast, but there are potential problems. First, the bolts would be stainless; bolted into an aluminum mast they would inevitably corrode and weld to the mast, no matter how much compound I used. Second, the location of the holes would have to be extremely precise, which is hard on a curved surface like the side of the mast. So I decided to install backing plates behind the clutches.
First step is to make a template by marking the location of the holes in the clutch.	I also draw the outline of the clutch to remind me of where I want to put the handle.	Opposite handle position...	....for port mount.
My template is just a piece of paper, but I found that for more precise location of the holes, you might want to use something stiffer, particularly if you're installing the clutch on a highly curved part of the mast.	Checking that the handle won't interfere with the other halyard when open.	I dtill 3/8" holes for the 1/4" bolts so I have some wiggle room when installing.	The backing plate, a piece of fiberglassed plywood. Coat the edges with epoxy to prevent rot. Since the holes in the clutch are not symmetric, I mark the up end of the backing plate.
I drill holes for tee nuts and coat the insides of the holes with epoxy.	Then hammer in the tee nuts.	I take a piece of stiff galvanized wire, over twice as long as the distance from the clutch to the foot of the mast, twist it at the midpoint, and push the two ends through different holes to the foot.	Here's the wire as it comes out of the foot.
I push one wire at a time to try to prevent them from twisting, but you will inevitably have to spend some time untwisting.	The twisted middle of the wire at the clutch.	The backing plate is ready to go. I tie a piece of line to the ends of the wires for two reasons: first to be able to pull the backing plate out if it twists on the way in, and second to pull the twist out of the wires so I can pull them back through.	Pull the slack out of the wires.
The backing plate, on its way in.	Now is a good time to check again that the wires aren't twisted.	Going in. If you're confident, you can coat the plate with adhesive (I use 5200) at this point, but I recommend pulling it all the way in, checking that the holes line up, and pulling it back out before gooping it up.	You can see the holes in the backing plate lined up with the holes in the mast in this picture.
First we use two very long bolts to attach the clutch to the holes that don't have wires protruding.	The clutch is attached but the wires are still in there.	Pull the ends of the wires back out through the foot.	Untie the line and untwist the ends of the wires.
The wires are now free to be pulled out through the clutch holes.	The clutch can now be pushed against the mast and the backing plate pulled against the inside using the long bolts.	Oops! In the last picture, the clutch was facing the wrong way, necessitating a do-over. Now is the time to squeeze some adhesive into the holes.	Now the clutch is snug against the plate, and facing the right direction.
Screw in the two short bolts, remove the long bolts, and replace them with short bolts.	Overall position of the clutches. Be sure to stagger the clutches and the halyard exits to avoid weakening the mast.	The finished job.