Re-Rig Project Has Begun

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey Association

Leon Poindexter’s and his crew are preparing the masts and rigging and will raise the masts by June 1.  Return here often to check on the progress.

Leon and his crew began working on preparing the masts and standing rigging for re-rigging Ernestina in mid-April.

The main mast is on the left the old foremast and the new foremast still in the wrapping on the right

Rob and Leon planning out the trestle-trees and cheeks

John working on the locust cross-trees.

By the end of April the new cheeks were on the main mast and the trestle-trees were ready.

Here you can see the top of old foremast on the left and new one on the right. The Spar Shop sent it as it came out of the lathe so you can see how big the upper part of the log was before they shaped the mast. When the new spar is marked for the rigging from the old foremast the top will be cut off to size.

Check out a video of the Spar Shop lathe in action.

Once the cheeks are in place the trestle-trees ate fitted into place

Meanwhile the new foremast is shaped to receive the cheeks

This new foremast was purchased by SEMA and donated to the Ernestina Commission.   This donation was matched 2:1 by funding from DCR’s Partnership Matching Program to pay for the contractors to fit out the masts, repair the rigging and raise the masts.

By early May the top of the main mast had been repaired and was ready for capping

Fitting the cap rings on the repair.

The hardware from the old foremast was removed as needed for use on the new.

Main mast ready for paint

the top of the new foremast is measured and shaped

and the mortise on the foot is ready to fit into tenon in the mast step.

Notice the new mast has been receiving several coats of linseed oil. and the standing rigging is being repaired as needed and coated with pine tar.

Dead eyes and shear poles too

Notice the main mast foot is the opposite of the fore, here's the tenon.

new battens fitted to the main mast for gaff jaws chafe gear.

It’s mid-May and the it’s exciting to see the progress.  Soon those masts will be scraping the sky again.

the lower part of the new foremast had to be reduced to fit the mast step. How? first you make it square, then eight sided ...

then 16 sided and continue to 32 .....

until it's round and will fit the step.

the top of the new foremast is ready for the hardware for stays and topmasts

and the crosstrees are being fitted

Steve is working on the battens for the gaff jaw chafe gear on the new foremast

Crosstrees on the main are nearly finished

all the hardware for the stays and topmasts and the copper on the main are done

the oiled up new mast looks great!

Deadeyes are ready, some are refinished, some were replaced

Saturday, May 18, Rigged! Ready for paint.

Mast hoops on!

Sunday May 19, It's amazing what a difference a little white paint makes!

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