Background:
As of November 15, 2022, the International Martin 242 Class Association no longer had a mast & boom extruder in California (SAPA), nor access to the long-time mast builder (also in California - Buzz Ballenger, who is retiring). And there were only a few used masts and blank tubes on the West Coast, so the available supply might last a few years at most. As such, the Class faced an existential crisis for the hundreds of boats that have been produced.
Solution:
Fleet 1, working with other Fleets, has found an extruder & anodizer in BC (Apex Extrusions in Langley), who is interested in producing mast tubes for us, and we have lined up a mast builder (Pro-Tech Yacht Services, in North Vancouver), who are interested in this project and will do the tapering and final mast prep.
Your Technical Committee has reviewed the specifications and quotation from Apex, and decided to proceed with the procurement of an Extrusion Die from Apex (Phase 1, delivered by end Dec 2024), after which we obtained two 12" extruded anodized samples for further evaluation (Phase 2, delivered in mid-Jan 2025).
Phase 1 & 2 (Extrusion Die & 12" samples) cost about $4908 CAD
Phase 3 (production of 200' of test tubing) was about $1400 CAD in mid-to-late Jan 2025
Phase 4 (minimum production run of 1000kg of aluminum for about 40 masts and 3 booms) ~$13,000 CAD would be in late summer 2025, with delivery probably occurring in early October.
All 3 major Fleets have agreed to contribute Funds for Phase 1 & 2, which cost about $4900 CAD, as follows:
- Fleet 1 contributed about $2500 CAD
- Fleet 2 contributed $1000 CAD
- Fleet 3 contributed $1670 USD, which is about $2340 CAD
- Individual contributors have loaned/advanced: Ken Holland (Nanaimo) $1000CAD, Rock Kent (Oregon) $647CAD, and Yumio Dornberg (California) $100CAD
We'll also ask Alberta and Oregon boats to contribute $100 CAD each, up to about $500 CAD per Fleet, and in that manner Fleet 1's contribution to Phase 1 could be scaled back a bit.
Project Outcome:
M242 class has a secure supply of raw tubes for likely 10-15 years and a local Vancouver, short lead time mast builder.Expected final cost for a mast, spreaders, standard fittings should be comparable or slightly cheaper than the last few Ballenger masts produced (~5300USD + shipping + forex + tax = ~$8200CAD)
We are targeting CDN$6000 to $6500 total including the cost of 2 tubes but won't know until mid-May. Boom costs are TBD. Spinnaker pole costs from Pro-Tech are about CDN$1000 including the tubes and fittings.
List of Purchased Mast Tubes, Owners, and Storage Locations
Please see this link to a Google spreadsheet to see who owns tubes and where they are located so that everyone knows where all the tubes are located. When they have been turned into masts or booms we will endeavor to update the sheet accordingly.
To Contribute to the Project:
Option 1:
Canadian residents - send an e-transfer to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., accompanied by an email to indicate what the funds are for.
Option 2:
Paypal at paypal.me/mastproject
Option 3:
(preferred over paypal for larger payments to avoid fees)
send a cheque via snail mail to:
M242 Fleet One c/o Judith Roos-McClacherty
4410 Strathcona Road
North Vancouver, BC
V7G 1G3
Canada
