Fixing mast bands
 

I just had one of those exciting deliveries. Two shiny new 316 stainless mast bands for my lovely Douglas Fir mast, but..

I really don't know the best way to fix them.One sits on a shoulder and the other has a stainless threaded bar through the mast and back into the band.
What material should I bed them on with, and should the shouldered band be screwed on as well?

Any help would be appreciated.

Glynn

Band aid
 

Hello,
First, what attaches to these bands, and how does the band geometry deal with the loads? If angles and loads are taken into account, even a properly-mounted band could be subject to torqueing, cocking, or deforming.
The shouldered band wants to land on a WIDE shoulder, or you could be crushing wood fibers. So if the band doesn't have an L-shaped flair at the bottom, you might consider building a custom ring. If the shoulder is just wide enough to accept a plain band, then we will be looking to compensate for the minimal area there by installing more fasteners. "Pot" these in epoxy. And epoxy seal everything before installing.
Throughbolted bands often carry loads on the bolt; is that the case here? Are there lugs on this band as well, and if so, what lands on them? Regardless, you'll want to pot that bolt, but details will vary with configuration. More info, please.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss

Mast bands
 

Thanks for the start Brion, I had an awful feeling no-one was going to reply, what with all the spam and such.
Anyway the upper band lands on a shoulder just as wide as the band, so I assume extra fasteners here would help. This band takes the forestay and one set of shrouds.
The lower band with bolt and now a sizeable hole for the bolt takes the running backstays and the inner forestay as well as the tackle for the gaff .This fitting is 2-3 mm loose so I assume I can pack this with epoxy as well,

Drilling the hole through the mast and avoiding the conduit was a nightmare, and I have to do it all again for the throat crane, any tips here?

Thanks for your help,
Glynn