Rhodes Kingfisher - Mast Conversion to a 2-Part Mast

While my little Kingfisher is easy to trailer, but dragging along the mast (all 19 feet of it) is a pain.  I used to own a Stuart JC9 Dinghy, and it came with a two-part mast.  Doing some research, I found that Dwyer Masts (www.dwyermasts.com) not only makes a mast in the same direction, but also makes and extrusion for the splice.  I ordered one, got the nerve to cut my mast in half, and installed it.  All told, the whole operation took about an hour.

Tools used:  hacksaw with a new metal-cutting blade, a rubber mallet, a small tape measure, and a sharpie.  Instead of using files to de-bur after cutting, I just used some sandpaper.

Mast laid out, supported on the ends, and clamped down on a wood miter box to guide the saw and hold everything steady during cutting.

The cut!  Measured (and remeasured to two 9.5' pieces).  If I had really thought about it, I would have cut it slightly differently to have two exact length halves including the sleeve in the lower half protruding 6.5".

The mast is filled with a 2" x 2" piece of foam so I trimmed that by at least 13" (6.5" each half) to give clearance internally to the sleeve.

The sleeve pressed into the lower half of the mast exactly 6.5".

Locating where to put the rivets to hold the sleeve in the lower half.

Installation of the rivets (3/16").  I used aluminum rivets.  They will not be under much stress.

The two halves reassembled.  I lubricated both mating surfaces with dry lubricant ("Sailcoat") and used a mallet to connect the two parts for the first time.  They came apart easily by hand.

Now, to try it under sail.  Keep in mind that the two halves will be held together by the standing rigging when the boat is rigged.