Cutty Sark - Mast Specifications

Mast Specifications

The original mast specifications as laid down by the ships designer still exist and are listed below as "tea rig". This arrangement was used during the ship's time on the tea trade route, where it was necessary to maximise the area of sail to get the greatest possible propulsion when the ship might be becalmed in the doldrums. For the route to Australia it was not necessary to carry such a large area of sail and the masts and yards were reduced. The trade winds required great strength in masts, but the wind could best be captured by relatively small, high sails. A smaller rig also represented a saving in maintenance costs. Each of the three masts (fore, main and mizzen) is in three overlapping sections

Mast heights above deck in metres
Tea rig Sydney
Foretop 18.8 16.5
Topgallant 29.8 24.3
Royal 39.6 35.4
Maintop 19.8 16.9
Topgallant 31.9 22.8
Royal 36.3
Skysail 44.5
Mizzentop 17.0 14.8
Topgallant 25.7 22.8
Royal 33.2 31.7
Yard lengths in metres
Tea rig Sydney
Fore course 23.8 21.0
Lowertopsail 20.7 16.8
Uppertopsail 19.5 14.6
Topgallant 14.6 11.5
Royal 11.6 9.4
Main course 23.8 21.6
Lowertopsail 20.7 18.5
Uppertopsail 19.5 16.8
Topgallant 14.6 14.2
Royal 11.6 10.4
Skysail 10.4
Mizzen course 18.3 17.4
Lowertopsail 16.5 14.9
Uppertopsail 14.6 13.4
Topgallant 11.9 11.0
Royal 10.1 8.2
Spanker 15.8 14.1

Read more about this topic:  Cutty Sark

Famous quotes containing the word mast:

    I did not wish to take a cabin passage, but rather to go before the mast and on the deck of the world, for there I could best see the moonlight amid the mountains. I do not wish to go below now.
    Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)