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Greetings all,

The Strictly Sail boat show was just at Navy Pier in Chicago http://www.strictlysailchicago.com/ last weekend. While the show is chock full of yachts from Beneteau, Catalina, Hunter, Bavaria, Tartan & C&C, and the J-boats, I usually go to see the cruisers from Island Packet and the smaller trailerables from the likes of Com-Pac, Nickels, Audi, and Flying Scott.

A new entry for me was Marshal Marine (http://www.marshallcat.com/), and they brought a fine looking catboat with a nice cabin, teak trim, springy sheer, and a very unique tabernacle mast system.













Looking closely at the previous photo, we can see that the gaff sail is attached to the mast with traditional hoops, which easily slide over the black anodized mast tabernacle assembly. We can also see that there are no side stays, only a fore stay to balance the sail, so the tabernacle is strong enough to hole the mast up by itself.

Marshal Marine brought a spare tabernacle fitted to a short section of mast mounted to a stand as a demonstrator so you could play with the system and see how it works.  The slot at the front of the Tabernacle provides a hand hold used to lift the mast until the upper pin clears the lower socket at which point the mast folds neatly down.







Marshal Marine manufactures the tabernacle in 5 inch and 4 inch diameters. I discussed with the owner the possibility of fitting the Tabernacle to a wooden mast for a Weekender, and the reply was "no", as Tabernacle was designed to fit snugly into a thin-walled aluminum mast section. He went on to say that they had painted one of their aluminum masts to look like wood for one of their customers, and said they would be willing to manufacture a similar four inch version for a Weekender if I could provide proper dimensions.  The price would be about $1,300 for the Tabernacle and another $500 or so for the mast sections and paint.

The side stays on the Weekender would have to be adjusted at every mast stepping as the Tabernacle becomes a few inches shorter as the upper section drops down locking the rounded pin into the lower socket. Alternatively, the stays could be eliminated altogether for those who prefer dipping lug rigs as the mast can now be free standing.

The Marshal 22 does have a nice springy sheer ...



... with plenty of storage under the seats ...



... and a sitting head-room cabin ...



... and a sweet looking transom ...



Geoff also said that they had picked up the molds for the Sakonnet 23 from the defunct Edey & Duff and should have their first boat in the water this spring. http://www.marshallcat.com/Sakonnet%2023...on%20A.pdf. I asked about the other Edey & Duff boats, and he said they have all been acquired by various boat builders and yards, with the molds for my other Edey & Duff favorite, the raised deck Stone Horse, going to Sturgis Crocker at Crocker Boat Yards http://www.crockersboatyard.com/, which is fitting as his father Sam Crocker designed that boat back in the 1930s.





Cheers,
Tom