Glen-L.com

Hi,
I built mine out of Straight Grain Douglas Fir. Sitka has a better strenght to weight ratio but Fir is stronger but alittle heavier. I didnt find it heavy enough to have regretted using it and its held up great in the weather so far. Since 2005.
Doug

I just finished a mast out of Sitka Spruce for a 15. Are any of you using spreaders on yours?

mnanfito

no spreaders on mine. stays came down from about 3 foot from the top. was plenty stiff as the plans shown.
Doug

I started my Glen-L 14 Feb 2011 and have been sailing it since Aug 2011. I know your set on a wood mast but I just want to mention a couple of items. I have a fairly low bridge by my home on the water and I can raise and lower the alu mast by myself. I also trailer it and again I can set it up by myself.
The design has a flaw in my opinion in that if you set the mast on the deck and attach the shrouds you can't back the mast enough to step it. If you stick one end in the bow with shrouds attached, still you cannot back up enough to clear the frame 5. If you don't attach the shrouds it is not safe to stand in the boat and attempt to step the mast and attach shrouds while away from the dock.
I got around this by cutting off 6" from the bottom of the mast and then building up the mast step 6". Now the shrouds can be attached and with the mast stuck in the bow the mast can clear frame 5 and be stepped with shrouds attached.

If you have no bridges and you don't have to step alone, a wood mast would look more traditional.

Good luck and have fun.
Jeff.