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Crosstrees

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20: 155: 89:(width) and hence only a limited angle is possible for the guy-ropes to support very high masts. Thereby, the taller the ship's mast, the more narrow and unfeasible would be the angle between its support wires and its top. This is where a simple innovation like the crosstree helps to overcome such limitation. 96:
Each crosstree serves to spread another level of holding ropes on a fresh wider spar so as to provide support to the next mast top section. Effectively, the crosstree allows to extend the height, mount yet another layer of sail shrouds and option more wind power to the ships. The crosstree also
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The crosstree serves as a fresh base to spread the next level of supporting guy ropes, thereby providing a stable height extension to the masts. Without the crosstree, the ship's mast would have been severely limited in height, in relation to the beam of the ship.
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Any vertical structure like a mast is subject to dynamic swaying stress from wind, which levers immense force at the base of the mast. Such stress is countered through
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which are diagonally supporting ropes from mast top to its base. These ropes share the load on the mast tops and communicate that force to the base structure.
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so as to form an appropriate angular support against the sway the mast is exposed to, yet ships are fixed in their
159: 126: 119: 50:. They may also be mounted at the upper end of the topgallant to anchor the shrouds from the 8: 130: 43: 86: 59: 47: 31: 169: 39: 114: 51: 55: 82: 75: 19: 66:. In modern sailing vessels, spreaders serve the same purpose. 63: 35: 154: 81:
The taller the mast, the wider a base is required for the
118: 167: 54:(if fitted). Similar transverse spars remain on 18: 168: 113: 58:and motor vessel masts to secure wire 16:Structural element of sailing vessels 13: 97:serves to spread the shroud tops. 14: 187: 147: 153: 23:Line art drawing of crosstrees. 107: 69: 1: 125:. New York: Viking. p.  42:that are used to anchor the 7: 10: 192: 100: 34:at the upper ends of the 176:Sailing rigs and rigging 30:are the two horizontal 121:The Price of Admiralty 24: 22: 162:at Wikimedia Commons 25: 158:Media related to 183: 157: 141: 140: 124: 111: 191: 190: 186: 185: 184: 182: 181: 180: 166: 165: 150: 145: 144: 137: 112: 108: 103: 72: 62:or signal flag 48:topgallant mast 17: 12: 11: 5: 189: 179: 178: 164: 163: 149: 148:External links 146: 143: 142: 135: 105: 104: 102: 99: 71: 68: 15: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 188: 177: 174: 173: 171: 161: 156: 152: 151: 138: 136:0-670-81416-4 132: 128: 123: 122: 116: 110: 106: 98: 94: 90: 88: 84: 79: 77: 67: 65: 61: 57: 53: 49: 45: 41: 40:sailing ships 37: 33: 29: 21: 120: 115:Keegan, John 109: 95: 91: 80: 73: 27: 26: 70:Explanation 160:Crosstrees 52:royal mast 28:Crosstrees 83:guy-wires 76:guy ropes 56:steamship 46:from the 170:Category 117:(1989). 64:halyards 60:antennae 36:topmasts 101:Sources 44:shrouds 133:  32:spars 131:ISBN 87:beam 127:277 38:of 172:: 129:. 139:.

Index


spars
topmasts
sailing ships
shrouds
topgallant mast
royal mast
steamship
antennae
halyards
guy ropes
guy-wires
beam
Keegan, John
The Price of Admiralty
277
ISBN
0-670-81416-4

Crosstrees
Category
Sailing rigs and rigging

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