Ok Guys, I've had the mast pulled for a complete refit and to the best of my ability to observe, it appears that the step has never been removed. It looks terrible and horribly corroded. It is aluminum and I'm not sure that the 30 years of corrosion has necessarily compromised the beam but since I have access I'd like to at least get it repainted. It seems that the inner skin of the sub-floor was placed on top of the stringers (and step) with no thought given to the possibility of needing to remove the step in the future. I expected that a magical combination of tilting, twisting, or rolling would do the trick but alas it seems that cutting a portion of the subfloor is the only answer. I'd intend to use and oscillating saw to make the necessary cuts. These cuts would be roughly the width of the mast step and the depth necessary to make the sub-floor flush with the stringer. This would allow tilting the step out.
Hard to describe, but has anyone had a similar experience and solution? Thanks, Josh Muckley S/V Sea Hawk 1989 C&C 37+ Solomons, MD
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