Sail down, boom up?

ScottGuirlinger

New Member
I picked up a 1982 Capri 14.2 "fixer-upper" a year ago and have been doing my best to learn the ins and outs of this particular boat. Perhaps my greatest annoyance to date (besides the parts I realized were missing after I bought the boat) is I have not found a good way to have the sail stowed and keep the boom from dropping into the cockpit (and on top of my passengers). Can I rig some lines to hold the boom up out of the cockpit even when the sail is not raised?

Scott Guirlinger
 
Boomkicker

There's a device that goes in place of the boom vang, called a Boomkicker. It holds the boom up when the mainsail is lowered. Go to westmarine.com or sailnet.com and do a search on it.
 
Scott,

In addition to the boomkicker, my boat has a line that starts at the top of the mast and ends with a shackle that attaches to the same point as the main clew (end of boom). Once I get the mast up and attach the boom to the mast, I clip the end of the boom onto this line and it keeps the boom from dropping while the sail is down. I'm not sure if you need to detach when sailing but once I did that and forgot to re-attach. Guess what happened when I dropped the sail!!! Besides, once I raise the sail, this line is slack and does not seem to interfere with my main.

This may be a cheaper alternative to a boomkicker.

Good luck with your project,

Bigsky
 
boomkicker

scott,
Look at riggingonly.com for your boomkicker on the menu on the left go down to boom vangs and click on rigid, I believe they have the one you need for less than $60.
________
Box Vaporizer
 
topping Lift

My boat has a light nylon line running from the top of the mast to an eye strap fastened to the clew end of the boom. It clips with a spring loaded brass clamp and is slack and out of the way when the main is raised. When racing (more for appearance than speed), I slip the clamp under a shock cord tied 'round the base of the mast. I call it a topping lift but I think a real topping lift would run down the mast to a cleat to be adjustable.
 
Sail down, boom up ?

Ed Jones said:
There's a device that goes in place of the boom vang, called a Boomkicker. It holds the boom up when the mainsail is lowered. Go to westmarine.com or sailnet.com and do a search on it.


Ed,
I saw this article and Its something I have often wondered about ! Does anyone in fleet 2 or at MBYC have or use either a boom kicker or a line from the top of the mast to the end of the boom ?? If so, Your thoughts on this would be appreciated..
Thanks,
Bill
 
Capri 14.2 Boom Issue

Thanks to everyone who responded to my question about a topping lift to hold up the boom on my Capri.

I will go forward with this line from the top of the mast to the end of the boom and just leave it attached. I don't race either so knowing is does not get in the way of the main when sailing is good to hear.

What a great site. Maybe someday I can help out a new owner as I have been helped.

Dean
 
An even easier solution- just tie a bowline in the outhaul and shackle or tie the main halyard to it. Cleat both off appropriately to keep the boom level and you are set. If you are leaving the boat outside like this, keep the boom's clew end slightly down to allow rainwater to drain out the aft end of the boltrope slot. Otherwise, water just builds up in the gooseneck end. For a C14, rigging a jackstay or a boom support of some sort is too complicated. Save your money and use it on some new hardware or something. ;) :)
 
Just be careful about any excess lift line at the end of the boom. This realy strange, but it just happened two weeks ago. Whoever rigged the lift left about four inches of excess line dangling. Somehow that excess line found it's way in the mainsheet block at the end of the boom just when the wind picked up. It jammed the mainsheet and prevented me from letting out the main. Just a bit scary.
 
The good thing about a boom kicker is that it stays on and supports the boom and even helps it rise a little in light winds and there is nothing to adjust or hook or unhook.
 
I've seen some rental Capri 14s with lazy jacks rigged. Would keep the boom up and the main out of the way when the mains down.
 
actually the boomkicker goes *inside* the vang

My buddy just put one on his 14.2. I have one on my 16.5. Go to Boomkicker.com direct, it will cost you less and take weeks less to get than West Marine. Here's a pic of one on a 14.2 at their site.

http://www.boomkicker.com/capri_14.jpg

I'm SO glad to not have the boom come down in the cockpit. It stays where I want it so I have somewhere to wrap and get the sail out of my way when we come it!

The boom vang will hold your sail down when you want it to and the boomkicker will hold it up when you want it to. Vangs and Boomkickers are our friends!

Happy Sailing ~ Les
Catalina 16.5 ANTSY on Texoma in OkieLand
 
Boomkicker

I don't get it! On my mod I Capri, the boom and gooseneck can slide up on the mast, so when installing a boomkicker how do you prevent the boom from pivoting around the boomkicker' support?
 
J-F_Elisa said:
I don't get it! On my mod I Capri, the boom and gooseneck can slide up on the mast, so when installing a boomkicker how do you prevent the boom from pivoting around the boomkicker' support?
The boomkicker pivots with the boom.
 
Exactly. They're quite convenient. :)

I'm going to give my boomkicker its first try tomorrow, Sat. 4/30/05.

I'll post how it works tomorrow nite. (Saturday nite.) ~ Les :cool:
 
boom vang goes right along with the boom kicker

Swings with it right inside.

Boomkicker holds the boom up, vang holds the boom down.

Works great and keeps the dawg-gone boom out of your way when taking the sail down!
 
I just installed the boomkicker on my new 1999 last month.

First, it works great. I went directly to the manufacturer (www.boomkicker.com), as they are cheaper than West. You only need the small model K0312 ($82 including shipping). I HAD to get a kicker to support the boom, as I didn't want to install a topping lift, and my only halyard is already used to support my sunbrella sleeve that protects the furled jib. Man, it is STRONG. It supports my boom, tied-on main, AND my sail cover with no strain! The K0312 requires NO DRILLING, as the "sling" between the two rods supports the boom. Good luck with whatever you decide. :)
 
Cover

I just ordered a boomkicker, sounds like the way to go.

So here is my other problem...
I have my boat at a mooring, and my cover does not fit over the boom. It may fit if I lower the boom a little bit. But in that case I might as well just remove the boom.
Two problems with this, its a pain removing the boom.
And second a bunch of water builds up on the top of the cover at the back.

Where can I find a reasonably priced cover that fits over the boom? What type of cover should I get. Cabin cover or a full cover?
 
Boat Cover Delema

I just saw your note and am on my out the door but thought I'd drop a quick reply.
I needed a sail cover for my 14.2 so I didn't have to store the mainsail. The place I found a very high quality canvas cover was Masthead. Here is the web site. They may have boat covers as well.

http://www.mastheadsailinggear.com/

Dean
 
Another recommendation for Boomkicker

xcatboater said:
First, it works great. I went directly to the manufacturer (www.boomkicker.com), as they are cheaper than West. You only need the small model K0312 ($82 including shipping). I HAD to get a kicker to support the boom, as I didn't want to install a topping lift, and my only halyard is already used to support my sunbrella sleeve that protects the furled jib. Man, it is STRONG. It supports my boom, tied-on main, AND my sail cover with no strain! The K0312 requires NO DRILLING, as the "sling" between the two rods supports the boom. Good luck with whatever you decide. :)


I installed a Boomkicker 1500 on my Dragonfly 1000 a few years ago. It was the first one they had sold for my type of boat, and they were very helpful with getting it just right. I can't imagine sailing without it. It beats a topping lift in every way!

When I offered to take a picture of the installation they were very appreciative. You can see the boat (folded at my dock) here:

http://boomkicker.com/[url] click o...mkicker and vang on it (homemade). Steve B.
 

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