When did boom stiffeners become "factory" installed?

S

Skillett

New Member
When did the boom stiffener become "factory" installed? How can you determine if a stiffener tube is in the boom without removing an end cap?
I have not seen a specification giving boom weight or that of a stiffener tube. No dout newer booms (with stiffener) will be heavier and a simple weight comparison would work.
Any ideas out there?
This information would be helpfull when looking at used boats that may or may not have the boom upgrade.

Second question:
I have an early 80s Laser with original spars. End caps on the upper mast section are stamped with "MADE IN ENGLAND". The boat was made by ZFS (Performance Sailcraft) in Point Claire, Quebec.
Is this typical for boats manufactured in Canada to import spars from England?
 
Pretty much all of the misc fittings on a Laser are stamped with the "Made in England" stamp.

Never heard about the boom stiffener being factory installed. You would be able to see extra rivets from the outside if your boom has one.
 
The sleeves have been installed in booms from the factory for at least 20 years, I'd guess closer to 25. You can't tell by looking for extra rivets as it's held in place by the same rivets that attach the vang fitting.

You need to get a long, straight piece of wire, about 1300mm is about right. Bend the end so you have a small hook. Push the hook through the hole in the gooseneck end boom plug and keep sliding it in until you are past 1220mm - this is the maximum distance the sleeve can extend into the boom. Then pull the hook back towards you - if there is a sleeve in the boom the hook will catch on it.
 
I've never noticed any sleeves factory installed, I wouldn't be surprised though, I'll have to check it out, I have several booms including a brand new one this year, I've seen a few that people reinforced themselves, its pretty obvious because there are extra rivets
 
If you have an old boom and it hasn't broken yet, it probably has a sleeve.

As to the "Made in England", that is probably referring to tbe endcap itself and not the spar.
 
In the 70s and early 80s there were no sleeves and booms would break (often) at the vang.
Last year I bought a 1988 laser; the boom was sleeved but with a short sleeve that did not extend to the forward mainsheet block.
The boom broke at the mainsheet block.
At some point (early 90s?) they started installing the current long sleeve and the booms are no longer breaking. The sleeve is held in place by the vang and mainsheet block eye.
The class should allow a sleeve in the topmast so we wouldn't be bending and breaking the mast.
E
 
What Tony said, about the boom sleeves. It's also the way you can determine whether you have the original sleeve (roughly 600mm long) or the current one (which is roughly 900mm long), through careful measurement and a little math.
 
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I have a 93 Laser and just broke my boom at the middle block. I was on a reach in 10 mph wind and it just snapped. I took a swim over the windward side. When I righted the boat half the boom was dangling from the end of the sail and the other whipping around in the boat. I sailed in a mile to the dock on a reach with the sail as a kind of spinnaker. Worst sail in 100 times out.

Over the year I had seen the boom bending alot at the point it broke. This boom had no extra reinforcing sleeve inside and just failed from metal fatigue. Another sailing adventure.
 
tcraig812 said:
..... and just failed from metal fatigue
Click to expand...
Unlikely. It broke at a stress concentrator, cracks that occur in that location are rapidly corroded, but the situation would not be classed as fatigue. And yes, I've put broken spars under an electron microscope and never come across any microscopic indicators of fatigue, always just ductile overload and corrosion product.
 
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Emilio Castelli said:
At some point (early 90s?) they started installing the current long sleeve and the booms are no longer breaking.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately they still do, but not at the frequency they once did. I broke one last February at the forward mainsheet block.
 
Lase 24877 still has the original boom. Without a sleeve it would bend alarmingly with moderate vang/kicker tension. I retro-fitted a sleeve, which has limited that bend. Because the boom was already bent, and the sleeve is a smaller diameter than the inside of the boom, some permanent bend remains. Slightly made worse recently while sailing in 35knots wind; but still unbroken!
 
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