Boom rest

[Cambo]

I've been looking at lots of boats for sale online trying to get through the winter and I noticed a lot of older and classic style boats have a boom rest over the cockpit usually with 3 cut outs for the boom to rest on.

Just curious what the reason is for this? Is there no topping lift on the boats or is it a safety feature incase a halyard comes free or breaks?

 

[2sticks]

The device you've seen is called a boom crutch. It takes all the strain off your rig normally taken by your topping lift. Also you have the option of resting the boom in one of the outboard locations to keep it out of the cockpit so you're not constantly ducking under the boom at anchor or at the dock. In addition, I personally think the crutch with the classic bronze corner castings and fittings are just sexy!!!

Darrell

 

[Sandy Stone]

If you're offshore in conditions bad enough to drop the main it's useful to be able to brace up and completely immobilize the boom. Recommended in 'Desirable and Undesirable Characteristics of Offshore Yachts'.
Also, it helps to make a nice cockpit tent.

 

[Merlin Clark]

It's a "boom gallows". Had one on my 1963 Chris Craft Sail Yacht.
These things go back to heavy wooden booms and lots of heavy sail material and needing a place to stow this when not in use.
Even though the Sail Yacht was "modern" with aluminum spars and Dacron sails it had an 18' long (much heavier built than later boats) boom, pretty long by later standards for a 35' boat.

 

[Joe]

The device's biggest advantage is securing the boom in heavy weather so you can rig a storm trysail. This sail is normally fixed to the mast in its own track, is not attached to the boom and is sheeted directly to one side of the cockpit or the other. This allows the option of leaving the mainsail gasketed securely to the boom while the storm sail is working.

You can build a removable gallows/crutch that serves the same purpose... which is to keep the boom from swinging around.

 

[Cambo]

Thanks for all the great info everyone. I've always seen them but never really thought much about them until I realized today that I had no idea what they were for.

 

[higgs]

My boat has a gallows and it is very useful when dousing the main in seas as the boom sits solidly in the gallows making it easier to flake the sail and hold on. I still do have a topping lift, which mainly use to when raising the main as it takes some of the pressure off my full battens at the mast. I also use it when lowering as it a little tension on it helps my Dutchman system work a little better.