V32- How high is the boom, anyway?

[Tom Boles]

I went down to the boat last evening to run the vang control line and re-do the lazy jacks. While I was at it, I made some measurements of boom higth based on Mikes comments in another thread.So: my boat is a '90, but lay-up started in '89. I have the sliding plexi doors down below, no SS granny bars, no handholds on the overhead at all.1) Bottom of boom at aft black band to cockpit floor : 72"2) Bot of Boom to aft top edge of Dodger: 7.5"3) Bot of Boom to middle of sea hood: 29.25"4) Bot of Boom at gooseneck to deck 41.25"5) Top of dodger, aft from cockpit deck: 63"I have a couple of pics of this if anyone is interested.Now, this is with a recently rebuilt vang and with no particular care to lazy jack tension Vs. main sheet. I shimmed the vang to have the boom sit a bit higher than horiz. at rest. Clearly, it never rubs on the dodger now, although it did before I rebuilt it. I have pictures if anyone is curious. As Mike says, the spring is awesome!I'm 6'2" and so the boom could bonk me in the head if it swung around while I was standing just behind the dodger. If it happens, I'll let you know.Last point. I have to stand on my tippitoes to fasten the top turn thingy on the mainsail cover and to wrap the line around the cover & tie it off. That sucker is high! What do shorter folks do?Cheers

 

[Mike Webster]

Answers

Tom,At rest, my boom is probably about the same as yours. As I've indicated, I keep the boom off to the side when the sail is down. When the sail is raised, the boom rises as well. The resting position of the boom isn't that important, I think, except to give you head room in the cockpit when the sail is doused. When I raise my mainsail, the leach will raise the back of my boom even further, and further still when the sail fills with wind. Thats all a function of how the sail is cut.Theoretically, you could lower the boom, have a low cut mainsail made, and increase your sail area, but that would make the cockpit a more dangerous place. I like a higher boom in a cruising boat, as its safer. Doesn't seem to affect sailability, and I don't think the boat is very tender at all. I don't reef until its gusting into the 20's, but I have new, very flat cut sails.My interior also did not have any handrails, except the two at the companionway. I've added longer handrails on the overhead over the galley, the nav table, and down the middle between the large front plexiglass windows (too big to be called portlights). I've also added short handrails many other places. It makes it much safer moving around in the main saloon. I also added fiddle rails, as Hunter missed that small detail on the 89' Visions. I finally got tired of eating off the floor!Anyway, keep up the dialog.Mike

 

[Doug]

Boom Height

The boom height while resting on the vang spring should clear the dodger but is too low for safety with sail doused. Connect your main halyard to the aft end of the boom when you drop sail and use it, working against sheet tension, to bring the boom to a convenient height and keep it from swinging. I have a short loop of 5/16" nylon line attached to the sheave housing at the boom end for that purpose.

 

[Tom Boles]

Doug- you and others are probably right about

lifting the boom with the main Halyard. However, my cover extends all the way to the end and covers the end of the boom, so (I know, it a little lame) it would look funky to have a piece of line snaking up to attach the halyard to the boom... I could do something at the the aftmost lazy jack-I have nifty leather-lined holes for those lines...Oh well!