I've recently had a run of breakages, (masts, & boom)......now, after taking the newby out for it's first crack, I managed to snap it clean through, right on the harness line!!!

SHQ has looked after me in organising a new one, but my question is, (seeing they don't want the broken one back), can the broken one be repaired to keep as a spare? It's still shiny/new! (just in more pieces than it was). I thought if it was possible to feed a short piece of smaller dia. alum tube inside with some sika, and a couple of rivets, it might serve as a good spare......has anyone tried this, or have thoughts on it?

[edit] I also thought I could cut a length from a spare carbon extension end I have from a previous breakage.

.....or should I just dismantle it for parts?

P.S. (for anyone who cares.....I'm still going to have a crack at repairing a broken mast, by using similar techniques.....just not confident on that one)

Hey Sailhack,

A certain manufacturer had a bad batch of aluminium a while back, and I was one of the lucky ones to experience the breadstick snap between the harness lines.

I wouldn't trust it before being bodgily repaired, let alone after

Change brands, vote with your feet. Quality control should be paramount.

remember safety first

unless the boom is used in lakes obviously dont use it in waves even if its a first class repair, it is always a gamble to repair a boom.

Thanks for the info.....I don't spend much time in the waves, and I guess if I was to repair it, it'd be for those days where I just want to cruise along. It just seems like a waste when it seems like such a simple thing to repair.

Just my humble opinion, but I reckon more people have been snapping boom arms now that the trend is to have the harness lines so close together(less than a fist).

As you weight your harness, the stress on the boom is now much more centred around one point, rather than distributed over 2 points a greater length apart.

On your next boom I'd suggest having your lines 15 to 20 cm apart to spread the load a bit more....especially if your on the relentless chop of Port Phillip Bay!

Any one else see logic in this?

Select to expand quote

Bondalucci said...


Just my humble opinion, but I reckon more people have been snapping boom arms now that the trend is to have the harness lines so close together(less than a fist).

As you weight your harness, the stress on the boom is now much more centred around one point, rather than distributed over 2 points a greater length apart.

On your next boom I'd suggest having your lines 15 to 20 cm apart to spread the load a bit more....especially if your on the relentless chop of Port Phillip Bay!

Any one else see logic in this?

I can see the logic bondy, but we have to be honest here, we are buying Ally stuff, so of course its going to break and bend, i think with the harness line issue it shouldnt really make a difference... (well i hope it doesnt) because when you come down on your boom after a jump or stack, your still putting loads of force on your boom, and of course its going to bend/break.

And anyway, my mum always said "you pay nuts, you get monkeys" and seeing the cheapest ally booms are $250 and the top of the range carbon ones are $1000, your not really buying something thats going to be lasting an entire season.

Just my 2 cents!

Been sailing lately bondy?

Sorry to bust in on your topic Sailhack. however its kinda the same line, here is the front end of my X6 boom.

How long to you think I have and can it be 'nursed/fatal end delayed' at all in any manner?

My X3 looked like that for nearly two years, in fact it is still like that, but I ended up getting a new one after bending one side.
That crack is only in the plastic moulding where the head sits on the front.
The actual aluminium is one piece that slips through the head (not two seperate arms)

Sweet!!! Thats good news as the rest of the boom is still is great condition! Cheers

timford - that's exactly what's happened to my X3 which I've had for just on a year now. Was assured however that the boom itself was fine to use.

Select to expand quote

timford said...

How long to you think I have and can it be 'nursed/fatal end delayed' at all in any manner?

I had a X6 (or an X6?) for 3 years, and had a good run with it, the cosmetic break in the clamp (as shown in your pic) doesn't affect the boom, although it's pretty ordinary quality from such a large manufacturer. I was showing a mate the broken plastic a couple of months ago when he spotted a crack halfway through the alum under it!!! If he hadn't have noticed it, I'm sure I would've been in for a big swim that day! Personally, I'd expose the alum so you can keep an eye on it for any fractures. My mistake is that I bought a X3 (an X3? this is getting ridiculous!) as the replacement, and its first outing after only a small chop-hop, combined with a lazy landing, snapped it clean through.....my harness lines are 7-8" apart!

Select to expand quote

Sailhack said...

timford said...

How long to you think I have and can it be 'nursed/fatal end delayed' at all in any manner?

I had a X6 (or an X6?) for 3 years, and had a good run with it, the cosmetic break in the clamp (as shown in your pic) doesn't affect the boom, although it's pretty ordinary quality from such a large manufacturer. I was showing a mate the broken plastic a couple of months ago when he spotted a crack halfway through the alum under it!!! If he hadn't have noticed it, I'm sure I would've been in for a big swim that day! Personally, I'd expose the alum so you can keep an eye on it for any fractures. My mistake is that I bought a X3 (an X3? this is getting ridiculous!) as the replacement, and its first outing after only a small chop-hop, combined with a lazy landing, snapped it clean through.....my harness lines are 7-8" apart!

Man, that is some rough luck! I have seen some X3 booms working hard in fine condition and some not. It must be what Nebbian mentioned.
Thanks for the help chaps. Happy Blasting.

THE CRACKS IN THE FRONT "COSMETIC" PART OF THE BOOM ARE CAUSED BY TWISTING THE BOOM FROM THE MAST INSTEAD OF PULLING IT OFF STRAIGHT WHEN DE-RIGGING...COMMON FAULT BUT DOESNT CAUSE ANY ISSUES..MY 180-230 X6 HAS BEEN LIKE IT FOR A LONG TIME...

we can hear you KEV KEV

Select to expand quote

KEVKEV said...

THE CRACKS IN THE FRONT "COSMETIC" PART OF THE BOOM ARE CAUSED BY TWISTING THE BOOM FROM THE MAST INSTEAD OF PULLING IT OFF STRAIGHT WHEN DE-RIGGING...COMMON FAULT BUT DOESNT CAUSE ANY ISSUES..MY 180-230 X6 HAS BEEN LIKE IT FOR A LONG TIME...

Why would you twist a boom off a mast anyway?
Np booms have a clamp that can be completely removed from the mast.
As for cosmetic cracks dont make me laugh, their is no such thing.
It's more likely the plastic is cracking because the alu. is flexing under it and eventually it will work harden and then it cracks.

WHEN I SAY "TWISTING" I MEANT SWINGING THE BOOM DOWN AND OFF THE MAST BEFORE REMOVING THE BOOM HEAD AND CLAMP FROM AROUND THE MAST.

"COSMETIC" FOR THE " MENTALLY CHALLENGED" IS MEANING THE PLASTIC COVERS ON THE FRONT OF THE BOOM ARM THAT DONT ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING...
WORK HARDENING TAKES A HELL OF A LONG TIME...I HAVE SEEN RELATIVELY NEW NEIL PRYDE X3 & X6 BOOMS DO THIS WHEN NOT TAKEN OFF THE MAST PROPERLY.. ONLY SAYING WHAT I HAVE SEEN WITH MY OWN EYES AND CONVERSATIONS I HAVE HAD WITH NP SUPPLIERS...CHILL OUT DUDE !

Sailhack,
I recently had the same dilemma myself and agree that it's very hard to throw away a new boom just because of one very bent or broken arm.
Personally I wouldn't try to straighten or repair a boom arm because the strength will never be near 100% and failure is guaranteed to happen at the most inopportune time.
You can buy replacement boom arms, my Chinook boom originally cost $300 and a replacement arm was going to be $120 plus delivery.
In the end I bought two new loft booms for less than $300, they are a bit heavier than the more expensive booms but I can now sail with peace of mind using new (not repaired) equipment.

Its great to hear users giving their experiences with various booms etc. I bought a Loft alloy boom , it lasted for 9 months. One arm snapped off within the mast cup. Bud was great in replacing it with a new one, however this lasted 3 months, used over winter, it had only been used ~ 10 times. Again it snapped within the mast cup. Once again Bud did the right thing and sent me a new one. Its now 6 months old and I can hear it staining around the clamp area. Even though it looks good I'm going to ditch it. It's just not worth the risk of being stuck off Green Point in a Northerly.
I'm going to get a Aeron Continuous Wave Ali boom, lets hope it lasts.

KEVKEV...STOP SHOUTING!

Anyways, the 'cosmetic' plastic cracked away exposing a crack in the aluminium, I don't think this was caused by twisting the boom off, more than likely my weight hanging off the boom. I removed the last of the plastic and realised that it is very brittle, so any flex, and the plastic will break.

As for brands, I'm seriously losing faith! I know I'm a large lad, but I've sailed with some 'large lads' that do more hardcore moves than me, and they're using 4+yo booms, straight, and no sign of structural wear.

I think you guys are on the right track, either go the cheapies, or a top-of-the-line boom....in my experience anything in between doesn't seem to cut the fat (so to speak!)

I had an X6 which developed the same crack in the plastic and it was replaced. The replacement did the same thing, by that stage it was determined that this was only a cosmetic issue with the plastic coating. While I agree that having the cosmetic damage is not a good thing, the boom is quite sound. I'm pushing 90kg + and i use the boom on a 6.7 slalom sail (almost fully extended) as well as smaller sails B&J. I also bought an ex rental X6 in Maui a couple of years ago and this is still holding out well.

I think that you can have a faulty boom and they break pretty quickly, otherwise they generally last. However my experience has been that once you kink the boom in a bad stack the fatigue from further use makes them snap soon after.

I wouldn't trust a repaired boom. Apart from the swim it can cause damage to board and sail when it goes.

Select to expand quote

timford said...

Sorry to bust in on your topic Sailhack. however its kinda the same line, here is the front end of my X6 boom.

How long to you think I have and can it be 'nursed/fatal end delayed' at all in any manner?

My X3 cracked the same way. Cracks were developing because I over swivel the boom. Those with NP booms will know what I mean by the boom swiveling around the head. i.e boom arms swivel independently of the head.

I have the boom high in the sail cut out, therefore the boom swivels down to reach the clew. When I rig the boom high there is not enough allowable swivel in the boom head. You can see in timford's picture the piece that limits the amount of swivel. It is the piece at the right extent of the crack. This piece puts pressure on the cracked "cosmetic" part and pushes it apart.

I recently did some on water repairs to the clew and while the outhaul rope was undone I totally over-swiveled the boom. Result....cracked like timford's picture.

Otherwise boom is fine.

what ended up happening to SailHack's boom?

Did he repair it?

Is he still alive???

Select to expand quote

sflack said...

what ended up happening to SailHack's boom?

Did he repair it?

Is he still alive???

Ha ha!

Yeah, I'm still here....the boom's been welded with a solid alum dowell sleeve insert, I haven't had the balls to sail with it yet, we've had nothing but offshores, and although I'm keen to have a go at a patched up boom, I'm not a total nutjob!
It looks pretty good (besides the trashed grip), and because I know the guy that ownes the plumbing/sheetmetal fabrication shop, he only charged me $25.

I've since taken off the clamp on my X6 boom that I had written off for dead, and found that although the outer tubing is cracked (and the crappy brittle plastic sleeve is trashed), there's an internal sleeve bent around inside the boom head, and seems very strong.....might be another job for my mate!

Broke my NP X3 in the same place right between the harness line connections within 2 months of purchase. Thankfully SHQ accepted the warranty. Upon their recommendation I paid the difference for a new X6. They suggest anyone over 90kgs who sails pretty hard to use at least some carbon % boom. In the past they have had some big guys go through 3 or more aluminium booms in a year.

Anyway, fingers crossed that the X6 holds up. Expecting some big winds towards summer.

i'm over 90+++++ kilos and sail very soft and i wouldn't touch a non carbon boom ever. no matter what brand.

i know carbon cost a lot more but personally i reckon it's worth it.

i have noticed that some of the manufacturers have started to release carbon booms with different percentages.

not sure how say a 60% carbon boom compares with alloy though.

as far as heads go. the brand of carbon booms i once used managed to break heads very regularly, so i switched. basically the heads split.

no probs with new booms i now use.

in short carbon or alu the head can still be the weak link.

Select to expand quote

Leman said...

Broke my NP X3 in the same place right between the harness line connections within 2 months of purchase. Thankfully SHQ accepted the warranty. Upon their recommendation I paid the difference for a new X6. They suggest anyone over 90kgs who sails pretty hard to use at least some carbon % boom. In the past they have had some big guys go through 3 or more aluminium booms in a year.

Anyway, fingers crossed that the X6 holds up. Expecting some big winds towards summer.

Funny you mention that, I had the same discussion with one of the SHQ guys yesterday, I've got a replacement boom due any day, I asked if I could pay the diff for the X6, no probs.....I'm surprised they didn't suggest it?!? My original X6 lasted a few years, so far this year, I've 'breadstick' snapped one X3, & my other one is pretty bent. If it wasn't for the replacement offer, I don't know if I'd be going back to NP, have to see how this one goes.....