Alloy will eventually bend and break. Carbon rarely does

do you want a long time boom or a hack .
i paid the carbon price after stuffing many alloys on my big sails
its now on its 8 th year and still going strong .they where only $850 then .
it hurt ,but never regretted it ...i don't like washing my alloy gear ..so another bonus for carbon .
the new alloys are better than 10 year ago ...pro limit sell a hybrid ,,,carbon arms alloy rear .
which is a bit cheaper ..i have one of those too .its almost as good as full carbon ..check those out.

thanks, sounding like carbon at least for the longer one ..ill shop around.

Second hand carbon beats new aluminium. Keep a watch on the buy and sell.

Shifu said..
And if you sail offshore a long way the durability of carbon is an asset. I learned the hard way.

^^^^ Yep, I got towed in by a boat a couple of weeks ago when my mast went through the tip of the sail. That wasn't very enjoyable.

The following week my boom broke at the head ( fortunately my friend was using it ), that could have been another long swim. The boom looked in good condition and it was used for my sails 4.7 to 6.2m, I'm around 82kg.

I decided to replace it with a carbon boom, even though it's not often used, just to minimise risk

My large sail boom boom is carbon 12 + years and going strong ( hope I haven't jinxed myself). I plan to also replace my mid size boom even though it looks pretty good atm, again just to minimise the chance of another swim.

There is nothing safer than a new set of sails.

Ive also heard that if one doesn't have enough fins in the box of bits to keep themselves cool they can spontaneously combust.
Could take out the whole garage.
Lucky we take safety seriously .

normster: if you are using modern wave sails, a carbon boom is a must due to the stiffness that wave sails need. If you use an aluminum boom, the centre of effort of the sail will constantly change (back handed one second, then front handed the next etc) as the boom is flexed by the ride.

jn1 said..
normster: if you are using modern wave sails, a carbon boom is a must due to the stiffness that wave sails need. If you use an aluminum boom, the centre of effort of the sail will constantly change (back handed one second, then front handed the next etc) as the boom is flexed by the ride.

+100. You notice this when you go from carbon to aluminium. Last year I was using aluminum booms at a hire centre on holiday. I'm not an expert by any means, but the first thing I noticed was that the boom felt like a wet noodle on a 5.6 sail.

(Ditto for super light 100% carbon rigs. You notice the difference when you go back to a heavier rig.)

Sometimes it doesn't matter

FormulaNova said..

Stuthepirate said..
Sometimes it doesn't matter

Is that a full carbon boom?

A few years ago I had a NP X6, which is an alloy boom, with carbon tailpiece. The aluminium flexes and fatigues the same as all alloy booms, and when that lets go the tailpiece snaps instantly. The carbon really doesn't add much to those booms.

Full Carbon

in the booms defense, i did have it at near full extension on a 7.7 in 20+ knts at full speed on a downhill slalom course.

Stuthepirate said..
in the booms defense, i did have it at near full extension on a 7.7 in 20+ knts at full speed on a downhill slalom course.

I heard the stack was epic though Stu, wish I was there to see it. Well done, glad you're ok.

Kukahi said..

jn1 said..
normster: if you are using modern wave sails, a carbon boom is a must due to the stiffness that wave sails need. If you use an aluminum boom, the centre of effort of the sail will constantly change (back handed one second, then front handed the next etc) as the boom is flexed by the ride.

"new sails" have reached a point in design technology where stability is tantamount. An alloy boom compared to a carbon boom will have a negligible affect on the centre of effort if the sail is:
1) Rigged on the appropriate mast.
2) Rigged for the conditions.
3) Not being used in conditions that exceed that size as recommended by most manufacturers.
Sure carbon is great but why not throw that $500 you saved on a 2nd hand freestyle board!

You have never used a proper carbon boom then...

It would be the same to say using using alloy vs carbon wheels on the latest carbon bike frame