[C38] boom failure

Sun Jul 19 14:43:35 EDT 2009

Glenn,

Sorry to hear of your misfortune.   Your boom was most likely made by

LeFiell Manufacturing Company
13700 Firestone Blvd
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670 USA
Tel: (800) 451-5971, FAX (800) 373-3361
www.lefiell.com

Good luck!

David Epstein
SuperStar, #122, Marina del Rey

At 10:23 AM 7/19/2009, Glenn Terry wrote:
>Tom,
>
>Very interesting.  A repair would save a lot of time not having to 
>remount all the hardware on a new boom.
>
>What kind of preparation did you do at the break?  Did you remove 
>any metal, square off the break, paint removal, etc.?
>
>The diamond shaped reenforcement tabs would solve several issues.
>
>How was the splint constructed.  If it laid directly on the mast it 
>would interfere with weld area.  Did you block it out from the mast 
>or was it temporary so the initial welds could be made and then 
>removed to complete the project.
>
>The metal fabrication shop I have used in the past has the ability 
>to make the jig and align it spot on.
>
>Any more information you can give me would be appreciated.
>
>Regards,
>
>G!enn
>
>
>Tom T. wrote:
>>
>>Hi Glenn,
>>
>>I can't name a good replacement for your boom but before you do that, let
>>me tell you of another experience I once had that may help you.
>>
>>We had a highly modified South Coast 22 once that I used for design
>>experiments.  It had a very efficient hollow steel keel that was bottom
>>weighted with lead.  The keel weighed 550 lbs, same as the original iron
>>keel but my center of gravity was much lower because of the bottom weight
>>of the new keel.
>>
>>We were sailing in a stiff breeze and really flying when my mast pumped
>>forward in a puff making the mast fail at the spreaders.  The whole mast
>>and sails came crashing down and we slowly retrieved the sails, shrouds,
>>boom and mast halves and motored back to port.
>>
>>I salvaged that broken mast.  We made a splint of wood and clamped the two
>>pieces of the mast together and welded them back together.  Then we took a
>>piece of another mast, slightly larger than ours, and cut diamond shaped
>>pieces to overlay the welded area to permanently splint the damaged area.
>>
>>After we repaired the mast, it looked like the factory had made the mast
>>with the reinforced section welded at the weak spreader area.  Not only did
>>we salvage the mast, it was now much stronger than originally and not prone
>>to future failure.
>>
>>The key to this repair is the diamond shaped plates made from another mast
>>to overlay the repair area.  The reason for diamond shape is to not
>>concentrate the weld area of the plates.
>>
>>In my opinion, all masts and booms should come from the factory with these
>>diamond shaped reinforcements.  The failure point of any mast or boom is
>>usually where either the shrouds meet on the mast or the vang meets on the
>>boom.  Those points are the highest strain points weakened by holes drilled
>>through them and the diamond plate weld procedure makes those points
>>stronger than the rest, as they should be.
>>
>>You don't personally have to own a MIG, TIG, or any other type of welder to
>>do this, the preparation is the key element of a good repair.  Anyone can
>>make the wood splint, find a piece of old mast or have some aluminum plates
>>rolled and fabricated from a metal shop if not successful in finding a mast
>>stub for the metal overlay splint, and grinding a good fillets on the weld
>>edges of all pieces.
>>
>>Once this preparation is done, any good weld shop equipped to weld aluminum
>>can weld the mast together at a minimum of expense.  Like an auto collision
>>repair, it's the preparation that cost the most, not the final painting of
>>the car.  Same here, prep the mast properly and make a good splint from
>>some straight wood and the repair price should be very small compared to
>>the price of a new boom, let alone the fact that your repaired boom would
>>be actually much stronger than a new boom.
>>
>>Email me if you want more details.
>>
>>Tom Troncalli
>>Renata #95
>>
>>
>>>
>>>[Original Message]
>>>From: Glenn Terry <mailto:Glenn.Terry at Sun.COM><Glenn.Terry at Sun.COM>
>>>To: Catalina 38 Listserve 
>>><mailto:listserve at catalina38.org><listserve at catalina38.org>
>>>Date: 7/18/2009 11:42:52 PM
>>>Subject: [C38] boom failure
>>>
>>>I had a rookie at the helm and he executed a perfect uncontrolled jibe.
>>>The boom broke at boom vang mount.
>>>
>>>Can anyone give advice in the replacement of the boom?
>>>
>>>Regards,
>>>
>>>G!enn
>>>
>>>_______________________________________________
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>>>http://catalina38.org/mailman/listinfo/listserve_catalina38.org
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
>--
>Glenn Terry
>OEM Software Licensing
>Sun Microsystems, Inc.
>4180 Network Circle
>USCA18-312
>Santa Clara, CA 95054
>w-408-404-8966  x4-0966
>f-408-404-8966
><mailto:glenn.terry at sun.com>glenn.terry at sun.com
>
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David Epstein
President, Sound Solutions
Chairman, CEA TechHome Division
Member of the CEA Board of Industry Leaders
Member, CEA Division Executive Board
Tel 310.398.0032
Fax 310.398.0036
www.soundsolutions.com
www.ce.org

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