[C38] boom failure

Sun Jul 19 15:02:15 EDT 2009

Glen, Just in case you need it for Lefiell, here's the Catalina spec sheet
for our boom.
Regards,

Max Soto
C38 #198 ESTANCIA
Puntarenas, Costa Rica

2009/7/19 David Epstein <davidepstein at seicontrol.com>

>  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<Glenn.Terry at Sun.COM> <Glenn.Terry at Sun.COM>
> To: Catalina 38 Listserve
> <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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>
>
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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-408-404-8966glenn.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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>

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