Light booms in carbon fibre Seldén supply carbon booms that harmonise with its carbon mast range. Carbon booms offer weight savings of up to 35% compared to aluminium. This means that boom weight on a typical 35 ft boat is reduced from 30 kg to just 20 kg. A lighter boom makes gybing less dramatic, as the boom has less momentum. This has a positive effect on the whole boat, especially with regard to the service life of the mainsheet attachment. A lighter boom also reduces the tendency of the boat to roll when sailing downwind and it improves the effect of the Rodkickers’ gas spring. The section modulus of a carbon boom is twice as high as that of an aluminium boom with the same weight per meter. A stiff boom makes for improved trim and thus higher boat speed. Boats that sail IRC, and which are already fitted with a carbon mast, suffer no further rating penalty by up-grading to a carbon boom.

End fittings In order to reduce weight, while still providing sheaves for single line reefing, we have made the inboard end fitting as short as possible. The outboard end, which is integrated into the carbon section, is finished with a carbon cover plate. Vang attachment The carbon booms feature hand laid local reinforcement in the vang attachment area. Mainsheet attachment The mainsheet block is attached using a Dyneema® strop that passes through an aramid tube in the boom. Stainless steel bushings at either end of the tube prevent wear, while local carbon reinforcement provides the extra strength...