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?
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.
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...
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.
what ended up happening to SailHack's boom?
Did he repair it?
Is he still alive???
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.
