35-2, lower the boom?

[Dave N]

The 35-2 boom and gooseneck seem to be located way too high on the mast. I am aware of the original rating "logic". I am ordering a new main and dropping the gooseneck by 18 inches or so seems like a very good idea. Has anybody done this, and how much did you lower your boom?

 

[Loren Beach]

Do you have a side view of the boat with the present boom position showing?
A picture would help a lot.

Thanks,
LB

 

[exoduse35]

My boom is located as to allow 6' 2" headroom in the cockpit. Lowering the boom from that (original position) seems dangerous to me. Also mine has a shortened boom and thus a smaller sail, and works very well. it can still keep up with anything out there and is controllable well passed when everyone else is reefing. I am going back to the original sail but expect that it will be reefed much of the time. I see no reason to add even more sail area. I would check the height of the boom against the cockpit measurement. and the height of your mast. There was a standard and tall mast. It is possible that you have a sail for the wrong mast. Edd

 

[Dave N]

Here is a side view, my wife standing on cockpit seat.

 

[Loren Beach]

Agreed, it does look a bit high up. Furling and covering might take some standing on tippy toe.
OTOH, you do want it to clear your skull when tacking.

Looks like it could come down some, tho.

LB

 

[exoduse35]

Yes, yours is definitely above mine. Even assuming your lovely wife is 4'12" it would make it least 7' off the cockpit floor. With that dodger there as long as you stay above it you will be fine. One of the things I am worried about is getting enough height under my dodger without hitting the boom. Beautiful boat. Edd

 

[Mark F]

Hi Dave,

The boom does look high but checking some of the E35 mk2 photos in the Community area of this site they all look a bit high.

The boom on an E23 mk1 that I had was positioned high off of the deck. I thought about lowering the boom. I bought a mainsail for an Ericson 23 mk1 from The Sail Warehouse, turned out to be a sail for a mk2 and was about a foot longer at the luff. Decision made, I kept it and lowered the boom .

Hopefully Seth and others will chime in with some sail trim/balance thoughts. Maybe lengthen the luff and shorten the foot to keep the sail area the same?

Good looking boat.

 

[markvone]

E38 with lower boom

I remember reading an article about a E38 owner in the Chesapeake Bay who lowered his boom on a brand new boat to gain sail area for our lighter winds. He was planning on racing so he was aware of whatever the rating hit was going to be. Lowering the boom may be the most straight forward way to add sail area without changing the balance and with minimum impact on stability (better than a taller mast and a lot less expensive). The ergonomic impacts of head clearance and dodger height need to be balanced against the performance gain in light air. Probably not a mod for San Francisco Bay! Mark

 

[e38sailorman]

Easy way to tell if the boom is above "standard" height, find the standard measurement for the luff length of the main for your boat, measurement "I" i think, should be in the documents on this site somewhere. Get a steel tape attach to the main halyard, run up to the black band and measure down to the "I" length for your boat and presto magic...that is where the tack fitting should be.

Marc
E38 WaveWalker

 

[robjpowell]

Dave,
My E35-2 is 1976 vintage. I was on her this am and checked. Im 5'9 and my head is boom height when i stand on the seat.
Rob

 

[beachologist]

Dave, We did exactly what you suggest on our 35-2. For rating purposes the luff and foot are measured not the leach. Droopy booms and big leaches are free sail area. On our 35-2 the gooseneck was so high that it was too hard to put the sail cover on. When we replaced the main, we 1st lowered the goose neck 17", added some track, then positioned the back of the boom high enough to give us headroom in the cockpit and clear the bimini top, took our measurements and had a beautiful main built by Mack sails. We took a 3 second penalty on our PHRF rating for increasing the P 17".

 

[steven]

On our E35-2 (1976) we had the luff lengthened to lower the gooseneck by about 6" - but not the clew - so the boom is now parallel to the waterline. The original had the clew end down (for rating?). Also raised the top by about 6" - the sail head was way below the masthead. Still have plenty of headroom in the cockpit and a little more sail area. Also,a high boom allows standing headroom under a Bimini - which I might get this year.

Problem getting the cover on because it stacks so high. Probably going to put a step or two on mast this year to reach it (but I really don't like drilling holes in the mast).

--Steve

 

[leighton]

I love the height of the boom on our 35 II but then, I'm 6' 6" and it clears my head by a couple of inches when I'm standing in the cockpit. I've long since stopped ducking when we tack or jibe.

On the other hand, my wife's uncle has a Catalina 36 & the end of the boom comes in tooth-high just above the binnacle. Once, we tacked the boat while I was at the helm and I turned my head at just the right time to feel the lightest brushing across my lips - kissed the boom as it swept on by.
On that boat I now keep an eye on the boom like a postman watches a pit bull.

 

[Norm]

E38 with lower boom

I remember reading an article about a E38 owner in the Chesapeake Bay who lowered his boom on a brand new boat to gain sail area for our lighter winds. He was planning on racing so he was aware of whatever the rating hit was going to be. Lowering the boom may be the most straight forward way to add sail area without changing the balance and with minimum impact on stability (better than a taller mast and a lot less expensive). The ergonomic impacts of head clearance and dodger height need to be balanced against the performance gain in light air. Probably not a mod for San Francisco Bay! Mark

I have the opposite problem. My E30+ has too low of a boom and I want to raise it 12 inches and shorten its length. Any thoughts?