Yes, as the owner of a carbon fiber mast and wishbone on my 354 (33) and a prior owner of a 30, I can unequivocally state that the carbon fiber is a major plus for a number of reasons, including weight, strength and lack of any weathering or corrosion.
Since my rig was built in 1994/5, the carbon fiber is much thicker (estimating 2x) and heavier than what they would do today almost 20 years later. I attribute that to our builder’s desire not to underestimate the strength and capabilities of what was then a very new and unknown material.
Brian, to respond to your questions, here are the answers:
Do you keep your original (seemingly massive and heavy) end castings or does the carbon one come with something different and lighter?
The wishbone is molded as one complete piece. There are no metal components at all. I’ve never dropped the boom, so I can’t speak with authority about the fore part, but I’ve worked extensively with the aft (see below).
Does it rig up the same way? (I’m happy with how the current one is rigged with the choker to move it fore/aft and reefing lines inside of the wishbone, etc.)
Yes, the reef lines are contained within the boom, which is hollow like the aluminum one. The prior owner of my vessel removed the second reef line, and re-rigged it so one reef line controls the mast reef tack (Reef 1 cringle) and the other reef line controls the clew Reef 1 cringle. I did not change this as it simplified reefing and eliminated all of the blocks inside the boom.
The choker works identical to the aluminum wishbones. It also has a single safety line and a single cored double-braid topping lift without mechanical advantage that goes all the way from the clew to a sheve at the top of the mask and back down to the starboard Spinlock clutch and Lewmar winch.
Would the thing slam as much when jibing? I only jibe in light winds and have four of those nice bungie snubbers on the sheet, but it still seems harsh.
I can say with some authority that it slams exactly like the prior wishbones. There is no “give“ or energy absorption in the carbon fiber booms versus the aluminum; if anything, it might be less!
The clew of the sail attaches to the carbon fiber wishbone via a 60mm metal pad eye ,bolted to the inner molded crotch of the wishbone. For many years, I used a traditional stainless shackle to connect the clew to the padeye (now I use a Dyneema soft shackle).
One day when I was sailing back from San Francisco to Tiburon, blowing 25 kts from the west and there is a wind shift that that always occurred around Pt Stuart on the NW corner of Angel Island.
The boom was about 12 feet off the port stern, I neglected to haul it in inside the aft corner of the boat like I usually do and the 25 kt wind shift caught the sail in an accidental gybe and violently swung it over. I didn’t release the main sheet in time, and the force split the padeye in half, ripped open the two half-batten pockets, and threw them into the Bay.
The clew of the sail was undamaged, and most importantly, the boom wasn’t even scratched; a fine tribute to George’s constant desire to ensure the structural integrity of our vessels.
I have attached two pictures after the repair. I replaced the original paddy with a 60mm Saddle Ferrule and Dyneema soft shackle.
I have attached two pictures after the repair. I replaced the original paddy with a 60mm Saddle Ferrule and Dyneema soft shackle.
I did learn my lesson that day and always err on the side of hauling in the sheet when the wind angle gets dicey…
I hope that helps your decision process. I don’t know of anyone who could make a replacement, but if you find someone, they are welcome to come to San Rafael or San Francisco to inspect and measure my wishbone as a build template.
Michael Jabara
Hobbes II 1995 NS 354
San Rafael, California
