HPL boom problem

i have owned two HPL booms, and on both of them, the rubber/plastic mast protectors have become lost. with each boom, i would be rigging, and then would notice that the protector was missing - i would look in my car or in my boom bag, and find it. eventually they weren't there to be found - they must have fallen off in between the rigging ara and the car. anyway, not having them is a drag when you want to go sailing.

i have had many fiberspar booms, and this has never been a problem on those booms.

i reaize that when i noticed that the protectors were falling off, i should have glued them, but i didn't, and now i have two booms that i can't use till i get new protectors.

am i the only one who has had this experience?

it really is annoying.

jeff feehan

Hi Jeff, You're right, you should have applied some contact cement when you noticed it...with skinnies or Z-Tapers we use this shim, so it doesn't matter: http://www.surfingsports.com/product.asp? prod=pwx_rdm_shim ALL booms require some maintenance...so do wetsuits, boards, and most other pieces of windsurfing gear if it's used enough... If I get a fin gouge in my boom grip, I'll dab a bit of contact cement on it to keep it from becoming a bigger issue...I rinse the inside of my boom tubes and lubricate...and keep my harness, inhaul, and outhaul lines fresh. With aluminum booms, I keep the front end connections tight...

WARDOG

Hi Jeff,

That's happened several times with mine, but I've always found them. I haven't gotten around to cementing them in yet, but it sounds like a good idea.

Brian