Boomless Sailboat

I have a couple of questions. First let me give a brief overview of my situation. I purchased and am restoring a 5.7m G-Cat. I am very very new to sailing and beyond green.
(1) I noticed that my boat does not have a boom. What are the pros/cons of having a boomless sailboat?

(2) My rear crossbar (terminology?) that my mast sits atop has an end cap on each end, both with 2 holes in them. It is obvious that these holes are present so some type of cord/cable can pass through them. However, nothing is through them right now. What the heck (if anything) goes through here?

I bought a book (Catamaran Sailing From Start to Finish)and it is good on beginner technique, but poor on rigging and part identification. Any and all help is appreciated.
<img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

First off: I don't have G-cat and have never even been near one!

Boomless advantage is you don't get hit on the head by the boom when you experience your first involuntary gybe. In stead you might (for example) just get rope burn from the main sheet.

A boom's main advantage is that it gives you more options for trimming the main sail. Note: that includes options for trimming the main badly. These options by far outweigh the few options for trimming the main properly. Incidentally, my boat has a boom, which I like very much, but it's no holy grail.


I could be mistaken ( I don't know how a Louisiana G-cat should be rigged) but the mast is usually located on the front (or main) beam (in the middle). One hole on each cap would normally be for the trapeze bungee. Some boats contain integrated righting lines there, but I couldn't say if yours was one of them.

Check out the link below for some pictures of a rigged Nacra:
http://www.thebeachcats.com/index.php?module=pictures&g2_itemId=35563
Note that not everything will be exactly the same, but a lot of stuff should start to dawn on you if you just stare at the pictures long enough.

Good luck (You'll need it!)

Dennis

Hans Geissler
G-Cat Multihulls LLC
hans@g-catmultihulls.com

A boom is also useful in forcing the mast rotate. This is a good mico-tuning feature for up and downwind sailing.

Many g-cats have a mast rotator that uses lines and cleats to force the mast to rotate. If you are interested in mast rotation there is alot of data on this site about it...

This is relatively advanced and I didn’t understand or care about it until my 200th sail... or so.

Okay, I have had both kinds, a Nacra 5.5sl and a prototypical A-cat (both without booms), Nacra Infusion (a boomlet!) and here's my 2cents worth:
For recreational cat sailing, the boom is an over-rated component of the boat. What performance you can derive from the boom in everyday fun sailing conditions probably won't ever be noticed. The out-haul on the boom *does* enhance the performance of the boat, however, by providing additional tuning capability, especially for high and low wind conditions, but the effect is marginal. How? In high winds, the boom provides a direct ability to depower a bit more effectively, by use of the out-haul, which can flatten the main-sail and allowing for more tuned power. The boomless rigs wiggle and arc more in gusts, which can mean more of a deeper mainsail foil shape, but its really not a big performance deal. If you were to sail both in gusty air, you would probably find you would be wiggling your helm more in the boomless rig to compensate for power spikes and aacceleration, and your cunningham (down-haul) would be honked down hard on the boomless and only tweaked on the boomed boat. In light air, it similarly related to sail shape. On the boomless, your bottom batten will straighten the mainsail more than a boomless, (which may or may not be preferable), especially in a drifter-float-fest event. Frankly, its a pretty marginal deal, unless you are racing a lot, and then, layline and execution,much more important to overall performance-still learning this myself....

Finally, the boats where booms make a huge difference are the monos. My prior experience was as a mate on a 70 ton displacement gaff-rigged schooner and some sloops. On mono hulls, especially schooners (no keel, only a skeg) the forces on the main and the shape of the main are a bit more critical to overall performance, and the forces on the boom are huge. A fast cat sail, by comparison to a mono tis overall, much flatter than a mono. On a cat, a fat round shape may accelerate the boat, but once up to speed, it is getting in the way.

I contacted Hans Geissler @ G-Cat. I had no idea G-Cat was even still around. Someone had told me they quit making boats. Hopefully I will be able to get some help from him. Thanks for all the help!!

I sail with Hans all the time. He is a VERY fun guy, and great sailor. I believe G-Cat has not produced beach cats in a while, but they have recently opened their facilities again and are working on a new 36' gcat .. it is almost ready for its first swim... it sounds like it will be very cool when it is released.

http://www.morningstarfishermen.org/misc/tribune08.pdf

F.Y.I.

Hans e-mailed me back and sent diagrams! (Praise the Lord). Those holes I was inquiring about are for the trapeze! Thanks for all the help guys.

On our 5.7 it was for a set of outhaul rings for the jib.

I have a free G-Cat Main beam for anyone wanting to pay shipping or pick up. Ordered new, never used, but in storage for 25 or more years.

The G-Cat 5.7 is a fast, nice handling boat. I raced one quite successfully for a while back in the late 70s or early 80s and it was as capable as the other 18 footers back then. The lack of a boom had no noticeable deficiencies as far as I could tell, although all the other cats I raced had booms.

I've used the boomless mainsail from a G-cat 5.7 on my Hobie 16 instead of the hobie sails and boom when I have novices or kids out on the lake. It works well, I don't see that much difference in performance.

I'd definately like to get that main beam for my G-cat. She's been beat up as a rental for years, so that beam would be a good addition. I'm moving to Florida this month, so I can't get it yet. My new zipcode will be 32226. Can you find out what shipping will be?