My E 27 doesn't have a boom vang

My 1973 E 27 doesn't have a vang. I does have a downhaul between the boom gooseneck and the base of the mast. I'd like to rig a boom vang and wonder what I need for attachments on the boom and the base of the mast. My boom has three bails for mid boom sheeting. My boom also slides in the mast track and isn't fixed.

The easiest course might be to install a rigid vang, simply because they usually come with custom mounting hardware.

I'd start research with Garhauer, and you call call them on the phone to discuss.

A vang kit, meaning a tackle, may be somewhat cheaper.. Specialized fittings for the mast are available. The fitting on the boom is usually just a bail, as you have for the main sheet. Some sort of stopper needed to keep the gooseneck in place.

Vangs are a "modern" invention. When marconi-rigged boats replaced gaff rigs, they had long booms. In a jibe, the boom would rise up and take out the backstay. Coincidentally, yachtsmen realized they also suppressed the awful rolling of narrow, deep hulls when off the wind.

Voila! The boom vang, one of the great nautical words with which to confound the unwary landlubber.

Garhauer Boom Vang

Christian Williams said:

The easiest course might be to install a rigid vang, simply because they usually come with custom mounting hardware.

I'd start research with Garhauer, and you call call them on the phone to discuss.

A vang kit, meaning a tackle, may be somewhat cheaper.. Specialized fittings for the mast are available. The fitting on the boom is usually just a bail, as you have for the main sheet. Some sort of stopper needed to keep the gooseneck in place.

Vangs are a "modern" invention. When marconi-rigged boats replaced gaff rigs, they had long booms. In a jibe, the boom would rise up and take out the backstay. Coincidentally, yachtsmen realized they also suppressed the awful rolling of narrow, deep hulls when off the wind.

Voila! The boom vang, one of the great nautical words with which to confound the unwary landlubber.

Click to expand...

I put a Garhauer Boom Vang on my e 29... It was a GREAT upgrade.

You can piece your own 4:1 vang with Harken blocks. Or if cost is an issue, I've found these blocks are easy to find used.

No magic. Here's the setup on my 73' E27. You don't need a rigid vang on these boats. The boom is only 9'. That is unless you like to spend money or don't like having the topping lift (to hold the boom up when the sail is down.) My vang is connected to a bail at the mast base and to another bail on the boom. The boom is not original but I did connect to a bail on the original boom before it broke.
The line leads aft to cam cleat.

About the boom... My boom is held up by a sail stop in the mast track supporting the bottom of the goose neck. The height of the boom is marked with a black line on the original mast.
You can be a little above or below the line depending on height of you main sail. The boom is held down with the down haul line you mentioned. That's the green and orange fleck line on the cleat in the mast track in the picture. The other green line with white flecks is the second reef. The blue is first reef.

BTW. You can make your own sail/boom stop if you are at all handy. Buy some 1/2" diameter aluminum rod.

- Cut to a length of about an 1" to 1.5".
- Drill and tap and 10-24 threaded hole through the rod, perpendicular to the length centered midway on the length.
- Thread a 10-24 screw with flat washer in the hole and slide the rod into the mast track (screw and washer outside the track). Tighten the fastener to clamp the stop in place.

If you use a socket head or hex head fastener, the bottom of the goose neck will rest on the fastener head.