Carbon Booms

Carbon Booms and why you should have one...

First things first; Carbon Booms are expensive, Chinook Carbon Booms are expensive.

They are expensive to make and therefore to buy. Currently Chinook Carbon booms are between around £700 and £900. So how can the expense be justified vs a decent alloy boom for around £220., and can they ever be considered good value?

Factors to consider

Chinook Carbon Booms (RDG or Pro-1) are lighter and stiffer than any alloy boom. This is inherent in the qualities of carbon fibre as a material. This means that your sailing time will be physically easier from the weight of the rig.

The rigidity of Chinook Carbon booms mean that they hardly deflect and distort under heavy sail loading (i.e. gusts). Alloy booms effectively shorten during gusts causing the rig to power up even more when you least need it!. Carbon booms are much more rigid allowing you to stay in control.

Chinook Carbon booms are very strong, and although not unbreakable they will survive many wipeouts that would typically finish an alloy boom. Anyway Chinook Carbon Booms are backed by the Unconditional 12 Month Warranty.

There is no corrosion so carbon booms will considerably outlast alloy booms. We know of many Chinook Carbon Booms that are around 10 years old, and that is with hard use. How many alloy booms will last even a quarter of this time?

Over time alloy booms tend to bow as the tubes bend. Carbon booms never bow and so remain 100% functional.

So, for these reasons Chinook Carbon Booms can be considered a sensible investment for any keen windsurfer both from a functional and economic point of view. One thing is for sure, once you have used a Carbon boom its very hard to go back to an alloy one.

All Chinook Booms have been handmade in the USA for around 20 years giving Chinook a unique position in this market sector.