WHY AMP SPARS

AMP Spars offers quality, reliability and performance for all
your carbon fiber composite marine applications. 

When you purchase an AMP Spars product for your boat,
you can be sure it is the best. Our ongoing development ensures
our clients are provided with the best performing carbon fiber
products available anywhere around the world. 

 

BETTER ENGINEERING

Our in-house staff of mechanical engineers uses computer programs developed at GMT to design your rudder. All posts, except those for special applications like America's Cup boats, are designed to exceed American Bureau of Shipping standards.

 

BETTER CONSTRUCTION

AMP Spars patented process utilizes internal and external air bladders, female molds, high uses pre-impregnted carbon/epoxy. With this material, we can precisely control the amount of resin throughout the spar. Hand wet-out or wet-preg processes can use too much resin, which adds weight, or too little, which weakens the structure. 

Spars built by AMP Spars are constructed from layers of uni-directional material. These layers are oriented in different directions to resist the compressive, bending and twisting loads that spars experience. Filament winding and braiding cannot give the ideal fiber orientation at all locations along the mast. 

AMP Spars  modulus carbon pre-preg laminates, and a 260 degree autoclave reaching pressures up to 120 psi, boast a seamless structure, an integral luff groove and contiguous fibers from top to bottom. This results in a strong, more durable, and stable mast that performs in all types of weather and conditions. 

Finally, AMP's pre-preg resin system does not lose strength in hot, sunny climates. Masts can be painted dark colors or clear coated without fear of overheating in such conditions.

 

Better materials

Pre-Preg Materials: Pre-impregnated materials (pre-pregs) are reinforcement fibers or fabrics into which a pre-catalyzed resin system has been impregnated by a machine. The resin systems in these materials react only very slowly at room temperature, giving rise to working times of many days to several months. The pre-preg resins can only be fully cured by heating them to the prescribed cure temperature.

AMP Spars has been using pre-preg material from the same supplier for nearly 10 years. While it is more expensive, this product is the best available. We specifically chose it for its superior resistance to damage from impact. 

Post Materials: Carbon rudder posts can be made from many different types of materials. We use the best; carbon that has been pre-impregnated with epoxy resin. With this process, our supplier uses sophisticated equipment to coat uni-directional carbon with a very precise amount of resin. Our technicians apply layers of this material to the post tool. When the specified laminate is constructed, the post is cured under pressure in our 250-degree oven. Although the pre-preg process is costlier than the process of mixing resin and carbo in a shop, it is much more controlled. With pre-preg, we can build parts that are uniform throughout. These parts won't fail.

Blade Materials: Our rudder blades start with a rigid, closed cell foam. The foam is highly cross-linked to give it excellent strength and stability. It is a material that has been approved by organizations like the American Bureau of Shipping, Lloyd's and Get Norske Veritas. In the lightest rudders, honeycomb core is used. The stability of these core materials means that the precise shape we build into the rudder will be the shape you will be sailing with for years to come. For the rudder skins, we use uni-directional carbon. This material takes more time to apply than woven carbon cloth, but is much stronger. We also use a layer of woven fiberglass on the outside to improve impact and abrasion resistance.

 

QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE

All AMP Spars tubes are checked for weight, dents, straightness and fiber orientation by our quality control department. By comparing the finished products against the computer-generated product data we are able to make sure each tube complies to its designed manufacturing specifications. This means every AMP Spar will respond, feel and weight the same, ensuring excellent performance time after time. 

 

Why Carbon is Better than Aluminum?

AMP Spars masts are light (approximately half the weight of aluminum), safe, dependable and will make your vessel faster, stiffer and drier. They are less inclined to heel and hobby-horsing and thus can provide a more comfortable motion at sea. Their beautiful finish, compared to aluminum, is easier to care for, doesn't corrode and is exceptionally long-lasting. Comparable in costs to aluminum with many more benefits:

  • Reducing weight aloft increases stability, decreases pitch inertias, improves dynamic response, reduces rigging loads and provides higher safety factors
  • Carbon spars do not suffer fatigue stress cycling problems common to aluminum
  • Carbon spars will not suffer corrosion problems common to aluminum
  • Carbon readily accepts pain systems and will look 'good' for its lifetime
  • Localized damage can be repaired to look and perform as new
  • The carbon laminate can be specifically tailored to high load areas, minimizing section weights where unnecessary
  • For 20 years carbon has been the standard on high-end racers, AMP Spars is bringing carbon to production racers and cruisers