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I have to agree with Larry also about the purpose of a topping lift but with a twist (sorry, couldn't help that =))).
In the old days when soft vangs were popular and solid vangs weren't, a topping lift was necessary to position the boom's height so Roger is correct if this were 20 some odd years ago. But today, unless you are using a Dutchman system, a topping lift is a completely useless piece of gear when a boat is equipped with a solid vang and conventional sails. I attach my main halyard to the end of the boom and use this when in the slip to prevent the boom from swinging but when out sailing, the solid vang adjusts the height of the boom. A topping lift just adds complexity, weight and potential chafe to the system.
Now that being said, Roger if you need to raise your boom and the springs inside the vang don't raise it enough for you, there is an easy fix if it is a Garhauer vang. Simply call them and request heavier duty springs to exchange for the ones you have. When you pull the boom down yourself in the slip with the vang off (not tensioned), it should not feel mushy but should immediately spring back to an increased height as soon as you let it go. If it doesn't then you may need new and heavier springs which Garhauer stocks.
I race a lot on OPB's and topping lifts are a thing of the past in the racing community.