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Jamie600 View Drop Down
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Posts: 718 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Jamie600 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Enterprise
    Posted: 03 Sep 13 at 12:59pm
Hi all,
 
My girlfriend and I are looking to get an Enterprise for club racing, budget £2500 - £3000, just wondered if anyone had any thoughts on frp vs wood? I've not been able to find any 'buyers guides' on the Ent association site, or indeed anywhere so I've no idea what the best option would be.
Ideally we don't want to be doing lots of maintainence so the obvious choice is an frp one, but will this be competitive compared with a good wood boat?
I've been told a Rondar Mk 2 is just as quick as a wood boat but as this advice came from the seller of a Rondar Mk 2 I am taking it with a pinch of salt... 
RS600 1001
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GybeFunny View Drop Down
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Posts: 403 		Post Options Post Options   Quote GybeFunny Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 10:30am
I dont sail Ents but the top boats at my club are all FRP but that may be more a factor of the sailors then the boats....
Why not look at the Y&Y nationals gear guides and the nationals results?
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getafix View Drop Down
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Posts: 2143 		Post Options Post Options   Quote getafix Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 10:36am
FRP versus wood will come down to two things; most obvious is budget, but most important, IMO, is willingness to sand-varnish-sand-varnish repeat....as you say you don't want to be doing too much maintenance then there's really only two ways to go; get an FRP or buy a woodie and find a boat-builder nearby who can do the varnishing for you.  Main things to look at IMO would be overall condition, weight, foils and spars, sails and suppliers are plentiful.  Bon chance, great boats for sailing with the missus and good across a mega wide wind-band

Edited by getafix - 04 Sep 13 at 10:36am
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JimC View Drop Down
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Posts: 6662 		Post Options Post Options   Quote JimC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 11:30am
A generic comparison of plastics against plywood as far as boat construction materials is concerned is that an epoxy/foam sandwich boat built by a competent builder should be at least as good as wood. A vinylester/foam sandwich boat should be OK too. A boat that is not foam sandwich construction will never be as good as wood.

E Class specifics - no idea.
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RS400atC View Drop Down
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Posts: 3011 		Post Options Post Options   Quote RS400atC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 12:01pm
Personally, I'd only spend over £2k on a wood dinghy if I had a credible plan to keep it indoors in winter out of the frost.
That way, the varnish stays on, but it may not work if you want to sail more than 8 months of the year.
Buy a VGC boat, look after it, touch up the minor damage and there should not be too much work for a few years.
At that point you can take a view.
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transient View Drop Down
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Posts: 715 		Post Options Post Options   Quote transient Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 12:33pm
The older fibre glass Ents, like one I used to sail, flex on the underside, boths sides of where the front bulkhead meets the hull.....nasty cracks
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RS400atC View Drop Down
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Posts: 3011 		Post Options Post Options   Quote RS400atC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 12:48pm
Originally posted by transient

The older fibre glass Ents, like one I used to sail, flex on the underside, boths sides of where the front bulkhead meets the hull.....nasty cracks
 
I had a Solo like that, but surely plain GRP (non sandwich) hulls are very old now and not in the £2k bracket?
 
I must admit nearly all the Ents I sailed had less than 5 digits in the number.
Does E7270 still exist I wonder?
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transient View Drop Down
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Joined: 21 Aug 12
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Posts: 715 		Post Options Post Options   Quote transient Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 1:13pm
Originally posted by RS400atC

Originally posted by transient

The older fibre glass Ents, like one I used to sail, flex on the underside, boths sides of where the front bulkhead meets the hull.....nasty cracks
 
I had a Solo like that, but surely plain GRP (non sandwich) hulls are very old now and not in the £2k bracket?
 
I must admit nearly all the Ents I sailed had less than 5 digits in the number.
Does E7270 still exist I wonder?


Just joining in...you know, run around a bit and look like a crowd. LOL


and I have no idea when they stopped making them like that.

E7270 would be about 1960/1
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The Moo View Drop Down
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Posts: 809 		Post Options Post Options   Quote The Moo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Sep 13 at 11:57pm
Does anyone on here have a feel for what the Enterprise sailors in general think about the latest Rondar Mk 3 double bottomed boats? Can't see a lot of feedback about them on the Class Association website.

I note however, from the Y&Y Gear Guide the boats took top 3 places at the Nationals which perhaps suggest that it might just be the way to go?

As a getting a bit long in the tooth Micro Pond National 12 sailor I reckon it could be a good prospect for my dotage.

Edited by The Moo - 05 Sep 13 at 12:09am
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Jamie600 View Drop Down
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Posts: 718 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Jamie600 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05 Sep 13 at 2:14pm

We have two MkIII's at our club, very nice looking and very quick in the right hands (we have one at the front of the fleet and one towards the back)

Thanks for the advice guys, looks like the sensible way to go is FRP. We do have an outbuilding that is garage-sized but has a normal door rather than a garage door, so would need converting .

All I really need is confirmation that an frp boat isn't slow, compared with an equivalent wood one. The gear guides don't help as they are too recent, for the price we are looking at it would be approx 10 years old.

I'll see if I can find any Ent sailors without a vested interest, but if anyone has any further thoughts please post, thanks
RS600 1001
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