59er v rs400

The B14 vs 59er is an interesting argument,  in light stuff the 59er is about the same speed, but this is due to it being half a meter longer on the waterline.  However, in moderate to heavy winds the B14 comes into its own because of the increased righting moment you can create from the wings, allowing the boat to plane freely to windward, whereas the 59er being narrower has difficulty do so.  Spinnaker hoists on a B14 are not particulaly complicated, yes the helm has to pull the tack line out, but we regulaly can hoist and set well inside of 10 seconds, which is comparable to most single line launch systems.  Downwind pace the B14 is quicker than the 59er, mainly down to increaced sail area, and in the light stuff because the kite has a more projected luff the B14 can sail deeper and so VMG wise is comparable to the 59er despite a shorter waterline.  Dropping a kite with a bag, is a bit slower, but a well executed gybe-drop is only a couple of seconds slower than a chute drop, and in class racing it the same for everyone so its not a problem, and in handicap racing the system should take this into account sos its not a real problem, even if it does feel frustrating (especially if you leave it too late).  Oh and because you are not pulling the kite into and out of a chute all the time the fabric does not wear out as fast so you do not need a new one as often. 

Blobby makes the point about getting accross the extra dsitance involved in getting accross the boat, granted the B14 is a meter wider than the 59er with the wings, but going into tacks and gybes you just slide in on your bum, which is a third of the way, one step across the boat through the wind, and you land on the other tramp, you can then push out to the wing tip once you are sorted, my other trick for the helm is to come out of the tack standing up on the gunwhale, 49er style and then, swap hands and sit down, seems to work pretty well, two steps, not that far really.  

As for the rig, with having an open sailmakers rule has allowed for some progressive development and although the design may be nearly 20 years old its barely changed for the 49er and 29er.  The new carbon masts are as close as possible the same in terms of bend etc, but are 5kg lighter, not that the boat was ever hard to right, but now its even easier.  Also compared to other boats of its size the boat is very light, the all up weight is well under 100kg, and with all its sail this makes the sheet loads very easy to handle. 

lets not go there again...

For the sake of brevity and everything else can we just accept that in the UK context a skiff is a boat with an assymetric kite and a PY of less than 1000??

YES I KNOW THAT IS A COMPLETE OVER-SIMPLIFICATION AND I DON'T CARE.

Originally posted by Skiffe Coming from Australia, I have no idea what a RS400 is.Could it be similar in setup to the B14/59er.

Nope. Its much more in the traditional style - more like a 470 than a skiff. Contributing on UK based systems you'll have to get used to the different definition of skiff used here, which sometimes seems like "any boat the manufacturer wants to claim is reasonably quick".

Mind you I trust you'll be taking up your definition with the 16ft skiff association and their 13ft "skiff"
:-)

But...

59er is probably easier to sail than the B14 and will perform cloaser to handicap in all winds.

Also, 59er kite system is a great single string system (RS400 & B14 are both 2 string systems) and the rig is basically 15 - 20 years more refined than the B14 and in a completely different league to the RS400. 

It has an all composite mast which makes it light and very easy to right after a capsize even with only 75kg on the board (speaking from experience on that one!)

Being less beamy than the B14 it is also less energetic in the puffy stuff before you get fully powered in the lulls.

I agree though, on bang for bucks the b14 is the quickest and cheapest entry to the sit out skiff scene.

Originally posted by ghotio  Where as on the B14 you can raise the board to make it behave as the wind increases.

What stops you doing that on an RS400? I've not sailed one, but I would raise the board on a Merlin with a raking rig in a big breeze, and they are fairly similar designs.