NS14 - Are they Good?

Originally posted by Chris 249 There are some NS14s in Germany, where Andrew Landenberger is selling a one-design version (with trap added) under the name of "Flight 4.3s" or something similar. The "Flight" is a long-standing run of designs. I haven't sailed a Northie for ages, but they are much narrower on the water and considerably tippier than a Tasar. The more recent ones used distorted hulls to achieve a narrower waterline within the beam restrictions and these are, according to many designers, much more demanding than the old boats in that they slow down when heeled. The top Tasars no longer have a chance against a Northie in terms of overall speed; downwind in light to moderate I understand (from experience and discussions) the two are comparable but the NS is clearly faster upwind, and also reaching in a breeze.

Thanks for the info Chris

That is thirty years progress since the tasar came out the moulds.

Incidentally, has anyone rigged a kite to NS14s for non class racing?

I think the kite size is measured on the perimeter i.e. luff, foot and leach measurements, rather than actual area.  I think the perimeter is 14m.  I believe it is done this way because it is easier to measure (and adds a bit of design flexibility).

By the way, thanks for your advice Chris and Skiffe.

Nope, none in the UK to my knowledge. There's a lot of overlap with the National 12, which I rather suspect has bigger sails than the NS14.

Originally posted by Chew my RS NS has smaller sails than the N12 but is much quicker

Yes, but the point is the two are virtually head on for the same sailors. The NS is a glorious boat, but the N12s are great too, are probably more versatile for puddles and rivers than the current NS shapes and so on. As for speed, its pretty much irrelevant - N12a have outnumbered Cherubs 2:1 since the 1980s and it sure isn't anything to do with the Cherub being slower.

Emotionally sure I'd think it nice if the N12 rig rules were freed up so that they bacame more like a baby NS, but it wouldn't make me buy one and I doubt it would grab them many sailors frm the RS200.

So realistically I don't think there needs to be another box rule class in between the Merlin and the N12, no matter how good it is, and much as my heart says it would be great if those classes were to loosen up rules so that they were more like the NS, my head suggests that it might be detrimental rather than good for them.

I'm sure if either class starts to hit significant numbers problems in the future then loosening up rules is the sort of thing they'll look at as a possible fix, in the same way that the spinnaker free ICs are looking at that option. Of course in some circumstances tightening rules ratherthan loosening them is the correct response to a numbers problem, it just depends what the problem is.

Originally posted by JimC Originally posted by Chew my RS NS has smaller sails than the N12 but is much quicker Yes, but the point is the two are virtually head on for the same sailors. The NS is a glorious boat, but the N12s are great too, are probably more versatile for puddles and rivers than the current NS shapes and so on. As for speed, its pretty much irrelevant - N12a have outnumbered Cherubs 2:1 since the 1980s and it sure isn't anything to do with the Cherub being slower. Emotionally sure I'd think it nice if the N12 rig rules were freed up so that they bacame more like a baby NS, but it wouldn't make me buy one and I doubt it would grab them many sailors frm the RS200. So realistically I don't think there needs to be another box rule class in between the Merlin and the N12, no matter how good it is, and much as my heart says it would be great if those classes were to loosen up rules so that they were more like the NS, my head suggests that it might be detrimental rather than good for them. I'm sure if either class starts to hit significant numbers problems in the future then loosening up rules is the sort of thing they'll look at as a possible fix, in the same way that the spinnaker free ICs are looking at that option. Of course in some circumstances tightening rules ratherthan loosening them is the correct response to a numbers problem, it just depends what the problem is.

Those are good points Jim and I think I've made my views on the N12 known on a previous thread. I'm not a big fan, but they are well suited to pond/river sailing.

I like Merlins very much and they are extremeley popular, but they cost so much that they are simply not affordable to many people (I know there are always secondhand bargins to be had if you look hard enough, but thats not really the point) and the hassle of conventional spinnakers appeals to fewer and fewer, even though they are the quickest thing for boats of this type.

The RS200, Enterprise, GP14, Merlin and N12 all occupy this middle-of-the-road position for two man, easy-to-sail boats. They are all popular, with big turnouts at events, so thre is demand in this sector. But most of these classes are either stuck in a time warp or restricted by old fashioned rules, so I'm sure that a modern alternative would appeal to many. Good riddance to the GP, Ent and 12, I say!

I'm only dreaming, but it would be nice...