Are Lasers worth the money?

Originally posted by Late starter I'd also think that the Rooster 8.1 rig might be worth a look, 30 year old Laser for £350 and the same again for a new 8.1 rig could be a low cost way to achieve a club competitive boat for a 15 stone guy.

Good point there. The only issue is that you will probably not be allowed to fleet race with the other Lasers in the club.

Not sure on the competitive weight for a solo but the guys I generally see in them tend to be between 14 and 16 stone.

Paul

Fill the mast step with water to check if it leaks or not!!! Very common problem in old Lasers!

You've got the right attitude from the start, by admitting that it's your
lack of skill that's the problem. With that attitude,you can pick up the skill
later.

You're 10kg heavier than the world champ in your age division, Brett
Beyer. It's a fair bit of weight, but then he regularly beats the top North
American sailor (who is a full-time sailor, unlike Brett) and when he was
even heavier he could beat the world Open champ in light winds.

A 30 year old boat can be effectively fully competitive against the world's
best in your age division, so the boat is no problem if it's okay for its age.

Jeffers. what's the top competitive weight for a Solo? Of course, i suppose
we have to factor in hte fact that no national class will be as competitive
as an Olympic class and that changes what you mean by "competitive".


PS While the original request for the Laser design was for a "beach boat",
that request was made by an I-14 champ to an I-14 champ designer and
the rig was created by an Olympic silver medallist. In its first regatta, the
Laser tied with a hull designed by the man who created the boat that was
the world's fastest dinghy - not a bad performance for a prototype. Being
the sailors that they were, the trio behind the class couldn't help but
"interfere" with the basic beach-boat concept and they created a very
simple but very efficient boat - just like the Kirby/Bruce Int 14s were very
simple but very efficient.

So while it WAS commissioned as a beach boat, it never really was a pure
hack. And look at other comparable boats - the Finn, for example, started
out as a hairdresser's cruiser-racer. The OK was a cheap trainer designed
around cast-off mainsails from a boat like a Snipe. The Europe was a
"failed" Moth. But they are all great boats!

A cheap Solo would also be an option. They carry weight much better than the Laser.

The Phantom has already been mentioned adn they are talking about getting a 'classic' fleet going for the wooden boats with tin rigs so the older boats might be worth snapping up if they are in good nick.

Regards,

Paul

To be fair they are pretty tough boats and can cope with a lot of abuse.  If it comes with a trolley, covers and all the bits you need and the hull is sound, then 700 quid is pretty good value.  You can transport them on the roof of a car so a combi isn't essential, spare parts are relatively cheap and there isn't that much can go wrong anyway.  They are also pretty good fun to sail (although they seem to get a sl*gging on this forum!) - they wouldn't be as popular as they are if they weren't fun.