Which Solo?
Printed From: Yachts and Yachting Online
Category: General
Forum Name: Choosing a boat
Forum Discription: Ask any questions about the sport!
URL: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12505
Printed Date: 04 Aug 25 at 8:06pm
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Topic: Which Solo?
Posted By: Jamesr
Subject: Which Solo?
Date Posted: 02 Sep 16 at 6:42pm
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Hello After a lot of research I think Im going to buy a Solo with an FRP hull. I see that these are made by several boat builders - Boon, Winder, Ovington & Boatyard at Beer. Is there much difference between these different boat builders? Boat will be used on an inland lake by an 85kg inexperienced single sailor. Thanks
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Replies:
Posted By: NickM
Date Posted: 02 Sep 16 at 10:10pm
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You don't say if you are looking to buy new or second hand.
Boon have stopped making Solos and have passed their tooling on to Ovington though second hand Boons are still around. Speed and P&B also sell Solos, the latter market the John Poulson design though I forget who moulds them - I think Rondar may be making hulls for somebody. TBH all the manufacturers claim their version of the hull shape is very competitive but if you are inexperienced as you say the very marginal difference in hull shapes will make little difference to you. I think the is probably little to chose in current build quality. Some just look more slickly fitted out. If you are going second hand, Winder boats hold their value well. They also have two hull shapes, the Mk1 and Mk2. The Mk2 has more rocker and therefore carries heavier helms (85+Kgs) better and is better suited to restricted waters as it roll-tacks quicker. More important than the hull is the rig you use. At 85Kgs you will need a Selden D+ or Cumulus mast (or equivalent) with a sail to match. The Solo website is good for background info but won't recommend one manufacturer above another. |
Posted By: ColPrice2002
Date Posted: 03 Sep 16 at 8:31am
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If you're starting sailing with Solos, don't rule out the later wooden hulls! If they have been epoxied, they don't require as much maintenance as you think (2 years in, and I'm only touching in scratches). The cost is significantly less and you'll get a feel of the boat before you upgrade. Colin
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Posted By: Jamesr
Date Posted: 03 Sep 16 at 2:29pm
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Thanks for the advice. I was certainly going to get a used boat but they seem to depreciate so slowly that new is almost tempting. Winder advertise a complete new Solo for £6700. I know I will need to add for a trolley, covers etc but that seems like a great deal when a 5 year old boat could cost £5k I might try to get a better deal in the autumn. The wood boats do look great and Im sure that they don't need much work but I think I just want an easy life. |
Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 11:21am
Very few solo sailors seem willing to comment on such threads as there's an unofficial code of silence about preferring certain kit over others .... not sure why, but good job you asked here and not on their forum or you might get your knuckles wrapped.  As someone who owned a Winder Mk2 5000+ number, I would have zero hesitation in buying another one. The boat was exceptionally well built, the service from Dave and his team excellent and generally it was a very positive ownership experience- one of the few dinghies I\d happily just go sailing in for a muck around. I found I was too heavy at 100kg to race it even at club level. 85 should be OK, but there are some seriously skinny old dudes who can ghost you offwind, seemingly whilst half asleep. Perhaps they're concentrating or something. I'd echo the advice on the mast, I tried both a cumulus and a D+. I preferred the D+ - it felt more responsive and less scaffold pole like, but both were good sticks. I would also hands-down recommend an HD sail for a Solo. It remains the best cut performance sail across lots of dinghies and windsurf boards I have ever had the privilege of owning. It's the only Solo sail I tried, maybe they're all amazing, I doubt it though.... but put it this way, even I couldn't fail to get it to set nicely and I was really sh*te at that side of the sport.
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Posted By: davidyacht
Date Posted: 12 Sep 16 at 11:31am
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Yes the Solo site is a bit hesitant about making recommendations, probably because most of the product is good, therefore nobody wants to leave anyone out. At 85kg you are pretty much spot on weight for any of the de-rigeur "shapes". Dave Winder is probably building more boats than anyone else, his boats are well constructed and the detailing has been refined over the years and the boats are delivered ready to go. The Mk1 seems to plane very slightly earlier and with less rocker helps lighter weights upwind ... at 83kg I have had five Mk 1's! I have never had the courage to give up the planing speed. The Mk2 is the old Speed shape and has more rocker, therefore carries weight and turns corners better, though the Mk 1a now has a Speed style deck which keeps the boat drier when roll tacking. It is worth considering that Phil Milanes who developed the Mk 2/Speed shape is at the lighter end of the scale. Don't write off the Ovington, that is from the old Boon moulds which have a good pedigree, I believe that these also have more rocker than the Mk1. Also Boatyard at Beer build a nice product, optimised my Morrison and Richards, though yet to make the market penetration of Winder, The Selden D+ is the deriggeur mast of the moment. The front welded Cumulus is gaining fans amongst the heavier sailors. And Superspar are pushing their product. Ref. Sails ... Choice is between North, HD and P&B, each have their fans, and all are in the mix. Edge sails are also active in the class, less mainstream but have their fans in the Midlands. This may all sound very complicated but for all of this the differences are very small, it is mainly about optimising the package to suit your prefered style of sailing. My advice ... at your weight definitely go for the D+. Go for any of the hulls or sailmakers ... it will make very little difference ... it really is the nut on the tiller that counts. There are loads of tuning guides, so it is easy to set up the boat to acheive good speed and all of the sailmakers freely give advice. Even better the class and sailmakers provide training days which are definitely worth the effort. Sticking with the reconized builders and sailmakers will ensure a decent residual value. Hope that this helps. ------------- Happily living in the past |
Posted By: Woodman
Date Posted: 14 Aug 19 at 7:14pm
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Very old thread to pick up, but which hull for 92kg? |
Posted By: Time Lord
Date Posted: 14 Aug 19 at 7:17pm
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Probably too heavy for a Solo except in very strong winds. Try a Phantom instead! ------------- Merlin Rocket 3609 |
Posted By: rich96
Date Posted: 15 Aug 19 at 8:38am
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I had this conversation about a Solo and that sort of weight and was told forget it by some top Solo sailors - get an OK, Phantom, Finn etc
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Posted By: Fatboi
Date Posted: 15 Aug 19 at 9:17am
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92kgs is not too heavy. You will struggle in the marginal planing on a reach, but upwind and on a run you should be fine! Matt Howard was around the 92kgs mark and won the nationals in 2011 and had plenty of other top results. Charlie C is probably 85kgs+, so you are not a million miles away! I have done a few opens at around 100kgs - can get to the WW mark in good shape and have led races on the circuit in 12-15kts. You cannot go far wrong with a Winder. I believe the Winder 2 is one of the best for carrying weight.
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Posted By: Woodman
Date Posted: 18 Aug 19 at 10:00pm
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I understand Charlie C is 90kg's and just won the windy nationals in a Winder II. I sail on the sea so usually more wind and the phantom is too 'on the knees' for me- there are a couple at my club but bigger guys than me! I am just trying to work out if a winder II or a boatyard at beer is a good starting point. The winder is good for weight, but says its optimised for inland. The BY@B boat is the most recent iteration and seems to be well thought of. I realise its all marginal, just don't want to start with the wrong hull for my weight.
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Posted By: davidyacht
Date Posted: 19 Aug 19 at 8:39am
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I was about to say that Charlie C is 90kg ... Apparantly some of the Phantom sailors at our club are now talking about returning to Solos, because their knees are hurting ... in a Solo you can still sit on the side deck and heel to windward on the downwind legs rather than kneel. I wouldnt get too obsessed with what the builders publicity says; there are five significant production FRP Solos; Winder 1a, Winder 2, Boatyard at Beer, Ovington and JP/P&B. Each has their proponents, and each has achieved top results in recent events. A 10+ year old Winder 1 won a windy Salcombe Yacht Club Regatta last week sailed by a gentleman who I suspect was 90kg+ (I didnt ask). The amount of rocker tends to determine the weight carrying ability, in simple terms, more rocker lifts the transom out of the water, reducing drag. I believe that the Ovington has most rocker, the Winder 2 has plenty of rocker and the Winder 1a has least. I don't know about the Boatyard at Beer or the JP. The B@B boat is a really nicely put together boat with some good detailing. After several Winder 1a's I now have a Winder 2, which is a really really nice boat, is fast to windward and tacks beautifully ... I sail at 83kg. I sail on an estuary. There is a lot of comment about Solo boom height, and to pre-empt this, the more recent sails don't demand excessive amounts of kicker, this and decent tacking technique has vastly improved the Solo shoulder bruising/head banging experience. ------------- Happily living in the past |
Posted By: ColPrice2002
Date Posted: 19 Aug 19 at 8:37pm
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While it's nice to have a new Solo, there are a number of s/h around.
Swapping masts/sails is straightforward... If you can tack by crossing the dinghy "headfirst" - superman style - it's easy. The problem is gybing if you haven't eased the kicker. I found a modern slimline personal buoyancy aid (tapered back with no ridges) helps a lot. Colin |
Posted By: davidyacht
Date Posted: 20 Aug 19 at 7:07am
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When tacking, if you delay crossing the boat until the boom has crossed the boat, you can stand up and sit on the new windward deck without banging your head or shoulders ... try it, it works! I have sailed Solos for twelve years and I don’t recall banging my head when gybing, mainly because I never have that much kicker on after rounding the windward mark. I totally agree that there are some wood bargains ... there are also some very affordable older Boon, Speed and Winder FRP boats on the Solo website at the moment. ------------- Happily living in the past |