Yardley found that until about 1982, there were very few really "cheap" boats even second-hand. For example in the mid '60s there was very little difference (too small to see on his graph) between the price that was being asked between various second-hand Herons and Mirrors; even when a new Heron was 140 quid the second-hand ones were consistently about 80, and there were very few such boats that were very cheap. 

The price of used boats dropped very slowly in this period; Ent 7034 was advertised for 155 pounds while the much older 948 was still asking 110. Yardley notes that "this trend was repeated in all the classes with the minimum price remaining, in real terms, very high, even when the boat was ten or more years old in the case of Fireflies, GP Fourteens and National Twelves".

He does note that old 14s were cheap, with a pre-war boat available for as little as 50 quid or about half the cost of a five year old Heron. Even the 50 pounds would have been four weeks salary for a bank clerk. A TV cost about 80 pounds, for comparison.

Yardley says that by '76 there was a discernible increase in the range of second-hand prices. By '82 the gap between an expensive used boat and a cheap used boat was opening further; however by this time Lasers that had sold new for 418 pounds in 1976 were actually worth up to 675 second-hand!

By 1995 when the article was written the range of prices was at its widest. A new boat took as long to earn as it had in the '60s but a cheap old boat had become much cheaper in real terms than in earlier decades. Many boats had become half as expensive in real terms as they used to be. There is an issue here in that the age gap in the used boat fleet must also have opened and Yardley does not correct for this.

Interestingly;

1 - the gap between new boat and used boat prices was at its smallest when the sport was growing fast, before the mid '70s.

2 - by the mid '70s, when Y&Y's national attendance table showed that the dinghy boom had peaked, there was a much wider range in prices of second-hand boats.

3- in '92, a pretty quiet year for dinghy sailing as far as I recall, the gap was even bigger and used boats were available very cheaply.

Therefore it seems that there is no evidence that reducing second-hand prices gets more people out there racing. If that was the case, dinghy sailing would not have boomed in the '60s (when the differentials between new boats, good used boats and cheap used boats were very low) and it would have been booming from the mid '70s all the way to the mid '90s.

As Yardley opines, it seems that reduced demand for older boats has reduced their value. Second hand price is therefore driven by demand rather than driving it, and therefore reducing the competitiveness of existing boats in order to drop their price may not increase demand, but merely impoverish owners and reduce the stock of competitive craft.

Now some would argue that the residual values of dinghies is a positive as it brings the cost of sailing down, however if the initial purchase price remains high it alienates the very early stages of the market.  Like the housing market in the uk with no first time buyers, I believe this is already starting to happen.  Most if not all dinghy purchases will involve some kind of purchase chain, people have to sell old do boat to part fund new.  Trouble is used boat sails seem to of slowed down in some cases.  Which has a domino effect.  

I must confess given my job I find the used dinghy market really interesting, I'm not saying very boat needs to be cheaper, I just think some form of depreciation curve would make entry into the dinghy market much easier for new starters.

Sure, I understand the point and the mechanics that you see applying. I think the way you are looking at it is perfectly logical and reasonable. In one class I sail, where old boats are extremely competitive, others have made the same case that you have made.

However, on the other hand there are other ways of looking at the same issue that are also perfectly logical and reasonable!  The info in the Y&Y article could perhaps be interpreted to back up each of the opposing views.  I just sketched a graph of the number of boats that did nationals on top of the graph showing the prices of second-hand dinghy sails and they seem to show no correlation to each other! 

My 2c worth is that like many things in dinghy sailing, there are so many factors involved that predictions become incredibly hard to make, and cause and effect become incredibly hard to discern a lot of the time. This discussion lead me to recall a long chat I had with Rod Johnstone of J Boats, where we talked about the varying success of his various classes, from the failure of the J/30 and J/36 to the success of the 35 and 105. Rod seemed to have a very pragmatic view of classes in some ways - they could become a success because of things like the views of north-eastern USA establishment sailors to a particular tax threshold and then suddenly take off, and equally the best laid plans could collapse. J Boats just seem to owe a lot of their success to the fact that they learn from the way the market reacts and then react to it, whereas many other builders seem to stick to their beliefs and just blame the market for getting it wrong. The way that they re-did the J/30 and J/36 moulds into the J/29 and J/35 seem to be classic examples of this tactic of listening to the market, admitting a mistake and them reacting quickly. 

Maybe this is one of those many areas where different approaches work at different times and places. I suppose in the end I just wish we had there were more people doing research in the sport instead of relying on hype as happens all too often, judging from remarks made by various people such as ISAF heads.

Take the Laser that we all love (to hate).

You can pick up a reasonable shape older boat that is perfectly suitable for racing at club level for around £500-£600. You might need to give it a bit of a clean up and maybe put a few quids worth of rope on it but it is possible.

This case does not hold for many other classes though. There have been 'improvements' made to a lot of classes which have outclassed the older 'entry level' boats. Some classes where this has happened that I know of are:

Solo

Fireball (admittedly this was some time ago)

Phantom

Other classes just seem to hold their value well:

Blaze

RS300

That poll was very subjective as any poll.  It's hard to quantify as there is no proper research into the used dinghy market, so all we can do is make assumptions.

From a personal point of view, whilst I could afford to bridge new boat purchases from savings etc, I would find that concept very uncomfortable.  I would always sell first, buy later.  Just the way I do things... weird really, there's been a couple of times when I wish I could have reversed the clock!

I'm not convinced this creates much of a 'chain' though - unlike housing you can be without a boat for a few weeks and no harm will come to you.  Crewing for a mate or go for a bike ride instead is quite common.  And for those who can stomach the stigma, there always the club Lasers or some generic rotomoulded tub....  Again I've heard the term, 'between boats currently' before; it's where I'm at at the mo- a conscious decision around how much winter dinghy sailing I'd realistically want to do vs depreciation, insurance and boat park costs.  

I've never been desperate enough to buy one specific boat to worry about it being sold to someone else- another one from the same class will always come along - I guess if I were into more individual classes then this might be more of a concern.  I'm fairly fatalistic about boats though- one of things I miss with windsurfing is that boards lack the mystique and superstition of a boat.  Anyone who thinks a boat is just a lump of plastic/wood lacks imagination in my opinion.  They all have a personality, some even have a good sense of humour but there's definitely a relationship between a man (or woman) and her boat.... much to the concerns of the non-sailing, long suffering other halves out there. 

all my boards have personalities..you just have to engage and empathise bit harder. 

 Sure the boats have bigger personalities..that's only because my boards have need issues and only come out of the bags when required. Whereas the dinghies sit looking resplendent on their launch trolleys

After most of the reasonably-priced £2.5 k 29ers left the country on a one man mission to populate the Baltic states.  There suddenly wasn't a good cheap 29er to be had in the UK, resulting in a 2nd hand price explosion as the demand was there and no boats.  Consequently you could add on a grand to your selling price. Thanks Mr Hall for that 

Ironically most mail order brides cone from there too!

I read the above quote to my boards this morning. I could see quivers of indignation run from their cute little noses right down to the tips of their fins. "Soul-less? Us? Indeed!!" they scoffed.

one superX board, one FSW and one quad finned wave riding machine..... the FSW has some personality, it was a custom made one and I cherish that board more than any others; the rest have been generic mail order bride material- some good for riding, some less so; but all boring dinner companions.    

you just have to have the merlin design knowledge, knowing what design will sell and what is a huge woodworking mission of doom

As for the lightning, that sold quickly thanks to a FB page. It needed work but to me it's got someone on the water, enjoyed the boat and decided to purchase another....at least it's not pink!

I had fun with that boat because I never got bogged down in it's repair, I just got it going and looking good. By pure chance the son of the original owner heard of it and bought it back which was a lovelly end to the story.

A studded matt black leather plimsoll line would have sealed it... but I guess the 'Boy' might have then had issues sailing it, especially in matching sailing gear.  

Look pal.......I could have checked the spelling but I thought no one would notice! Evidently Mrs. Welly is very expensive to keep! Ones children grow into a different sphere and some of them wear red soles whilst others become ar****s. No, my four children are all brilliant and have reached an age where they can be financially exploited. I need to find a new name for 'the boy' as he is now 27 owns a home and is in management.

no more so than her husband....

check out http://eu.christianlouboutin.com/uk_en/shop/men/yacht-spikes-calf-2.html" rel="nofollow - these beauties .... they'd look super good down the sailing club on 'hotdog night'.  

Only £695... bargain.