Laurent Giles 'Jolly Boat' Exeter |
J24 (Sail No. 4239) Dartmouth |
Laser XD 203301 Upminster |
List classes of boat for sale |
RS500 (Again) |
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Rupert
Really should get out more Joined: 11 Aug 04 Location: Whitefriars sc Online Status: Offline Posts: 8956 |
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Topic: RS500 (Again) Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 12:50pm |
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The 1st one has arrived at Whitefriars this week (several more will arrive in the next month or so). I confess I was surprised that it wasn't anything like as ugly as the press shots would have you believe. Infact, in a "skiffy" sort of way, it looked rather nice. There was very little wind, and the owner's first sail, so I can't give any performance indicators, I'm afraid, but they came ashore with smiles on their faces! I'm hoping to blag a ride soon.
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Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686
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Gael
Posting king Joined: 12 Mar 04 Location: Southampton, United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 187 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 12:53pm | |
Three of us went to test the 500 - and the test took most of our day, so I
can honestly say we put plenty of resources into sailing it for ourselves and making our own minds up about what we thought of it. Why was one of the boats we compared it to the 200? - because I'm a 200 sailor and I have sailed the 200 with a lot of people who have, like me, sailed a variety of trapezing boats in the past haven't felt there was anything we liked enough/quite right as an alternative. The 200 is a boat a lot of people know, we have tried to mention boats which people are very familiar with to endeavour to give a bit of a feel for what the boat is like. We work very hard to maintain our independence from advertisers, it's not about that, it's more about the nature of our sport. Is an RS400 better than a GP 14? A 200 better than a national 12? A Laser 2000 better than a Wayfarer? A Byte better than a Laser Radial? Depends what you want it for, the right choice for one individual is not necessarily the right one for another. Our sport has so many variables and few concrete things to measure one model against another. The weather, location, breeze, sea conditions... The approach we take with our tests is the most important thing is to leave the reader with a good idea of what the boat is like. There may be fttings which are in the wrong place, or some things which don't work as well as they could do and we'll mention those if we come across them. if a boat was completely awful of course we wouldn't ignore that... but pretty mch all the new launches have been well thought through. There are plenty of boats I'm not crazy about personally, the Laser Vago does nothing for me, but last week I witnessed plenty of people having a great time in the boat. I never thought much of Picos until I sailed one in big seas and lots of breeze and had a great time. The RS400 annoys me after the 200, I really hate tacking backwards, but I'm a bit light for the boat anyway! I don't personally like the pump system on the 700, the Musto Skiff's system seems much simpler to me, but there are others who prefer the 700. I love the SB3, but don't see the point of the K6... plenty of people would disagree with me. So much of it is about what you want the boat for and individual tastes and needs. We try to be aware of that in our tests and give a picture of what kinds of people the boat might appeal to, rather than basing it purely on our personal taste. Gael |
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If you're not smiling, do something about it :o)
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29er397
Really should get out more Joined: 02 Feb 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 505 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 12:56pm | |
well said
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fizzicist
Far too distracted from work Joined: 06 Aug 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 305 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 1:04pm | |
Valid points Gael. However there is a gulf in the way a dinghy is tested and reviewed by publications such as Y&Y and the way that, for instance, cars are reviewed by industry journals. (i.e. Autocar etc) Cars are similarly open to opinion - some people love 911s, some people detest them. This is why more than one person should test it. Perhaps there is a real step forward to be made for the dinghy sailing market if a magazine were to benchmark itself against a different industry and put forward a new type of review rating things like rig adjustability, stability, responsiveness, power, control etc etc. When I was choosing a replacement for my Laser (moved to a bigger pond and got bored with Laser sailing) there was absolutely nothing in the way of proper reviews of different boats, so, and I'm sure I'm not alone, I ended up buying a boat based on specification alone having not been able to have a decent test sail. Imagine buying a car without driving it and not being able to see an independetn review of it?! Perhaps a monthly comparative group test for a different market segment? We all realise it's open to opinions but I think it would be worth doing and would make great reading too. Incidentally, I got lucky on the boat - bought an RS300 and still laugh every time I sail it in a blow. ;) |
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Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and
oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer. |
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Chew my RS
Really should get out more Joined: 05 Oct 05 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 790 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 1:20pm | |
Oops, feeling bad now Gael, sorry. I didn't start this thread with a view to discussing the quality of the review, so much as the boat. It came in for a lot of stick before anyone knew much about it, based on the fact that many people couldn't see the market for it (unlike most other RS boats which have a clear, real, market segment). I was wondering whether anyone had changed their minds as a result of the review. Thought it might be fun to open an old can of worms! Then again... Having said that, the reviews for most boats are fairly predictable, but then I suppose there are no really bad boats so not much controversial stuff to write. |
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jeffers
Really should get out more Joined: 29 Mar 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 3048 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 1:36pm | |
To be honest in Y&Ys defence they don't always use people from the mag to test the boats. I was somewhat (pleasantly) surprised to see and old clubmate pop up testing a boat around a year or so ago. They also tend to get people who are knowledgable on the class to be there to provide direction to the test.
I do find the reviews informative. Whilst I really do not like the new breed of rotomoulded boats they have their market, I always read the reviews that way. I would say someone who is looking for their first boat would find these useful but of course they would have to subscribe to read them (or know someone who subscribes). I think the reason that boats don't get panning review unlike cars is because (just perhaps) there are no truly awful boats being launched these days and they all 'do what they say on the tin'. Just my opinion of course :-). Paul |
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Paul
---------------------- D-Zero GBR 74 |
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BigFatStan
Groupie Joined: 31 Jan 06 Online Status: Offline Posts: 78 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 3:16pm | |
The luff tension is independent of the rig tension. That's it. |
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fizzicist
Far too distracted from work Joined: 06 Aug 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 305 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 3:49pm | |
However, when was the last time you saw a car get absolutely panned? There are no shocking cars any more. My point is more from a positive perspective; there are some absolute gems out there, which just don't seem to sell in any number, yet the design deserves to. Secondly, if a set of criteria are drawn up for reviewing a boat (boat speed, pointing ability, stability, responsiveness etc for example) then it also allows an at a glance review of the boat which tells us what it's like, rather than whether it's any good. |
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Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and
oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer. |
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49erGBR735HSC
Really should get out more Joined: 30 Mar 05 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 1991 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 4:34pm | |
Prefer the hanks to the wire in the luff, means that jib luff tension is totally independant of rig tension, which isn't the case in classes such as the 4k and 5k where some boats are dependant on the wire in the luff as the forestay. Also means that rolling the sails is made easier and there is no chance of the wire chorroding within the sail. Back to the 500, think y&y got it spot on when they drew parallels between comparing the 500 to the 29er in the way that the 800 can be compared to the 49er. Keeping an open mind about the boat because the RS800 is a cracking boat and if the 500 is of the same standard, maybe a lot of us have been misjudging it especially when the PN is 960 which doesn't seem too far off the mark when comparing the specifications to the 29ers |
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jeffers
Really should get out more Joined: 29 Mar 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 3048 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 Jun 06 at 4:59pm | |
Watch Top Gear....when Clarkson and co dont like a car they let their opinions be known. The problems with what you may think is a gem of a design and what someone may think is a gem of a design are 2 different things. However the classes which best fit a persons needs tend to be popular, classes where the market gets flooded have to fight for survival. It is my opinion that the Blaze may face serious competition from the Solution at the lighter end of the weight range however I believe the class will continue to be strong as it already has a loyal following and a large demand at this moment in time. Whether the Solution will suceed or not time will tell but it is a well designed little boat and I look forward to trying one in due course. Rotomoulded boats are aimed as pleasure/cruising/family sailors. They seem to fill the brief well, I think they are rather too many of them about right now and in time only the best will survive. Again just my 2p.... |
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Paul
---------------------- D-Zero GBR 74 |
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