Hi there again, things have moved along a bit while I’ve had a short holiday.
You said that you local club sails IOM and RC Laser boats - why would you want to buy a MicroMagic as it means you’ll not be well-placed to add a little spice with some racing as your skills develop. I would seriously consider the RC laser; they’re not too expensive and easily transportable/storable. I’m sure that you’ll get help and advice at the club too.
The situation with the cat is disappointing - I had some concerns when you first mentioned it but wanted to try and be positive. Perhaps it might be better to simply relist it on e-bay at a lower price and try to recoup some of your losses?
Hope you enjoyed your holiday? I’m just starting mine, picking up the lady tomorrow at the airport and…well, carrying on from there!
I wondered if I’d be better learning on the MM and then progressing upwards to either one of the club’s favourite boats? Trouble is, you all make sense with your replies and now I’m totally confused! (it doesn’t take much nowadays!)
I think a lay down in a dark room somewhere is called for whilst my poor addled brain tries to make sense of all this. MM…1OM…Laser…? Help…
i am going to say this… and then get jumped on… you can build yourself a cheap IOM.( i know i have done it many times for club members) In the UK. they run IOMs as much as any country I have seen… my guess IOM started that. and that is thier class… so to speak… you can download plans for triplecrown… and that is a good boat to start with… use arrow shafts for booms. and sail anywhere … even if they have a bug up their six regarding classes…
i have 4 IOMs in my shop… plus a slew of others… if you dont feel like building. i know ever race i ever attended… and this inculded when i started… people always are willing to sell a used IOM… ( forget ts2 s… i have been trying to get one. just for research) i design my own but would kill to know why they are so fast…
get yourself a IOM…they are hat that hard to run or set up. and people will help you… not all most some. like myself who will glady sit down with you and talk over a coke and sandwich… telling you how they set thier boat up. and why?
good luck :zbeer:
ps. laser and MM . are the 2 boats i dont have. and after watching a few friends… will not get one…
ans also… i hate to say this… and start the laughing here…
i did get a seawind from the wife… and i enjoy it often… not as fast as my IOM or marblehead. but damm it is easy to sail is almost every condition… easy to set up and it looks good on the water… but i dont know how many are over in the uk
If you’d have said that last week I’d have bought one of your boats, my cousin lands tomorrow in the UK, from Canada! She could have bought one over with her…
If it’s made of wood, then forget me building it…I can’t even draw a straight line on a piece of wood, let alone cut one. My subs were all f/glass or styrene construction, I can work with those materials ok.
It does seem to me that I should be buying a 1OM boat and learn to sail it in the company of others. MM’s and Lasers were a thought, but I think the 1OM is heading the race for my money now.
building a IOM is not that difficult…I know it can seem like a huge task… but believe me… the hard part of build a IOM with balsa…( hint) is cutting with with a ruler… you have to get close . not perfect If you build my way…
basicly get you shawdow( bulkheads) and pin the plank to them…then when you have your shape close… you firbeglass… the closer the fit the better, but you can have some seperation… then let the resin do the work… if you want to talk… i can talk you though it… I build my hulls in ,less that a day…
and my boats are competetive… not in a vacumebagged league…but in my little pond i am good. and as a sailor. i can make my piece of wood go fast
good luck
and keep us updated…
if you wanna talk … i am on msn. alot. i can be on yahoo… if needed and you tell me what time
cheers mate… my mom was scottish… so i can help
lol:zbeer:
Rich, Cougar’s advice is good; I went for the RC Laser recommendation route because I thought you didn’t want to do a substantial build and the price is competitive. So, regarding the IOM route, some other possibilities…
what you could also do… and this is by no means a sure thing… but i bet there are nuts( like me) in every club… that likes to play with molds and designs… if you meet up with one of these nuts.( first run away quickly.) we tend to breed…
also for the price of a case of beer and materials… we will lay up a hull for you… then talk you though where to get a rig and sails… I dont know if there are guys around you.( agian talking is a good thing) . but check it out… 1 day at an event we get you alot of information.
building is not that hard… you dont have to be perfect…just close enough
Yep, been keeping an eye on that one Ray, in discussions with the guy at the moment about getting the boat down here to me if I win it. Sub sale is looking good and ends later today, so fingers are crossed.
Those boats would be ok ‘starter’ boats or ‘pond yachts’. Probably not competitive with the latest IOM designs, but gets you involved to see if you like the hobby. They would be harder to resell later due to their age and design. But if you can get one at a good price. . .
They look like early IOM boats. The sail logo is IOM. However the sail numbers and the letter K show the age as the rules have changed.
Find out if the radio and servos still work and the batteries and wiring is ok? Also ask about the interior condition for rot and mold.
If you can have only one of the two, condition being equal, I would lean towards the narrow one as it should perform better than the fat one.(less wetted surface)
Thank you John, that’s helped me a great deal. I’ll email the seller and see if I can get a couple of interior shots and check out the conditions in there.
