Old Geezer
Member
One thing that confuses this issue is that, as Lu points out, there is variation in the boats from any given single manufacturer. If you've ever visited one of the factories you will know that making a Laser is largely a manual process. So there's going to be some manufacturing variations from boat to boat, worker to worker, day to day, however hard the manufacturer tries to make the process consistent. Then, as Lu also suggests, the manufacturer may change the process slightly over time. I do know that Vanguard (and I assume PSE) do various tests on the boats as they are made (e.g. weight) to keep track of variations and aim for consistency. But the boats from one factory are not going to be exactly identical. I also know from talking to a dealer that he sees variations in the boats and will pick out a "good boat" for someone he knows is a serious racer. (I'm pretty sure that's not sales BS. I was not in the market for a boat when I was told this.) So if Joe-schmo goes to Europe and sails a boat that he feels is stiffer than his own US boat what does it prove? He might have got lucky and been allocated a European boat that's stiffer than an average European boat.
Deimos asks does it matter if the boats vary from continent to continent as generally we all race against boats from our own continent? Well, yes it does matter. If I knew for sure that Australian boats for example were lighter, stiffer and faster than US boats, and some enterprising person had imported a container load of boats from Australia and was offering them for sale in the US, then I might be tempted to pay a bit more and buy an Aussie boat. How much more? I don't know. How much more would you pay for a guaranteed faster Laser?
Deimos asks does it matter if the boats vary from continent to continent as generally we all race against boats from our own continent? Well, yes it does matter. If I knew for sure that Australian boats for example were lighter, stiffer and faster than US boats, and some enterprising person had imported a container load of boats from Australia and was offering them for sale in the US, then I might be tempted to pay a bit more and buy an Aussie boat. How much more? I don't know. How much more would you pay for a guaranteed faster Laser?