Laser serial number - can this be true?

jonesst99

New Member
Hi,

I've just bought a second hand laser that has been advertised on eBay as
having a hull number of 139434.

On close inspection, the boats manufacturing plate at the rear of the
cockpit has the number 39434, the initial 1 is missing.

The seller says he has had the boat from new and he insists the hull
number really is 139434. He says "they don't always put a one in front
of their plates, its something to do with who manufactures their boats".

The laser has an white deck and turquoise hull. The seller insists
that this combination was only ever produced for sail numbers very late
12 to very late 13 so the hull number must be 139434.

The seller also says: Anyone looking to buy a laser will know that the turquoise ones were only manufactured in a certain period and I think they were done in either Australia or Asia and shiped out. They are quite rare due to this short time period. The turquoise lasers they don't have the one infront of them

I would really appreciate it if anyone could let me know if any of these
details are plusable. I've paid £1000 for this boat and I think I may have
been duped.


Thanks, Steve.
 
Hi,

If you search "hull number" and read a bit, you'll begin to see the problem. You may both be wrong, but we can't tell.

The hull number has a mfg. code, then a letter (after 100000) then dates, mm/yy.
So, 134xxx would actually be aaaD4xxxmm/yy, I think.

In other words, tell us the whole transome number, incl. letters and we may be able to advise you.

Al Russell 182797 (from USA so I have no idea when turquoise boats were made in AUS or whatever)
 
The information on how to decode the serial number is repeated in many places... my favorite link to that information is here , which is on the ILCA-NA website.
 
AFAIK a boat of that age wouldn't have the serial number on the transom like a new boat would - not in the UK anyway!
However I do know of a couple of 1xxxxx boats with the cockpit plate you refer to, and I'm sure the "1" was only printed/painted onto the plate rather than stamped like the rest of the digits. Dunno why, probably saves a penny or two in manufacture :p

Feel free to let me know if my memory has let me down.
Loz
 
What year is it supposed to be? The year is also in the S/N. If it were 39434, it would be mid-70s vintage. If it were 13434, I'm guessing it would be late 80s/early 90s.
 
I had a turquise boat stripe over a yellow bottom...153273. My memory says it was a 1992 or 1993 boat made at Sunfish Laser in the US
 
From the single page that I have from the now defunct but much missed drLaser website...
139434 would be a 1990 boat and 39434 would be 1976.
I had a quick look at the photos on the auction page and with the white deck and plastic gudgeons & grabrails, my bet would be on 1990.
Dave
 
The serial number on my Laser is zja04532m85h 464204582. Can someone please tell me what year, make, model, etc that it is by the serial number? Thanks a bunch! Nancy
 
The UK lasers used to have the first number painted on the hull ID plate in red and the other numbers was etched on, from how you have described your ID plate the first painted number has been rubbed off over time, so yes I would put money on your hull number being 139434.
 
I have an orange hull, white deck and pretty orange, white and yellow sail - 116012.
On the mast we found a date it as shipped to Norfolk, 14th Jan 1984 (or 87)
 
With a boat that old, they probably made more by selling the bits rather than the whole boat, but were left with the hull. Time for the angle grinder!
 

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