Hi all,
I am brand new to the sunfish. In fact I am brand new to sailing and will be taking my first sailing lesson this weekend. I just picked up a 1996 sunfish this past week and I am eager to start sailing. I picked the sunfish because I have read that it is a great boat for a novice to learn on, and from what I've read, it is a boat that experts like as well. I hope I have selected the right boat. My questions are; What are some good reference materials for the fish (obviously this site)? What do most owners use to keep the deck and hull shiny and clean? Is fiberglass repair hard to perform? I have a small crack on the spine of the hull and a small bubble on the transom. What modifications and enhancements to most sunfish owners make? Thanks for any input!
On this site, spend some time looking at the Sunfish KB (Knowledge Base) & FAQ (up in the upper left corner), as well as just reading back through old messages.
If you haven't already signed up, join the Yahoo Sunfish Group as well - the forum setup isn't as nice (in my opinion anyway), but there are a lot of good photos and tons of reference material in the "Files" section.
Hands down, The Sunfish Bible by Will White should be the foundation of your Sunfish reference materials. You can find a copy for about $30 at any Sunfish dealer.
I expect your sailing class will have an accompanying book for sailing theory. Once you have that text mastered and some time on the water, other reference material that compliment your sailing style will become obvious.
Clean - mild soap, fresh water, a sponge, and elbow grease. Shiny - boat polish for fiberglass. You can use car wax, but boat polish lasts a little longer in the wet environment.
Can you post some pictures, both detail and a couple of steps back for perspective on relation to the whole hull. That would be a big help to those offering repair suggestions. We are a clairvoyantly challenged lot.
Your year of boat has most all the basics (hiking strap, composite daggerboard, mainsheet block, tiller extension, a good sail). See how your boat stacks up against the basic Sunfish in the setup manual Tag pointed you to.
The only other additions would likely be specific to racing for fine tuning. When you are ready for these, your sailing skill will crave their addition ... it's never the other way around ... in other words, sailing is 99% skill, 1% equipment dependant. Adding extra bling before you know you need it won't improve your sailing.
Thanks for the outstanding and valuable information and links. I can see that I have a lot of reseach and an abundance info to get me started. I will include pictures for future posts.