Phantom thoughts

Ralphiechipper

New Member
Got a phantom sailboat and restored it....I also restored s sunfish a few years back.....my thoughts on both boats is that the phantom is more comfortable,the edges of the cockpit are smoother and larger...The sleeved sail seems to give a better foil...the wider beam gives at times a faster more stable ride...the daggerboard is thinner which aids speed.the sunfish is narrower and needs more adjustments but if done properly can be a faster boat..the phantom seems to have less drag in the stern which helps speed.
 
I think the point of the Phantom was to design a better Sunfish. But they never caught on, so a key advantage of a Sunfish is you can still buy a new one and buy parts!!
 
As I recall, the Phantom was designed by a long-time Sunfish sailor and incorporated improvements that he, and many others, found desirable.
 
We have at least two Phantom owners here at this forum. :cool:

A few detail "adjustments" are clearly improvements, that could have been adopted in the Sunfish. The advantage is still to Sunfish, as "numbers" are overwhelming. But Sunfish has a favorable Portsmouth rating. (Which also may have to do with "numbers").

It's a bit like Beta tape vs VHS. I went with VHS "for the numbers", even though Beta was the better device.

Of the Phantom, I like what I see. :)
 
Please tell us that there is something you prefer about the Sunfish. :^)
With higher wind speed the sunfish rails easier than the phantom and if during these moments you can get the sunfish flat on the water it is a faster more exciting ride...also the sunfish needs more tweaking which if done properly is very satisfying....for me my sunfish has always been 140 lbs while the phantom is 125 lbs.yet both were saturated with water and heavy before restoration..my sunfish is a 79...my phantom a 82...year made...
 
As pointed the phantom was supposed to be a better sunfish but never sold. When you look at how the sunfish evolved the sunfish is better. The race sail, cunningham, adjustable out haul, vang, gooseneck gave the sunfish more power. Sail ties allow better shaping of the sail. The non sleeve allows the jenns depowering in heavy air. Foil board better upwind and tacking. Hiking strap more control.
 
Charles your point about the Jens is a good one. I also think the Phantom has the gooseneck riveted to the boom. This seems like a big flaw - no ability to move it back when the wind picks up.
 

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