Rolled edge design sunfish, differences of old

P323

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How are the hulls different in the new style rolled edge sunfishes. I believe they must be stronger and stiffer.
 
How are the hulls different in the new style rolled edge sunfishes. I believe they must be stronger and stiffer.

Wayne is (way) more knowledgeable regarding the issue you raised, but my take on it is that you just can't make such a general statement.

In general, quality control (at Vanguard and now LaserPerformance) has been better the last ten years or so. But very good (stiff) hulls were made in 'ancient' times as well.
There have always been lemons, and even today's boats have occasional problems. For instance, see http://www.sunfishforum.com/showthread.php?t=34282
 
In the rolled edge models, the changes were pretty much confined to the deck. They couldn't really change the hull without destroying the class compatibility. As far as I know, there were no substantive changes to the hull molds, only changes to accommodate the rolled top and the "dimple" for the old style daggerboard was removed. Internally, they changed from wood to aluminum backing for the bow handle, halyard eye and cleat.

On the rolled cockpit boats, the cockpit opening is slightly bigger and there is a non-skid pattern around it and the deck is very slightly more rounded.
 
How are the hulls different in the new style rolled edge sunfishes. I believe they must be stronger and stiffer.

I don't think there is any evidence to support this. Why do you believe that?

After the new hulls came out, Scott Kyle went out of his way to buy a leftover "original" style boat as he thought it would be better to have the smaller cockpit opening to take on less water when tacking. He won the NAs with that boat. Derrick Fries also has done very well over the years with an old hull vs. the new ones, and I think there are probably other examples.

A lot of folks think older boats used to remain competitive longer than the new boats do, but that may or may not be the case.

BTW, when the other writer said the "daggerboard dimple" was removed, he meant the rudder dimple for the old bronze rudder fittings. BB
 
How are the hulls different in the new style rolled edge sunfishes. I believe they must be stronger and stiffer.
This would be a good question for the designers if you attend the next Laser Performance open house tour.

Layup has obviously become more controled and today's boats are 20 lb lighter. Beyond that you'd probably need a test lab to quantify "stronger and stiffer". No doubt difference in age makes this statement true simply by default. I've not seen a complete NOS boat from 30 to 50 years back that you could make an objective comparison with.


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I have the new hull design (1996 hull I believe), and the school where I took my sailing lessons had the old hull design. I didn't notice any difference in the stiffness in the boat, but the one big difference I did notice is that the old hull leaks water into the hull around the metal edge band. I was helping the instructor put the boats away and up on their side to drain and was amazed at how much water was coming out of the drain and the how heavy the boat had become. He told me this was common with the old boats due to the heeling if the boat isn't sailed flat. (Obviously caused by novice sailors):rolleyes: Just my .02 cents.

Does anyone know what year the new rolled edge hull came out?

Edward
 
  • ...the one big difference I did notice is that the old hull leaks water into the hull around the metal edge band. He told me this was common with the old boats due to the heeling if the boat isn't sailed flat.
  • Does anyone know what year the new rolled edge hull came out?
:eek: Yikes, The school's boats are broken. I wonder why they're blowing it off rather than fixing things right?

That's like driving a car with a leaky fuel tank and rationalizing it's tolerable because the car is older.



The rolled edge hull was introduced around 1986.

Interestingly, the design has been around for Sailfish and Sunfish since 1959, but was never put into production. AMF even used it for the AMFlite, Windflite, and Minifish in the 1970s

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Wayne,
His sailing school is a small one-man opperation and he has about 6 or 7 sunfish, so to be honest I only saw 2 of them. Being that his class is a 2 day weekend class for $150 and nothing but novices use the boats I don't see him getting them fixed, as he only teaches on the weekends and every other week he instructs wind surfing. He also makes sure each student gets time sailing his sloop rigged sailboat so that the students get time working as crew and tending the jib then switching position to work the main and tiller. Good school but probably too low of a profit margin to spend the cash to make sure every boat dosen't leak. If one thing is for sure it is a testiment to the unsinkablity and durability of the fish!:)

Edward
 
Wayne,
His sailing school is a small one-man opperation and he has about 6 or 7 sunfish, so to be honest I only saw 2 of them. Being that his class is a 2 day weekend class for $150 and nothing but novices use the boats I don't see him getting them fixed, as he only teaches on the weekends and every other week he instructs wind surfing... If one thing is for sure it is a testiment to the unsinkablity and durability of the fish!:)
Sounds like a devoted instructor. Perhaps his students will pitch in to help maintain the equipment so future generations don't go away with the misperception disrepair is commonplace with sailing.

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I have the new rolled edge hull and here is my petit gripe--I wish they had finished or protected the edge to make it less susceptible to chips---very easy to chip it on just about anything. Any suggestions (other than a split garden hose) for protecting it, folks? Gratefully, Fun Fish
 
Where we live, most of the sailors haul their boats up on the beach by dragging, carrying, or using a dolly. The rolled edge makes for doing any of the 3 much easier, especially for 2 or 3 kids working together. And I think it makes the boat look better.

Does is make it structurally better? Not likely, in any significant sort of way. And yes, you do have the chips on the edge issue. Not a big deal really- a sign of a well used (enjoyed) sunfish. Drag 'em up to the house in the fall, fix 'em up, and go hard again when the weather gets right again.
 

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