Lee Montes
New Member
For all sunfish sailors new and not so new. Here is the proper link to my newest video (I hope). Lee
Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature currently requires accessing the site using the built-in Safari browser.
I. Am not 100% sure what they are using right this moment. For some reason I think they are using marine wood. But I mAY BE WRong. I think when the report came out in 2021 they were thinking which material to use for the boats made in 2022.Lee,
If not metal, what does the 2022 Sunfish hull use for internal back-up plates? Wood (VBI - Very bad idea) or something else?
Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
the problem with using aluminum steel ti etc plates is they need to be threaded. so in the event of a cross thread youd be totally screwed (see what i did there?) plus galling seizing corrosion... or youd have to have access to get a nut on it. with the lasers at least, using 3/8" ply in the past was a really bad idea for longevity. was a 3/4" sheet of ply really too much for blocking? Then again....they were/are cheap boats. and im guessing no one figured anyone would be sailing one made 20 years ago much less 40. i mean its a production boat built cheaply not intended to last. at least if you want to move something, you dont need a tap to reinstall it. ymmvLee,
If not metal, what does the 2022 Sunfish hull use for internal back-up plates? Wood (VBI - Very bad idea) or something else?
Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
me too...but im fairly mechanically inclined like you. (intense backround in woodworking light machinist mechanical backround from vintage motorsports) most people cant use a tape measure correctly. the laser2 i ripped apart had 3/8" fir or pine plywood blocking. looked to be off fall from the internal gusseting bulkhead construction. not solid hardwood. id think a solid block would be waaay too prone to spliting. even epoxied. (i live in partial fear of the ratchet block ripping out of the floor of my laser2 on heavy days. hehe) the problem with going to a larger dia machine screw is youre limited by the size of the hole in the fitting etc..the nice thing is you could relocate the fitting, and put a small blockoff plate in its place with the larger screws. or you could even then drop the fitting onto that. of course thats if youre not racing. my guess is most racers arent using hulls much older than 5 years old max. and theyre well taken care of. now recreational junk....well thats another story.JC,
Points taken. For decades Sunfish were built with scraps of hardwood fiberglassed into the underside of the deck under the bow handle, halyard cleat,
rudder hardware etc., and the fittings were simply attached with wood screws. Time passed, water got into the blocks, rot took over and the fittings pulled out. The metal plates worked better but, yes it was possible to strip the threads if you cross threaded a screw or over-tightened a screw. In this case, one could go to a larger self taping screw or make new, larger threads in the plate with a proper thread tap and avoid the need to install an inspection port and install a new plate.
You are right, nobody probably thought Sunfish and Lasers would last as long as they do, and we are left to be creative making repairs. That said, I would still prefer metal back-up plates over the (sure to rot eventually) wood plates.
Alan Glos
If you attend major Sunfish regattas, such as the North Americans or Midwinters/Nationals, you will find both newer and older boats at the top of the fleet. By “older” I typically mean back to the late 90s or early 00’s. But I’d also say most of the big events have 1 or 2 of the old metal edge boats in the top 15 or 20.4acers at the pointy end no matter what will always need the newest stuff. so theyre not even in the equation. new season, new boat. and if you want any chance at keeping up, youll probably need close to the same. and if you know a little and are adventurous,,,,you can get a cool little boat thats very managable and over a winter pretty much go from a wreck to something you can have a total blast with come spring.
I am racing a restored 1973 Sunfish that’s as fast as any new boat. If you upgrade the foils and rigging, and the hull is dry without delam, they’re totally competitive.If you attend major Sunfish regattas, such as the North Americans or Midwinters/Nationals, you will find both newer and older boats at the top of the fleet. By “older” I typically mean back to the late 90s or early 00’s. But I’d also say most of the big events have 1 or 2 of the old metal edge boats in the top 15 or 20.
Laser/ILCA sailors seem convinced that you need a new boat, but older Sunfish in good shape with a reasonably new sail are as fast as new boats.