I have owned 2 Merlins 1243 and 2885 in the past (15 years ago) and want to buy another, but it will need to be stable for my 2 young boys to crew.
Which is the most stable modern design?
Marc

they're all much of a muchness to be honest.

To add to that, an older modern boat like a Thin Ice would probably be your best bet but they are quite scarce.

From the design guide: an NSM1

....Consequently, the NSM 1 while still competitive, probably won't see you in the top ten, but will certainly get you amongst the fleet.  This boat is likely to be available second-hand at a more reasonable price than perhaps an NSM 2.  The NSM's stability makes it suitable for those regularly racing in strong winds or those converting from more stable boats such as GP14's who find other Merlin designs a bit tippy....

But Marc was interested in a "modern design".  I agree with Chris' comment that there is probably little to choose between the modern boats, plus with a carbon rig they will probably be more stable than an NSM with a heavy ally Proctor D or similar.

To be fair to Miles the NSM is still listed as a "Modern" design, though this will soon be corrected when Mags puts the updated version up.

Modern these days i would say is ROTS II, Thin Ice, Canterbury Tales and variants, Heaven Sent (Rare), Let It Ride and EZ Roller.

Of those I would say that the most friendly is Thin Ice, both the ones i have sailed are were lovely, vice free boats that didn't give me any trouble. Canterbury Tales is a very common design, not as easy to sail as the Ice but it does plane marginally faster. I've never sailed an EZ Roller or a ROTS II.

It must be said that all of the modern designs are pussycats when compared to the Hysteria you sailed before! You will be amazed at how easy these boats have become when they are correctly set up.

now onto my seventh Merlin (im a beginner I know) i would say the easiest to sail are the moderns.  The hardest was my Hysteria but thats maybe because I was new to MRs then.
What makes the difference? 
On my new boat I have a lightweight drinks bottle attachment. Apart from that, im still experimenting.

H'mmm
I have a Hysteria 2999 and I am new to dingy sailing, would it be fair to say I have not picked the easiest boat to learn in?

You echo my sentiments with regard to my September Girl's antics during the Brightlingsea weekend wash out - definitely not a pussy cat. The learning curve was steep, when not swimming. Of the older designs those with buoyant bow shapes, high freeboard and traditional sheerlines did best. However, the 2 modern rigged CTs did not have any trouble either.
Peter

After 1620(Mk XV), we found 2988(Hysteria) hard to get used to, mainly because we would tack and then sit down in the middle of the boat, having failed to cross over far enough. We do better now, but stable is not the first word that springs to mind.

Chris, you are forgetting those pesky Summer Wines that quite often give those new boats a run for their money....

Sailing a Summer Wine compared to a Canterbury Tales  .. it was soooo stable in comparison it was almost boring. Canterbury Tales on the other hand -at times a bit of a nightmare!

Sailing a Summer Wine compared to a Canterbury Tales  .. it was soooo stable in comparison it was almost boring. Canterbury Tales on the other hand -at times a bit of a nightmare!

Chris
When are you going to put Joyrider in the design guide?  -  Surely needs a mention!

It wasn't necessarily the designs that went best at Brightlingsea but the crews! We had far more fresh water in the boat than salt and were soaked without swimming but the right kit and a peaked cap to keep the rain out of the eyes really helped. Being comfortable and up to sail whatever the weather helps so much. 2121 just loves Brightlingsea - we always go so well there in the open spaces and flat seas.
All the Merlins there were older boats, Proctor 9, 9D and Holts. Tried and trusted really.

Except for my September Girl which fared badly owing to incompetence, lack of tuning and perhaps lack of freeboard. But it was great to meet some Merlin experts of similar vintages. On the plus side the gusty conditions proved the quality of the refit and the basic soundness of the boat & rig.
Peter 2789