Hi, 

I'm looking for a competitive boat at a good price (arent we all!) and thinking about the Make it So and Let it ride designed as an alternative to the Winder CTs.

We are all up weight of about 25-26st, and want to have some good reasonably competitive fun on the ST circuit, Salcombe week etc. Our budget is around 6k, which seems to put most Winder CTs out of our reach

Are the MIS and LIR good weight carriers or is it a question of saving a bit more for a Winder CT? The design guide doesnt say much about their ability to carry weight, hence the question...

Many thanks in advance, Pete

I sailed Storm Cloud with 25 stone aboard for a season. I wasn't really on campaign that year, but we won almost everything at the club and came about where we should have at the time in the champs (29th?). It's slower in light winds (Which it will be in any boat) but you obviously get more leverage in a blow.

The LIR is not renowned as a weight carrier, but Glen and Davo weren't really lightweights and they did OK.

I don't know much about the Make it So, it could perhaps be worth giving Laurie a ring?

I thought that Glen & Davo were around 24 stone. Glen & Ollie won the champs in 2009 with a little less in the boat, 23.5 stone, which we have been aiming at as a weight target (Caroline at 10 stone and me getting as near to 13 stone as possible). Funnily enough I get the feeling that the LIRs need a bit more weight at the front, although this may be due the bottom mods that Glen did to BAU. I tried to assist with aft weight imbalance with the - now outlawed - bilge keel mods. Very easy to dig the transom in, especially when tacking / hoisting the kite.

The only thing keeping BAU back at the moment is the competence of the helm.

The other question is whether you are prepared for the mainenance of the boats to keep them pretty or want your winters for other things - family, a life, etc. The LIR / MIS on the site look like they are in showroom condition.

I found it very easy to sink the bow on Storm Cloud, and couldn't make my mind up if it was a good thing or not. My previous Winder CT was hard to get the bow in, as was my current placcy prior to the bow drop. Never had a problem with Armed Forces (Wooden JT CT).

My point is that LIR do float very differantly to the current stanadard boats, indeed i found Storm Cloud needed significantly more rake as a datum point than any other Merlin i've sailed. This i put down to it floating more nose down due to a (presumably) finer entry.

thats interesting Chris (as you know I was keen in Storm Cloud when you owned her, just couldnt come up with the readies...

We are similar weight, crew 12st, self 14st which suggests that if she is prone to being more bow down, then more weight at the back might work well for us...Hmmm

Hakuna Matata looks nice too - what a great photo!, but as Mr Hay points out, the wooden boats are a labour of love to keep in showroom condition.

I am inclined (no pun intended) to agree with your comments on rake, Chris. BAU seems to stall with a very vertical mast.

At least it wasn't just me then!!

Every other merlin i've sailed liked to have around 6 inches or rake measured at the lower black band. Storm Cloud liked 12, and didn't seem to want to know if you ventured any less.