The Merlin Rocket goes High Tech

The latest rig developments in the class provide for multi-adjustment of the normally fixed rig points - and all while sailing

The Merlin Rockets have struggled in recent years to maintain the growth of the class, particularly in attracting new, younger members.

The boat has an A1 history, along with the I14, International Canoe and National 12, it is a development class that has a glorious past. Progressing from the original narrow, traditional clinker construction to the wide, lightweight, glued clinker wood and glass boats of today, the class has attracted many top designers, builders and sailors throughout its life.

With the difficulty and expense of decent wood supplies and the time to produce the beautiful built hulls that have always been such a feature of the class, glassfibre boats have begun to be produced with considerable success, particularly the latest versions.

This has switched much of the recent development to the rigs and controls. The class has moved to carbon masts and recently wing masts (being rethought), and many variations in control systems.

At the 2000 Nationals, where the recent surge in new boats provided a welcome boost in numbers, a boat arrived that takes the mast and rig control to its ultimate conclusion. Glen Truswell and Tim Holden have been working for two years to produce After Hours.

With its striking silver and black hull paint job, and minimal monofilm clear foredeck, the boat certainly stands out amongst the traditional, immaculate varnish work of the class. The next most striking thing is the number of lines and blocks leading to a half thwart control centre. These rig controls allow the individual or simultaneous adjustment of the jib tack, mast foot, shroud anchorage and centreboard pivot point - by pulling a single line.

Glen, a Lotus development engineer, realised that in the move to the deck stepped carbon mast, the extreme adjustment available was still compromised. They needed to be able to adjust all the fixed points to keep the boat/rig balanced while sailing. This set him thinking on a design concept to overcome this problem.


The first requirement was a hull. Tony Lock of Sailcraft planked the hull to the Heaven Sent design, and the pair then set to work to complete the hull with composite rolled and boxed side decks and integral buoyancy compartments. Rig loads are taken by the 100% carbon/foam space frame they have designed and built.

In order to provide the adjustment envisaged, a complex rigging exercise was necessary, involving mounting all the major - and normally fixed or minimally adjustable rig points - so as to be easily adjustable underway. For this the forestay, mast foot, shroud and jib sheeting points are mounted on tracks with ball bearing slider cars. Adjustment can be made to individual points as normal but the system allows the set-up achieved to be moved within the hull to obtain optimal balance. Mast and shroud anchorages move 200 mm fore and aft, jib halyard 250 mm, jib tack 300 mm and centreboard pivot, 150 mm. Six months was spent fitting and refitting the systems to obtain free running routes and interaction of controls.

The boat was only on the water briefly earlier this year, when a collision required a return to the builders for hull repair work. That meant that on its debut at the Looe Nationals, the boat was almost untried.

Within the first couple of races some rework of controls was required, but by the end of the week things were coming together. Finishing 24th overall in the 70 boat fleet with a best result of 11th - despite the continual adjusting and rebuilding - was a positive step and provided valuable experience for further development.

The Merlin Rocket has been somewhat overshadowed in the past by the advances of the I14 and the International Canoe, with their adoption of the asymmetric. In particular, the International 14's reinvention of itself as a two man trapeze boat, which differs radically from the old hiking spinnaker boats. The Merlin has retained its format as a two man sit-out, traditional spinnaker boat, taking on board modern materials in hull and rig, but remaining recognizable to its roots.

Sophistication in rig control is one area where the development-minded Merlin sailor can advance, and Tim and Glenn are determined to show just how far that can go. The Merlin has moved to deck-stepped rocking rigs and through the gamut of mainsheet control systems of wide tracks, hoops, rear bridles and back to center tracks again. This new development can be seen as a welcome one, in an increasingly one design world filled with manufacturer's classes - at least for those who love to fiddle with their boats.

These beautiful machines still shine as an example of the development rule, allowing individual thought while providing remarkably close racing. It will be interesting to see the refinement of After Hours as racing experience is gained, and to see how much the concept is taken on by other members of the class if the boat starts to win.

We first saw After Hours at the Nationals, and subsequently she has been fitted with a stock carbon mast, after the home-built original proved too soft in Looe. That has enabled Glen and Tim to concentrate on getting the control aspect fine-tuned, and using it without the mast adding problems to the mix. In the recent Oulton Broad Silver Tiller event they were third, so as the learning curve continues, results are coming.