The DragonForce 65 is the fastest growing class of RC sailboats in the U.S. The boat has earned this distinction by being a great one-design sailing boat while being the least expensive ready-to-sail boat on the market. At around $300 for a boat with radio and receiver and about 2 hours of assembly and you're on the water.

The DragonForce 65 is the fastest growing class of RC sailboats in the U.S. The boat has earned this distinction by being a great one-design sailing boat while being the least expensive ready-to-sail boat on the market. At around $300 for a boat with radio and receiver and about 2 hours of assembly and you're on the water.

The boat has fleets at nearly 150 clubs around the country. The clubs range from well-established AMYA clubs, full sized boat yacht clubs, school sailing teams to community association clubs. Within these clubs the boat is sailed from beginners to national champion skippers from many other classes.

An added benefit of the boat is the well-supplied and dedicated national distributor that provides excellent access to boats, parts and accessories allowed by the class rules.

Based on a 1962-63 vintage design for a full-size International 12 Meter. This medium-sized yacht's hull must be initially purchased from a licensed builder. Decks and sails are strictly controlled, purchased or made from scratch. Almost all other equipment is up to the owner. Approx 58" long.

Sanctioned in 2006. Low cost, fun, easy to build class that puts to rest the theory that boats under 30" long don't sail well. 12" long (thus "Footy") is the smallest of the development class yachts.

Sanctioned in 1998. The International One Metre is the fastest growing class in the world. The rules in this class are identical to those used throughout the globe. The class has a one-design rig and weight minimums, but the hull design is very much developmental. One meter long, with a sail area as large as a Marblehead. 39.37" long (One meter)

The versatile International One Metre (IOM) is one of the most popular class in the radio sailing world, and many USA sailors enjoy regular travel for competition. Others prefer local sailing, and local fleets are the class backbone. USA's annual Nationals began in 1998. The class formed in the late 1980s, specifying three (3) one-design rigs with the hull/foils controlled by box rule. This format encourages evolution and created our highly refined fleet of today, where creative skippers continue to test new ideas. We race in the lightest breeze up to very strong winds and waves, where we need our smallest rig up to 35-40 knots. The hull weight limit allows amateur designers/builders to carefully create competitive IOMs and test their mettle against the best commercially available. Besides our plethora of purchase options, we have a recent global boom in home-built woody hulls now too. While the most skilled skippers usually win the regatta, no single design dominates our World Championships on even years.

The Marblehead (or simply "M") is a 50 inch long yacht providing exciting performance and the ability to handle most sailing conditions if rigged properly. This development class is restricted in overall length and sail area. It has spawned two sub-classes, the "American Marblehead" and the "Classic Marblehead". The Marblehead is considered the leader in the use of advanced construction materials and techniques. 50" long, 800 sq. inches sail area.

The M or Marblehead Class, sometimes called the "50/800", is a high-performance development class designed by Roy L. Clough of Marblehead, MA in the 1930's as the largest model that would conveniently fit in a standard American car of the time.

It has grown into an International Class, with competitive fleets worldwide.

M's are considered the largest "high tech" R/C model class with active designers/builders and steadily growing numbers of participants. Think of them as the "Formula One" of radio- controlled race boats.

It is a development class (unless specifically prohibited, "anything goes") with the main restrictions being a hull length of 50 inches and a sail area of 800 square inches. The class has matured over the years to produce a high-performance model that can be sailed in a wide range of conditions by changing rigs.

The hull and rigs tend to use advanced materials and techniques. Boats are available from several suppliers who can provide them from basic kit form to fully assembled. There is also an active used boat market at the local level. Many older designs can be made locally competitive with simple updates. The M Class has a large ownership base, with over 3000 registered hulls in the US with that many or more worldwide. It is sailed in most areas of the country. Competition is available from local club to international level.

To get started, first register your boat with the Class Secretary.

Once you have registered your boat, a "measurement certificate" will be required if you want to compete in organized regattas. To obtain this certificate, an official Class Measurer will perform a detailed examination and measurement of the hull, appendages, sails, and rigs and if all are found to comply with class rules, a certificate will be issued.

Registering an M Class

1. Become an AMYA member and obtain your AMYA membership number. No registration number will be issued without an AMYA membership number.

2. Complete the AMYA Yacht Registration form contained in Model Yachting. Include your e- mail address on the form. Make out a check for $10 to Bruce Andersen and mail it with the Yacht Registration form to him. Do not make out the check to AMYA - registration funds are used for Marblehead Class expenses and are not part of the AMYA.

3. If you are transferring ownership include the existing registration number and previous owner's name.

4. You will be issued a new sail number if this is a new registration, or a card with the old sail number in your name if this is a transfer of ownership of a previously registered boat. A new number may be issued if the provenance of the hull is unknown.

Sanctioned in 1993. The Soling 1 Meter is based on the full-size Olympic Soling. Specifications: 39.37" long, 8-5/8" beam, approx. 60" bottom keel to tip of mast. 10 lbs. min.
Features: Performance; Single rig allowed means lower total cost; One Design for equality of boats; Kit-Based, kits Available from two manufacturers; Wide distribution of local clubs in all AMYA Regions.

The Soling 1 Meter Class was first sanctioned by the AMYA in 1993. With thousands of kits sold, and some 4000 boats registered, you can find a Club sailing the Soling 1 Meter in ALL 8 AMYA Regions, and three Provinces in Canada. Over 70 USA and Canadian Clubs list the Soling 1 Meter as the one or the only boat that they support. Something like 50% of ALL RC sailors own at least one Soling!! For over thirty years since being AMYA-sanctioned, the "Soling" has been a Class that offered top competition at the local, Regional, and USA as well as Canadian National Championship levels.
The Soling 1 Meter is a true One-Design: All aspects related to performance are intended to be restricted to what can be achieved by building a Kit straight from the manufacturer's instructions. (The Soling 1 Meter Class Rules may be downloaded from the links table on this page.)
Performance: Soling 1 Meters point high, sail fast, and resist "submarining" like some other more narrow and lighter boats. On a fresh reach or run, the boat gives her skipper fully controlled, exhilarating performance. The fin keel draws only about 8" of water, so the Soling 1 Meter is easier to carry and transport, and can be launched from a shore without wading, as well as from a dock. And, the Soling resists snagging in pond weeds - she can almost always be sailed back to shore, instead of having to be rescued by rowboat.
Low total cost: Unlike many RC boats, Soling 1 Meter Class allows one rig, using lower cost flat-paneled polyester sails. The Soling can be sailed in winds from near zero to over 20 MPH, using that single rig. And, in a regatta of less than 5 days' duration, you must use the same rig throughout the regatta. This saves hundreds of dollars for additional rigs and sails required to be bought in order to compete in most other popular designs.
Soling 1 Meters must be built from a kit available from the original manufacturer- Victor Model Products (out of business as of 2018), AND currently only from one of two Class-approved manufacturers:
3DRC Boats offers Almost ready to Sail kits that can be finished in about 12 hours by virtually anyone. 3DRC also sells full rig kits, aluminum mast and booms, with or without major brand sails.
Vac-U- Boats offers an unassembled hull kit.

You cannot modify the interior construction of the 3DRC or Vac-U-Boat kits, such as removing structure, or adding carbon fiber or other "exotic" materials.
Made in the USA: All Solings, since the first off the mold, have been made in the USA.
To buy a NEW Soling, contact one or both of our manufacturers:
3RC Boats TM
sales@3drcboats.com
Doug Rieger
1-440-610-9542
http://3drcboats.com
OR
Vac-U-BoatTM
philpace@vac-u-boat.com
Phil Pace
1259 Humphries Rd. Conyers, GA 30012
http://www.vac-u-boat.com/

Sanctioned in 1997. Low cost, ARS kit from Thunder Tiger modeled after the America's Cup yachts from the 1990's. 30.7" long, 433 sq in sail area, 4.5 lbs displacement.

The Victoria One Design is a simple, affordable, sailboat manufactured by the Thunder Tiger Model Company, and distributed world wide. The kit's low cost (about $150 for the kit, $250 to perhaps $400 ready to race), ease of assembly, and good sailing characteristics make it a great first yacht, while remaining fun to sail and race for old hands as well. It is easy to transport, fully rigged, in the smallest of cars. The emphasis of the Victoria is on SIMPLICITY and FUN, and to these ends check out the Victoria Class Information Center for the latest building, tuning, and sailing tips, along with other interesting and useful information about the boat.

The boat itself is made of ABS plastic, and is quite durable, capable of surviving virtually any mishap or collision. The kit also includes high quality aluminum spars, sails, and all necessary fittings. All you need to do is add a two-channel radio, two servos and you're ready to sail. Construction is generally a weekend project. The ease of assembly also makes the Victoria a great "club" boat, as new skippers can buy a boat and join the racing with a minimum of trouble and expense. Many clubs conduct "Silver Fleet" racing consisting of boats made entirely from all kit parts.