Fireballs come in a variety of different materials, which have advantages and disadvantages depending on the intended use.

Plastic boats (actually made of fibreglass) are among the oldest Fireballs, and are the most durable. These boats can be cheap to buy at as little as £100 (very sad) - £750 (very good). They require no maintenance whatsoever and are easy to mend if you have an accident. They are not favoured by racing sailors due to their relative lack of power in strong winds. However, they can compete reasonably well with more modern designs in anything up to a force 4. Look for sail numbers of 10,000 upwards with the really good kit being numbered above 13,000. As with all Fireballs, the later the model you can get for your money, the better. But, don't spend too much on one of these, they will always be 'bargain basement' material. Best buy is the Holt (mark 3) if you can find one.

Wooden boats tend to be somewhat newer, since the oldest examples have rotted away by now. Early boats were just painted and varnished, and required yearly attention to keep them sound. Many later boats were treated with epoxy resin on the hull (and possibly the decks), which is a virtually maintenance-free compound and makes ownership much easier. Boats without epoxy are rarely worth more than £500, and need careful examination. Epoxied boats can fetch between £500 and £1,200 depending on their age and condition. Look for any signs of damage, or evidence of peeling paint or worn/blistered varnish. If any of the wood is soft with moisture, don't buy it. Wooden boats are considered to be generally faster than 'plastic' boats, but need more maintenance, and are more prone to soaking up water, which makes them heavier and slows them down. Buy only sound examples from around number 12,500 upwards. Best buys are Winder, Severn and HPS.

Foam sandwich boats (each surface is a layer of foam enclosed by two layers of grp or kevlar) are the 'state of the art'. They are low maintenance, although not as durable as 'plastic' boats in an accident (the outer layer punctures quite easily, and water can get into the foam). They tend not to be painted, but to retain the gel-coat colouring, which makes evidence of injury easy to spot. However, minor prangs are commonplace and do not devalue the boat. These boats are stiffer than 'plastic' or wood, and more likely to be 'down to weight' (ie as light as class rules permit). They are therefore favoured by racing sailors. Sail numbers start at around 14,000 , and prices at around £1,200. 'Composite' boats have wooden decks which are nicer to look at and would have cost more initially, but require more maintenance than a plastic deck. Best buy would be a narrow-bow composite Winder at around £1,200 - £1600, or if your budget is a bit tight, consider a composite Severn Sailboats item for around £1000 - £1500. The all foam 'White Winder' boats start at around £3,200 secondhand, and hold their value very well. Generally these boats last forever, which is why they are so popular and marginally more expensive than the alternatives.

Brand new Fireballs – nearly always all-foam sandwich 'White' boats these days, can be yours for around £9,000. They don't go any quicker than a 15 year old composite boat, but you will look good if you buy one.

All Fireballs should come equipped with a mainsail, jib and spinnaker, as well as a rudder and a trolley. Check that all these are present and in good order. Also check that the mast looks straight when viewed from the front and fairly straight viewed from the side. It should not be kinked or twisted. Put rig tension on and look up the mast track for S bends and other nastiness. Some Fireballs have a spinnaker chute, others have bags. It is marginally easier to launch and recover a spinnaker from a chute, but the chute itself adds weight, reduces buoyancy and may take on water in rough conditions. Bags are more popular these days. Also, check the foils (rudder and centreboard). Old stuff is painted, the good kit is wood encased in fibreglass or epoxy with nice clean leading and trailing edges. Take a long hard look at the seams between floor and side/front/rear tanks, and at the base of the centreboard case - nastiness here is serious. Also check for splits in the floor (if the floor is painted then examine the underside of the boat carefully). Ideally, your new Fireball should come with a measurement certificate, although the old/cheap boats probably won't. Ask for it anyway. If you are buying a boat that 'needs some attention', make sure it's very keenly priced - boat parks across the country are littered with this kind of 'bargain'. If you are planning to race the thing then ask what level of competition it has been raced at; is it just club raced, or has it been to open meetings, nationals, europeans, world championships etc. Has it won anything worthwhile, and if so, has it been significantly mucked about with since ?

Footnote:

I wrote this page about 10 years ago, and I come back to it every few years in a cold sweat afraid that it's now become total cobblers. But by and large it's remained fairly accurate - I keep having to update the sail number of a 'New or nearly new White Winder', and a few prices change a bit, but by and large it stays pretty much the same.

Fireball prices are affected by a number of things, including most notably the state of the UK economy, the time of year, and the state of the UK fleet. When I first wrote this piece, the UK fleet was decidedly wobbly and you couldn't sell a used Fireball for sensible money. A DWSC fleet member chose that moment to pick up a wooden Winder for £500 which is still worth anything up to twice that amount ten years on. Since then the UK fleet has seen a massive upswing, culminating in the Worlds at Teignmouth with 180 boats. And then (like all other fleets) gone downhill a bit in the recession years of 2009-10. I still see some really ridiculous asking prices on a variety of websites, including a load of composite boats on offer for around or over £3K, and I see some real bargains too such as a really nice composite Winder on Apollo Duck for £1100. I also see some truly appalling kit on eBay advertised as 'a project' or 'needs a bit of TLC', and honestly most of it is not fit to burn (and probably too wet too).

So choose carefully and take your time. There is no doubt that you can own a really nice Fireball, the trick is to do so at a sensible price.