The HADRON H1 Dinghy (formerly known as the HADRON).

Hadron H1 is a singlehander dinghy designed in 2011. Although the market is full of singlehander dinghies, the search is still on for a singlehander which will fulfil the requirements of the experienced dinghy sailor who is perhaps, like myself, getting on a bit, but who nonetheless demands good performance, and without too much pain. In other words, the boat must have impeccable handling characteristics, be comfortable to sit out and to sit in, easy to right after a capsize, and of course be a joy to sail. Just like a Merlin Rocket.

The boat is of 4 plank plywood construction, and is specifically designed to be easy to build. or full size drawings of the building frames and the major plywood parts (including the planks) can be purchased (click on "purchase plans" link above). The plans include a CNC cutting model.

Principal Dimensions:

Nominated for the Yachts and Yachting "DINGHY of the YEAR" award 2014

" An extremely well-mannered boat which was very comfortable to sail while still giving the performance to put a smile on your face"

"A brilliant handling little boat."

Tom Gruitt, Yachts and Yachting Magazine, Boat Test, November 2013.

As at July 2024, nearly 50 sets of HADRON H1 plans have been sold.

A lot of thought has gone into making sailing the Hadron H1 dinghy a pleasant and rewarding experience. Here are some of the main features:

• The performance-orientated but forgiving hull form and rig produces a versatile, manageable dinghy which can be sailed on lake, river or sea, with good performance to windward and also offwind. An easy performance dinghy for novices. Excellent handling and exhilarating performance for experienced sailors.
• Hadron H1 has a long, low bow tank and aft of this buoyancy is provided by a fore and aft compartment along the centreline. This configuration will ensure that the boat floats low in the water when on its side, thus facilitating righting. The boat floats on its side with the centreboard just clear of the water, and when righted retains a modest amount, which can be evacuated via the transom flaps and self- bailers within a minute or so, even in light conditions.
• The angled boom provides plenty of headroom for ease of tacking.
• The large, deep cockpit area and ergonomic side decks provide a comfortable sitting out position, and allows 2 people to be aboard for leisure sailing. The central buoyancy compartment acts as a useful seat in light conditions.
• The hull has 3 separate buoyancy compartments. One acts as a dry storage compartment at forward end of cockpit for gear and picnic items.
• Rig controls are led to cockpit sides for easy adjustment afloat.
• The flared hull, good freeboard and wide gunwhales minimise spray and keep the crew dry in all but the windiest conditions.

The original Hadron"s sails were designed and developed in conjunction with Michael McNamara. Michael has made several prototype sails which he initially tested on his Harrier dinghy. Note that many of the images on this page show the original experimental rig, based on Merlin Rocket spars. The production rig is based on a Phantom mast from Superspars, with the gooseneck set 300mm above the deck and a "kicked up" boom to provide plenty of headroom.

More recently, a fat-head sail has been developed by Ian Morgan, of Morgan Sails. See photos of Hadron H1 #21 below.