I am officially smitten by the New Leopard 45!

[barnakiel]

I think only some special waves come at 20 seconds intervals. I think most waves come at 6 to 15 seconds. Between 10 and 4 waves a minute.

How heavy is the water in this cockpit anyways?

b.

[SV Bacchus]

We too were at the 2017 Miami show and yes, we loved the L45.

Must admit I am quite torn (notice wording went from we to I). I am fair skinned and have done well with the sun over the years by chasing shade. The thought that if the rear is sunny I could sit in the front or vice-versa is appealing. However, long range plans include crossings and I do have concerns about several tons of water sitting in the bathtub on the front.

At half a million this would have to be "the" boat and we can't afford to make an expensive mistake. And, money always takes a back seat to personal safety.

But dang, WE did and still do like the boat!

[akprb]

Originally Posted by SV Bacchus

We too were at the 2017 Miami show and yes, we loved the L45.



Must admit I am quite torn (notice wording went from we to I). I am fair skinned and have done well with the sun over the years by chasing shade. The thought that if the rear is sunny I could sit in the front or vice-versa is appealing. However, long range plans include crossings and I do have concerns about several tons of water sitting in the bathtub on the front.



At half a million this would have to be "the" boat and we can't afford to make an expensive mistake. And, money always takes a back seat to personal safety.



But dang, WE did and still do like the boat!

Odds are you'll never "fill her up" :-)

[bensolomon]

I was at the Miami sailboat show and I too as well as my wife were very impressed with the leopard 45. I currently own a 37.5 Hunter Legend and my wife and I are considering moving the board when our last child goes to college. We enjoyed making passages, but we spend a lot of time at anchor and there's no denying that a catamaran is a beautiful vessel upon which to spend time relaxing.

My other question for the original poster is what did you think of the Nauti Tech 47? Not so much the flybridge version, but what about the open version?

[sheldon957]

Originally Posted by bensolomon

I was at the Miami sailboat show and I too as well as my wife were very impressed with the leopard 45. I currently own a 37.5 Hunter Legend and my wife and I are considering moving the board when our last child goes to college. We enjoyed making passages, but we spend a lot of time at anchor and there's no denying that a catamaran is a beautiful vessel upon which to spend time relaxing.

My other question for the original poster is what did you think of the Nauti Tech 47? Not so much the flybridge version, but what about the open version?

While a great sailing vessel, was never a fan of the totally exposed helm positions.

[owenrms]

I do think the conversation about the forward cockpit is overblown. There are a number of L48s sailing around the world - many have been delivered on their own bottoms to Tortola and Australia and Far East. In all this time they have had one boat capsize and that was sailing into a Cyclone at the time and we will never really know what happened.

Our view on the forward cockpit....when the boat is at anchor (90% of the time spent cruising) and the sun is beating into the stern cockpit, how wonderful to be able to escape to the front and get shade and breeze over the bow!

[SV Bacchus]

Originally Posted by akprb

Odds are you'll never "fill her up" :-)

Yup, that is what I keep telling myself. Thanks!

[SV Bacchus]

Originally Posted by owenrms

Our view on the forward cockpit....when the boat is at anchor (90% of the time spent cruising) and the sun is beating into the stern cockpit, how wonderful to be able to escape to the front and get shade and breeze over the bow!

I said it above but will reiterate here: My thoughts exactly!

[robertk445]

What anchorages would you be referring to? We are new the the sailing coming out of power boating. Wouldn't a little more hull in the water be exceptionally better under sail?

[robertk445]

Originally Posted by Four Coconuts

I was at the Miami show, too, having flown down from NH to look for our next cat which we will hopefully purchase in two years. We sold our 2000 Leopard 45 7 months ago. I was not nearly as impressed with the new 45 as you were. First, the boat is too heavy and doesn't have sufficient buoyancy in the bows to handle the weight without serious pounding if you're going offshore. Evidence? It weighs 8,000 lbs more than my old Leopard 45 and has narrower hulls. Look at the video of the new boat at minute 1:30, they are sailing in relatively benign waters and yet the bows are burying 18" above waterline, requiring almost all the good bridgedeck clearance they built in. I've also got to say it's underpowered compared to the old boat (sorry to keep comparing, but by experience it's the best comparison I have). Again, we were 8,000 lbs lighter (lightship), yet our mast was 71'. How's a 62' mast going to power a 32,000 lb boat which which will be 36,000 once you load it up? And, what will the bows look like then going through the waves?

As I understand it there was a 45L just delivered with a 63' mast. I hope that owner will read this post and fill us in. I would like to know the answer specifically as we have one on order and have considered the 63'mast option, although we are slowly moving away from that idea.

[akprb]

Originally Posted by robertk445

As I understand it there was a 45L just delivered with a 63' mast. I hope that owner will read this post and fill us in. I would like to know the answer specifically as we have one on order and have considered the 63'mast option, although we are slowly moving away from that idea.

If you operate on the east coast at all do not do it. I tapped the Hutchinson Island Bridge with a 63' stick when the height board read 65 and lost the anemometer. We now have a 62' brand new stick and still no fun going under bridges :-)

[downunder]

Originally Posted by robertk445

What anchorages would you be referring to? We are new the the sailing coming out of power boating. Wouldn't a little more hull in the water be exceptionally better under sail?

More hull in the water will mean more drag and adversly affects sailing performance.

Draft might not be an issue in the Carribean but in Australia there are many fantastic shallow sand anchorages that dry that are accesable to shallow draft.

[bensolomon]

Robert K 445,

If I may ask, why did you sell your previous leopard? You obviously like the product line which is why you looked at the new leopard 45.

Ben

[bensolomon]

Originally Posted by sheldon957

While a great sailing vessel, was never a fan of the totally exposed helm positions.

I see what you mean, but it also felt very close to sailing a monohull, especially one with an aft cockpit. Getting a catamaran represents a compromise between my wife and I which I will gladly do so that she will continue to enjoy the cruising lifestyle. I guess the flip side of having the AFT Helm station on the naughtyech is that by habit I sit on the windward side. On a catamaran it may be difficult to see the contralateral hull from a NAFTA location, but I also like to the AFT Helm for the option of using the emergency tiller should that become necessary and being able to operate the vessel.

[Four Coconuts]

Ben,

Robert was quoting an earlier post of mine. It was I who owned an earlier L45. We were a family boat that took a few years off knowing that we would have to go back to work, hence the sale. Fortunately we were wise enough to listen carefully to the guidance given us by other cruisers we met along the way, and so when we returned we were fortunate to find a seasonal business to buy. Now we're back in the market. Re: the first gen L45, as with every boat pro's and con's. Pro's- tough as nails. Through experience we developed absolute confidence in her ability to see us through whatever we threw at her. She really took care of us. "Coco" had great accommodations and a cockpit that is on par with newer designs. Hugely important- it had a 100% protected helm. I will never, ever sacrifice that. She also had relatively large engines (54hp) which meant we usually ran under one engine. The new L45 has a similar helm that can be fully enclosed. The con's on the first gen L45? Two of significance- it needed greater bridge deck clearance and a hardtop. It was too difficult to access the boom when necessary due to the soft top. Pic's can be seen on my profile. The other item I have on my wish list is more speed. We assumed 6 knots for an average passage. I'd like to be around 8.