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Old 14-01-2019, 20:39   #1
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Question Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

My family and I are considering buying a Catamaran in the future with the idea of eventually crossing to the south pacific. Many of the production cats I'm seeing now seem to be geared towards coastal sailing with their windage and tankage, and I was wanting recommendations on models that would fit. I've seen many "Offshore" cats which are simply not livable enough to ever convince my wife. We'd be sailing with our two children as well, so it would need enough storage for four, ideally not requiring a water-maker to not run out of water. I like the look of the new Lagoons, and I have heard many people crossing with them, but their highly raised center or effort on the sails and in many models low tankage make me nervous. Any recommendations out there?
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Old 14-01-2019, 20:43   #2
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

Personally unless you want to live “uncomfortable” any form of long term cruising requires a watermaker. My Leopard carry’s 800 liters but I still need a watermaker. I like to shower ever day and find we use 300 liters a day for 4 people
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Old 14-01-2019, 20:48   #3
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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Originally Posted by MikeFergie View Post
Personally unless you want to live “uncomfortable” any form of long term cruising requires a watermaker. My Leopard carry’s 800 liters but I still need a watermaker. I like to shower ever day and find we use 300 liters a day for 4 people
Yes, we would be taking a water-maker, but I was just saying that I would not want to run out of water on a 3 week passage if it broke. Being without showers if it broke would be fine.
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Old 15-01-2019, 00:46   #4
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

What type of cruiser are you?
- Performance oriented?
- Comfort Oriented?

300l/day is a lot of water. We can go a week without even trying on 240l.

I'm assuming with kids and trying to convince the wife, you are more on the comfort end of the spectrum...in that case just about any cat bigger than 35-38' will do just fine offshore (along with many smaller boats).

Keep in mind, you need a reasonable level of safety and comfort offshore but the vast majority of your time is likely to be spent at anchor or on coastal legs, so be careful sacrificing too much to get the ultimate offshore boat that isn't great at anchor.
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Old 15-01-2019, 08:43   #5
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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What type of cruiser are you?
- Performance oriented?
- Comfort Oriented?

300l/day is a lot of water. We can go a week without even trying on 240l.

I'm assuming with kids and trying to convince the wife, you are more on the comfort end of the spectrum...in that case just about any cat bigger than 35-38' will do just fine offshore (along with many smaller boats).

Keep in mind, you need a reasonable level of safety and comfort offshore but the vast majority of your time is likely to be spent at anchor or on coastal legs, so be careful sacrificing too much to get the ultimate offshore boat that isn't great at anchor.
I would say for us it would be safety first and then comfort. Performance is great and all, but safety at sea is definitely #1
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Old 15-01-2019, 09:39   #6
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

We're also a family of four. The Seawind 1160 and 1260 models offer much more living space for a family than any other cat their size I'm aware of.

If new isn't in the budget, I'd probably be looking for a Perry 43, but other than a similar design/layout, I don't know much about them.
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Old 15-01-2019, 11:37   #7
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

We love our Antares 44. Took us across oceans in interior beauty, safety and comfort. Most sisterboats are actually out on the world's oceans. Like any voyaging boat, an ample watermaker is standard equipment. There are some really good used ones on the website.
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Old 15-01-2019, 11:58   #8
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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Personally unless you want to live “uncomfortable” any form of long term cruising requires a watermaker. My Leopard carry’s 800 liters but I still need a watermaker. I like to shower ever day and find we use 300 liters a day for 4 people
300 Liters a DAY??? Wowie zowie Batman! That is certainly 3 sigma usage...

We barely break 20 liters per person per day... and that's using all we want with a 1000 liter tank AND a watermaker we run every day...

I'd be very uncomfortable with tanks that held less than 4 days water use!
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Old 15-01-2019, 15:11   #9
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

If you intend sailing the tropics then two design parameters you should consider are shade and ventilation features. Sitting in the sun is no fun at all so good shade - as wide as possible - as far aft as possible are attributes. Also be aware that large sloping front transparent "windows" will turn your boat into a greenhouse. See how the designer has addressed this matter, it is very important in the tropics. Not such a problem elsewhere.
Ventilation is also a major issue. Be wary of multiple deck hatches as they can be problematic where it rains a lot.
Bridgedeck clearance is also a major issue. The waves banging under neath may drive the missus bonkers.
I agree with the positive comments re the Seawind catamarans. Great cats. very popular. Expansive living space with the aft deck not being separate from the bridge area. Great for the tropics.
Solar panels, desalinators? Think about it carefully. They are expensive and NO catamaran appreciates excessive weight. It's a balancing act.
Catamarans are usually charged an extra 30 to 50% for marina berths and larger cats can be expensive to have lifted as the smaller travel lifts won't necessarily accommodate them width wise. This may mean that you require to use the larger and very much more expensive travel lifts.
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Old 15-01-2019, 15:34   #10
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

Any of the popular catamarans will do what you want. It depends on how much you want to spend and your requirements.

My wife and I spent 3 seasons in S. Pacific on our Lagoon 450. We found it very livable and had a great time. Lagoon sells more catamarans than any other manufacturer. That should say something. I highly recommend that you visit some factories to see how the boats are built, before you make a decision.

For a higher quality family catamaran, I like the Antares 44.
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Old 15-01-2019, 17:54   #11
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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We're also a family of four. The Seawind 1160 and 1260 models offer much more living space for a family than any other cat their size I'm aware of.

If new isn't in the budget, I'd probably be looking for a Perry 43, but other than a similar design/layout, I don't know much about them.
Really liking the the Seawind 1260. I had never seen it so thanks for pointing it out! Great balance of style and seaworthiness.
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Old 15-01-2019, 20:09   #12
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

We have a Perry 43. Good live aboard, good offshore boat. Over 80 built in Australia, quite an old design now, by modern trends. Carries over 800L of both water and fuel.
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Old 16-01-2019, 01:09   #13
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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I would say for us it would be safety first and then comfort. Performance is great and all, but safety at sea is definitely #1
You missed my point.

Safety is a given. Once you have safety, what is important to you as a cruiser?

Most any of the larger production cruising cats are reasonably safe, so it's not really a big deciding point.

Also factoring in, what is your budget? No sense pointing you to a newer 50' comfort & performance boat if you have a $100k purchase budget.
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Old 16-01-2019, 08:11   #14
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

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You missed my point.

Safety is a given. Once you have safety, what is important to you as a cruiser?

Most any of the larger production cruising cats are reasonably safe, so it's not really a big deciding point.

Also factoring in, what is your budget? No sense pointing you to a newer 50' comfort & performance boat if you have a $100k purchase budget.
Hi, I might have to respectfully disagree with this sentiment for blue water sailing. I completely agree that any productions cat is perfectly safe near shore and are made (by law) to be unsinkable. Also, any of them produced in any large number have probably crossed oceans, even with ammeter sailors like myself. However, there is going to be maximum conditions that any boat can handle before succumbing to the elements by either flipping or losing its rigging. I am looking for the "Safest" to lower these probabilities. This is the reason that I was asking as I had heard many talk about design elements like high windage and higher center of effort on brands like Lagoon. Not saying its not a legitimate choice to circumnavigate (I particularly like the 450 for this), but to me, sacrificing a bit of the look/comfort for something designed particularly for the job would be worth it.

As for price, I have some wiggle room. Would probably top out around 450K but hope to get it far cheaper, especially if we're going to need to outfit it.
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Old 16-01-2019, 10:11   #15
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Re: Best Offshore Cat Builder/Models with decent interiors

Most production cats can do it safely. Heavy boxy condomarans usually are safer than light daggerboard performance cats in regards of flipping and hitting something with the daggerboards and ripping the hull. All cats have crash bulkheads, but not all have positive buoyancy, so they can sink, especially if full loaded. There are cats, that sacrifice storage for buoyancy having foam filled cavities for this purpose - like FP, but even they may sink. See the discussion about the helia that sunk after losing the emergency exit hatch on a passage in a gale.

If you look for comfort, full features, all inclusive, high quality build - look at exquisite, privilege, antares. That the luxury segment.

Mass production is lagoon, fp, leopard, this is more the ikea lifestyle.

And there are the cheaper smaller brands too.
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