Cheap Multis and Projects

[senormechanico]

It's the same boat. I looked up the specs for a Catana 411.
The site says draft min and max and neither one can be right !
Does anyone know the draft of the saildrives?


CATANA 411 sailboat specifications and details on sailboatdata.com

[Sand crab]

Draft 19 1/2 feet, so I guess that's with the boards down! The saildrive sticks down there about 2' MOL. What are you getting at? Beachable question perhaps?

[Sand crab]

This shows the specs for the engine. One could extrapolate for the SD.
http://www.marinepartsexpress.com/prodbull/md2030.pdf


The engine is 584 mm. The saildrive is about the same length but the hull and mounting would reduce this.

[JayErabu]

Hello everyone. New user here looking around for a cat to live on. Looks like a lot of useful information in here. Has any one seen the selling prices or tried to bid on the cats from Barbados? I like the space on those just curious about how much they are expecting to go for.

[JayErabu]

I have found an inexpensive Jim Brown trimaran about 40ft wondering how that’s would stack up against a cat as far as living space goes

[VBsail]

Corsair 3600 Catamaran- $35,000

https://www.multihullcentral.com/veh...600-corvette/#

[JayErabu]

Originally Posted by VBsail

Corsair 3600 Catamaran- $35,000

https://www.multihullcentral.com/veh...600-corvette/#

That’s about 30,000 out of my price range right now

[martinworswick]

oh dear...
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/201...e#.W7ZFe2gzbIU

[purvisgs]

Originally Posted by JayErabu

I have found an inexpensive Jim Brown trimaran about 40ft wondering how that’s would stack up against a cat as far as living space goes

I would not suggest investing your time and $ in a polyester resin & plywood Searunner (or other polyester&ply multihull). If built with epoxy & ply, certainly worth a look. Jim Brown will convince you to love a Searunner, just read his book "the Case for the Cruising trimaran" ..it is a fun read. The ones that were well built AND maintained over the years are still great cruising or liveaboard boats, and have plenty of space. Not everyone likes the 2 cabin layout, but most can appreciate the huge center cockpit.



Some general advice... as it's easy to get in over your head on these projects. 40ft of boat is a lot of $ and time, no matter what. A 40ft multihull has a huge amount of surface area, and a ton of hardware (every piece of hardware, bolt, etc in the deck is an opportunity for water intrusion/rot). It will take 2-10 times as much time, and 2-10 times as much money as your initial estimate. If you find a soft spot or damage, again, the actual area you need to cut out & repair/replace will be 2-10 times as large as your initial impression. This assuming you are relatively experienced to start out.



In order to succeed with one of these "cheap" projects on a minimal budget, in the 5k price range you mention, you need to be truly hard working, resourceful at finding 2nd hand materials & gear, with many good friends willing to work long hours for free, and have a boat yard/place to work on/store the boat for free or cheap. In the end, in most of these cases, even if your time is worth nothing, you would be better off working and saving up money and buying a boat for more $ that already has most of what you want.



As for the hurricane damaged cats, it's my impression the reasonably good ones were snapped up long ago... many for much more than they were worth. It's likely you will see some "failed dreams" come back on the market, from those who bought them, but had no idea about the realities of rebuilding a boat in that part of the world. But the best deals in those situations are found on the ground, by walking around the boat yards and getting lucky, not necessarily posted on the internet.



As is often repeated, an experienced marine surveyor (familiar with the construction method of the boat in question AND multihulls)...although it initially seems expensive & silly for a cheap boat, is almost always worth it.


The tri vs cat thing has been discussed plenty. The greater payload & typically higher resale value of a comparable cat will sway most people in that direction. That doesn't mean tri's are not good boats with enough space to live aboard, but even though they have lots of volume, you MUST keep the tri light. Think backpacker/minimalist mentality.



Cross or Horstman trimarans could be also worth a look if you want lots of living space, and you're not as concerned with sailing performance.

[VBsail]

FLICA 35 Catamaran

Must sell ASAP.
Asking 55000USD
All serious offers will be considered

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/...715548090.html

[multihuler]

38x24 Harris trimaran, high quality build, never started $8000 yanmar diesel, prepped for installation,new panel,exhaust,nice sails, open wing, canted amas, airex core, standing headroom in aft cabin, two sets of bunk beds, new vhf, GPS,.enclosed cockpit.
$34,000, will finance, until launch, $10k down.
At Greene Marine, yarmouth, Maine, $100 a month.
Multihuler@aol.com

[multihuler]

Harris trimaran, incredible construction, same weight as a 39ft Farrier, approx 6500lbs, only $200k less. Steal at $34k, and get out of town.

[Doug Maloney]

I couldn't find the Prout 34. Do you know if it's still available? Thanks.

[Sand crab]

That Catana 411 listing has been deleted. I guess it sold.

[Skeezix]

Originally Posted by Skeezix

Has anyone checked this Contour 30 MkII?
https://maine.craigslist.org/boa/d/c...665238287.html
https://m.ebay.com/itm/Contour-30-Mk...-/323398542482

The price on that Contour 30 Mk II has come way down. Needs some work but does not seem like much, and lots of new tech included. Wish I was actively shopping right now.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Contour-30-Mk-II-foldable-trimaran/323496334223?hash=item4b51e2538f:g:PooAAOSwtItbYJ8 G

https://maine.craigslist.org/boa/d/contour-30-mk-ii-foldable/6711869437.html