Fountaine Pajot Catamarans

[Whimsical]

Originally Posted by Therapy

I am under the impression it is not wise to cut the salon roof.

Given enough reinforcement it shouldnt be a problem, not very difficult.

Mike

[HMachiz]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Yes I will be there.

There is a picture of the new port on the other Mahe thread.
Pretty small.

I am under the impression it is not wise to cut the salon roof. I read it somewhere.....probably on the other Mahe thread.

That leaves the hulls with no ports still.

Since I have no sailing time on a large cat I cannot say that this ventilation I think I need is valid. I just think it (staying in the boat) can't be much different, ventilation-wise than on a mono.

There are ports in the aft cabins that open into the cockpit and the escape hatches in the heads can be left open for ventalation when the boat is moored or docked. The boat is built strong enough for an additional hatch in the salon.

[Gpryce]

Parts for the traveler are available from Rigrite.
Amiot Traveller Main Page - New In Process
Thanks to all for their help.

[S/V Mother Ocean]

I must start out by saying that I own a Lagoon. With that being said I want to praise the Fountaine Pajot Catamarans. I am also a converted monohuller and I'll never go back. I am going to post a picture from a friends web site. He saw this cat floating in San Adreas, Columbia, SA. It sank some where around the Bahamas and drifted that far. I say this to imply that the boats are unsinkable. That is worth it's weight in gold for the safety factor it gives the offshore sailor.

Dan




"After a nice swim and lunch, we continued onward. A few miles away, we rounded a point and there it was! A big catamaran awash and tied to a mooring!
YIKES! It had no mast, the salon door was open; it was swamped. Clearly a Fontaine Pajot, French-built cat in the upper thirty to lower forty foot range. You don’t see this everyday!
I inquired around the island the next day to learn the cat was abandoned in terrible weather somewhere near the Bahamas and was left dismasted to its own devices. It had just been found the day before, seventeen miles north of San Andres in the open sea, drifting westward in the currents and trade winds.
However disturbing the scene, the incident is a testament to the “unsinkable” rating of European-built catamarans. Brands such as Lagoon, Fontaine Pajot, and Catana utilize watertight bulkheads, foam sandwich construction, and other buoyant materials that actually qualify their cats to be certified unsinkable.
When you think about it, that’s pretty darn nifty! Not all cats are created equal and some catamaran brands are not certified to meet unsinkable standards and will not remain floating if totally swamped. Those “Brand X” cats will plummet to the bottom if they take on too much water. It’s a good question to ask when shopping for a cruising catamaran.
And the proof is in the pudding. The Fontaine Pajot full of water drifted across the WILD and rough central and western Caribbean and there she sits, still on the surface."

Indigo Moon

(This is a cut & paste from the Indigo Moon web site)

[muskoka]

How about a hint - is it a US or an EU boat?

[Wayward Wind]

A Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 54DS?

[mudbug]

Offices in UK; Germany; and, Newport . . .

They make BIG yachts up to 125 feet . . .

[DtM]

Swan ?

[Aussiesuede]

Originally Posted by mudbug

Offices in UK; Germany; and, Newport . . .

They make BIG yachts up to 125 feet . . .

Oyster? They've got offices in Newport and obviously the UK. Not so sure about Germany (Also, don't know if they make anything larger than 82 ft)

edit: A quick google to their website shows a fleet up to 125ft.

http://www.oystermarine.com/theFleet...d=65&ref=fleet

And their Contact info shows:

Fox's Marina, Ipswich, Suffolk IP2 8SA

Saseler Str. 192a, 22159 Hamburg, Germany

Newport Shipyard, One Washington St,
Newport, RI

[Aussiesuede]

Oh, forgot to guess a model. You made reference to "neither of them" , a "6 man life raft", and "my friends", which tends to lend itself to a "couple". I can't imagine them being on anything larger than the 62 - so I'll guess it was a 53, 54, or 56? The 575 is too new, and there aren't a lot of 54's on the water yet either - so I'll narrow it down to the 53 or 56?

[Therapy]

This FP thread has drifted as far as that one pictured earlier.

[mudbug]

And the Winner is . . . . .

Aussieswede! It is an Oyster (but a 61)

Yes, the Oyster 61!

Specifications :

LOA 61.9 ft.
LWL 52.0 ft.
Beam 16.8 ft.
Draft 8.3 ft.
Displacement 69,000 lbs.
Ballast 21,280 lbs.

The story I posted is from a mass email sent out to us and all their friends by folks who cruise on an Oyster 61. It is a seven-figure PALACE of a huge sailboat. We spent a season with them in Bonaire. No kidding, it's a stunning BIG yacht.

You would never picture that people would be piling wet cushions on the salon floor of a 61 footer just so they could sleep.

You would also not tend to imagine that a BIG dink with a console would break loose and almost be lost.

But it is true. Going into "small" 8+ and 12+ seas SUCKS, even on big heavy monohulls.

The keel alone on that 61 weighs as much as my whole Lagoon 380 LOADED.

I am not throwing stones, but the report is a PRIME example that a lot of the so-called advantages of cruising monohulls over cruising cats in rough seas are often exaggerated.

We tend to go "over" the seas while monos try and go "through" them.

Anyway, even sailboats like an Oyster 61 have to WAIT for a good weather window, travel on accepted routes and within seasons or get their butts kicked and tear up the boat.

The folks on the 61 were NOT caught in extraordinary condtions for that area in the Caribbean. Melissa and I went boths ways on the same 420 mile route, Bonaire to St. John and then six months later another 395 miles from St. Criox to Los Roques.

We got roughed up a bit on that second crossing, even in a pretty moderate window. But, not a hair out of place on our catamaran. Our little Lagoon 380 has never faltered or made a misstep in any seas we have been in.

The Caribbean Sea can be pretty wicked and some patches are deemed by Jimmy Cornell as the 5th roughest seas in the world. Melissa and I have sailed through all of them in the Caribbean, but have been careful to pick the best seasons and windows.

Anyway, why did the folks on the Oyster weigh anchor and head out on an "iffy" weather window?

They were at the Los Roques (just off the coast of Venezuela) and the mosquitos were bad and they just got enough of it and put to sea.

Bottom line, since all cruising vessels (big and small, cat and mono), must wait for good weather, a great degree of the big debate about cats and monos is a "tempest in a teapot" and discussed in theory, not real first-hand ocean experience on both types of vessels and the fact that all small boats (as opposed to ships) can start to feel pretty small out there.

Today's modern cruising cats do a fabulous job and as time goes on and owners like me sing their praises at sea, the seaworthiness of cats will become more proven and appreciated, even by today's die-hard detractors.

One more thing. I'm sure you all read the harrowing report of the Lagoon 380 that capsized in 45 foot breaking waves a couple of years ago on a delivery from France to Miami, but they were re-routed midway across the pond to Annapolis though known-ro-be very risky North Atlantic seas that time of year.

That report, however tragic, gave me tremendous confidence in our boat. The 380 survived several bouts with huge sets of breaking 45 foot waves rolling through, and it did not flip for the longest time.

Then, one rogue wave finally broke right on them and flipped them. The boat floated, they escaped through the bottom hatches, the coast guard rescued the crew, all as is part of the catamaran plan.

But, heartbreakingly, the captain did not have on adequate clothes and he died of hypothermia before the rescue was effected.

I really was amazed the 380 stayed upright for hours in those seas! No sea anchor, not nothing.

Considering Melissa and I are "weather wussies" and will never make an ocean passage out of season or outside of accepted routes, the chance of encountering anything even close to those seas for hours on end is almost zero for us.

Thus, from the that 380 flipping, I was able to get a pretty good idea of where the brink is. I don't foresee me, or any other very careful cruiser, getting anywhere near that brink.

So, be happy, sail happy, and get the boat you like and play it safe!

All the best,

Buddy

[muskoka]

Very interesting Mudbug. Just shows you that every boat is still a relatively small speck on the ocean!

Out of interest, what do you carry in terms of storm sails? And what do you carry as light airs sails?

Cheers, Cameron

[Salina]

Anyone have experience with the FP Salina. Have been searching websites for data but have only come across two reviews which read like they are too politically correct and likely dealer sponsored. Am coming at this as a current monohull owner and trying to seek the best match of performance-comfort-value (not necessarily in that order).

The other two boats I have been looking at are the new Prout 45 and 50 and the Corsair 50. Keep coming back to the Salina for build confidence (Prout and Corsair designs/yards are very new) and decent sail area to displacement compared to price.

Any insight would be great.

Thanks

[rigamarole]

We toured one at last years Miami boat show and at TMM's base in Tortola. The base manager at TMM was non-committal on the boat. I loved the looks of it and the layout. It was brought up in another thread, and I agree, that the cabinets and bath units look like their pre-manufactured and then screwed into place during construction. For coastal and charter use, the boat appears awesome. I think it has the best raised helm setup of any of the newer designed cats. So really my only concern would be the fit and finish actually lasting long term. It has one sexy profile though.