After reading this thread>
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ms-25315.html; I was able to tick
Gemini catamarans off my short list
Southern Star's assesment of the
Gemini brand was done especially well; as were points made by Rick on Tropic Cat. I did feel that Sandy D made some valid points in his remarks.
Only problem is I ran across a
PDQ forum which was full of problem threads with that brand too
Which left me wondering which brands of cats tend to have the least amount of structural problems as they age? I am looking at
buying an older model cat 10-15yrs or more depending upon condition. It's apparent that the less hands that have owned the vessel prior to one obtaining it the better in my observation. Ususally one owner boats tend to be better cared for as a number of reasons are probably why. Some owners care for their boats knowing a day will come when they sell it; others actually enjoy their boats and care for it with attention to detail.
I am looking at
Catalac and Prout cats as being some of the more solid boats as they age. Having read most threads here and online in other
forums over the past year regarding cats; I came away with the realization that I am moving onto a cat for room, stability when anchored (less rolling), and space to relax onboard indoors and out. The 'speed issue' is firmly resolved by a few threads noting that most
liveaboard cats in my sub $100k range are not going to be more than 5-7
knot boats at best. I'm ok with that as most of my previously owned monohulls did no better cruising.
I narrowed my choices down to PDQ32, Prout Quest 31,
Catalac 8M,
Maine Cat 30, Gemini 30 (gone now from the list). Opposite most cat folks my cruising tends to be Northern by choice vs
carribean for now. I'm interested in moving over to the
West Coast and heading North to see what's up there in
Seattle and beyond to BC,
Alaska, etc; as well as going to
Newfoundland and
parts of Northern
New England.
That said, I notice that most cats are'nt that well insulated. Has anyone done so, and if you have what materials did you use? I thought of using sticky back 1/8"-1/4" cork
sheets covered by something I have'nt decided what, to make
cleaning easier.