Ugly 2018 Catamaran: $144,900

[Cpt Mark]

You need to find out the answers to who built it, who designed it, does the designer have a good rep? Also, what it was built for. Friend of mine bought a brand new 40' cat over 20 years ago. The builder built 2 of them at the same time. This is stitch and glue construction. Builder added 1 additional layer for his personal boat as he was going cruising with his family. My friends boat has been in charter use for over 20 years and now he's retired, boat is for sale and in excellent condition. I was Captain on a 55' cat home built by 3 guys using the same construction method and plans from the same designer. Built very well, very strong. I've seen 3 of these in full time charter use. If I was in the market I'd be looking at that boat but, I also know a lot about what it takes to finish off a project boat. Look at the survey and think long and hard if a project boat is for you. If so, go look at it and see if the design is for you. I saw a 42' aluminum cat, homebuilt to plans, that crossed the Atlantic for sale. In order to get into the hulls you had to get on your hands and knees and crawl into the 4' headroom.

[sail sfbay]

Loat looks fine to me. Good value. I would go see it.

[joelhemington]

Originally Posted by zamber

I came a across a very ugly, but almost new catamaran on boat trader. It is custom and looked homemade like someone built it in his backyard. Would you say it is worth the low price of $144,900 if someone did not care that is is ugly?

How badly built do you think this might be? 40 ft is very big.

https://www.boattrader.com/boat/2018...maran-6862394/

Ugly? I was thinking more like butt ugly - I could swear I've seen oil tankers with more charm than that thing. While this is very depressing, it may in fact be well built, though there's nothing in the description to substantiate that. They say it's not completed yet so maybe there's still hope for it - not sure how much lipstick the pig would require

[Hardhead]

Any word on why the builder is selling it? Seems a little odd to go through all that work, for years probably - and sell it so soon after finishing. Could it be a performance issue?

She's not really ugly to my eye though, and definitely seen worse.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by AronGlower

I think this boat looks good, but I'm not sure I would give that much money for it.

My thought exactly!

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Hardhead

She's not really ugly to my eye though, and definitely seen worse.

Like this?

Pete

[Apollo366]

OMG!

Yes Butt Ugly & made by Lagoon too!

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Apollo366

OMG!

Yes Butt Ugly & made by Lagoon too!

It was located up a really pretty little estuary during the summer. What you don't get from the photos is the size of the thing. That boom was above our first spreaders

[captlloyd]

Originally Posted by joelhemington

Ugly? I was thinking more like butt ugly - I could swear I've seen oil tankers with more charm than that thing. While this is very depressing, it may in fact be well built, though there's nothing in the description to substantiate that. They say it's not completed yet so maybe there's still hope for it - not sure how much lipstick the pig would require

Was wondering what make cat you own ?

[Sand crab]

Originally Posted by hpeer

What do you get when you mate a Maine Coon Cat with a Leopard?

Did you mean a Maine Cat or the actual coonie cat cause I don't see the resemblance to either? But that Maine humor is wicked good sometimes.

I think both masts are on tabernacles BTW.

[captlloyd]

Certainly not ugly and could be a fine cruising boat. Just do some research and get a good survey. If your research turns out good you can probably negotiate a bit lower price and all is good.

[Hardhead]

Originally Posted by captlloyd

Certainly not ugly and could be a fine cruising boat. Just do some research and get a good survey. If your research turns out good you can probably negotiate a bit lower price and all is good.

Looks like it has nicely angled sides on the cabin. I'd think it would be a good design for errant boarding waves.

[phillw]

Yes beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I agree with other comments that the fact that this boat has been built out of foam/epoxy that it is highly unlikely to not have been built to some sort of design plans. Now value for money well I will give you a few things to contemplate and you can make your own decision. Costs I am providing I have converted to USD from AUD,

US $70K - Basic material costs - Foam, epoxy, fibreglass, fairing compound etc
US $70K - Mast, sails, rigging and 2 x sail drives with props

Those two items above roughly add up to the cost of the boat.

Now I was quoted 5 years ago to fair and paint my boat which only included labour of US $50K. Obviously I cannot tell if the outside has been professionally faired but the inside definitely has not but my quote only included the saloon and fwd and aft head/shower. The rest of the boat I was going to use head liners throughout to save fairing.

So for $144K and I assume you won't offer the listed price so say $130K you pay for basic materials and the items listed at item 2. Everything else is for free and labour is the big ticket item. To hazard a guess, I would say that there is at least the same value of the boat in materials and labour included in the boat. So, yes there is no doubt it is a bargain. I have seen boats in Aust, 2 x Schionnings go on the market not completed having had over US $190K spent on them sell for between US $80K (40ft $190K spend) and $115K (43ft US $200K spend. Those boats were bargains but were still sitting in sheds requiring painting, fairing, fitout etc. No masts or sails but they did have engines, portlights, some gallet equip etc. Those boats would have required at least another US $120K to get them fitted out and launched. And for $120K it would be a very basic fit out.

It would be an even bigger bargain if the boat has been built to naval architect plans which I suspect it has, only because of the epoxy/foam materials used. If it hasn't then you have no way of knowing whether the laminate in the build will hold the boat together in adverse sea states. Yes I agree with another comment that catamaran shrouds for the main mast normally have inner and outer shrouds. Newer designs have both shrouds as far outboard as possible. Older desings have the inner on the side of the saloon and the outer as far outboard as possible. The photo only shows inner shrouds but that may be because the main mast does not have a boom. Again, naval architect plans will need to be sighted.

It is going to cost a bit of money to complete the inside but you can keep costs down by DIYing.

If the boat is not built to naval architect drawings then I would probably pass on the boat unless you only intent coastal and waterways cruising. The fact that the boat is sitting level on its waterline tells me that it has a high probability of being designed by a naval architect. If you are inspecting the boat, check all the deck lockers and make sure that they have the correct items in them. One way to get a boat sitting level on their dwl is to empty locker and/or fill them with drums of fuel/water etc.

[Hardhead]

In agreement with the above comment - I'm kinda thinking the boat is being sold pretty close to cost. Looking carefully at the photos, and imagining what labor went into it, it seems like somebody spent one heck of a lot of work on it. If it's built to naval architect plans - and I was in the market - I'd give it some close consideration. I don't mind the non-production look personally.

[MountainKing]

Might be 40', but it looks like it has the space of a 35' due to poor layout. No seating in the cockpit at all, besides the helm. Those really short tramps are disappointing, and though it may not be an issue in Maine, those slanted saloon windows will make for a very hot cabin if you took it down to the Caribbean. Also, good luck selling it when the time comes. If you could find a production cat at that price, it would hold it's value better and be easier to sell.