65ft aluminum mono vs 50ft cat

[Manateeman]

Tupaia. The name of one of the most famous navigators of the pacific. I had wished you would have included more information as to your vessel and experience in your profile.
With regard to your draft question. We are twin keels, and at 60’ our draft is 6’.
It’s very true I can’t get into the skinny waters enjoyed by my catamaran friends but I do not think 6’ would prevent world cruising. Sitting upright on a sand bar does give me opportunity to scrub the bottom and inspect things. Our rudder is protected by a compression post but I find it prudent to stay close to the boat to avoid trying to outrun galloping tides.
Large aluminum monohulls and wicked fast infused catamarans both have strong followings. There is no perfect vessel, material, nor design. Seems silly to keep reiterating the pluses and minuses of each as they are well known.
Happy trails to you.
Mark ,a simple manatee.

[chris mac]

Originally Posted by Ktz

Dear Chris,
I think your info is false. The base price of SF50 is 920K$ with a very long list of equipment as standard.

Sorry about that. I just looked it up and you are correct. I'm not sure wher my brain pulled that number from[emoji848]
The ruby rose 2019 review put a fully loaded model at 1.2m. All the more reason to go with the st Francis.
Good luck with whatever you decide

[MicHughV]

c'mon....a $1mil bucks in hand is like going to the candy store..where do you even begin to look...don't forget taxes !!!

[MerlinBrasil]

You might want to check out O-Yachts.com


I find their design elements interesting and you can take a hand in the design to customize to your heart's content.


Good luck out there!



Merlin

[CarlF]

I'd go with the big mono because I find sailing more fun on a mono and the interior space of your two choices is similar. The mono is also likely to be faster than the St. Francis loaded for a long trip. In fact, the extra load carrying capacity of a big mono is a huge advantage.

If you go with a furling main, a mono has much easier and safer mainsail handling.

But the cat certainly rolls less and has a different motion at sea. Is your girlfriend more subject to seasickness on a mono? And a tradewinds circumnavigation aboard a cat will have much less rolling. A Cat can also be tolerable in some rolly exposed anchorages where a mono would not - although neither is so comfortable that it isn't usually easier to search out a better anchorage. I would not consider 6' draft a material problem - even in shallow draft places like the Bahamas.

[Mito430]

Have you looked at any of the Chris White Atlantiic series of cats?. When we were cruising on our Voyage 430 cat, that was our dream cat. Spent quite a bit time on one with Chris in the BVI. There are a couple of 48's and 55's on his web site in your price range. You also might look at a new Voyage 480 owner's version. We chartered one in the BVI last Dec and it was much quicker than our 430 and much more bridge deck clearance. With the owners config you get three queen suites.

[singlespeed]

Draft issues on most large monohulls will put you further out on many anchorage, not to mention more of the hated "dinghy butt" opportunities. Most larger cats carry fairly large and dry dinghies, not so on larger monohulls. After numerous long off shore races, I'll take a multihull everytime going downhill. The constant rolling of a monohull is not enjoyable after the first 48 hours. I know I cook and dine comfortably in 20 knot winds going to weather, in a multihull. Heel and motion of a monohull pretty much limited us to sandwiches.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Ktz

Thank you very much for your reply. I admire the practicality and hull capabilities in every Dashew design. The problem is that the layout is strictly for a couple. I think it has only one toilet. Also the interior is quite outdated for my taste.

We have two full bathrooms, owners cabin forward, and two aft cabins.

The interior is designed not for fashion but for functionality both while passaging and at anchor. There has never been a development matching the practicality. Even though a navstation has become less important, the same area can be used as an office and technical area so not a waste of space. All the rest is still unmatched imo

[captlloyd]

A 50 ft. Cat is a lot of boat for just two people. Even four .

[Joli]

My wife and I cruise and live aboard a 61' mono. It's quick and comfortable, passages usually include many 200 mile days. We don't find our 9' draft to be inconvenient, we do find a 93' air draft inconvenient.

[billgewater]

In our part of the world (tropical Aus.), beam can be a problem. Darwin has four marinas, all with lock gates that I believe are limited to 7.2 m beam. One of the marinas can only be used by commercial vessels. Some marinas have draft limitations as well which can be a problem....
Generally many marinas will charge extra for a multihull (1.3, 1.5 times for an equivalent mono hull).
On the other hand Darwin has large tides and many visiting multi hulls sit on the sandy beach at Fanny Bay during spring tides for hull cleaning etc.
Many monos use the careening poles at Dinah Beach yacht club (an experience in itself) or the poles at Fanny Bay. There are good lift out facilities available although the travel lifts probably could not manage a big cat. Paspalis yard has a flat bed synchro lift that can manage anything. And I mean anything.
Nearly all the circumnavigators pass through Darwin because of its location and the great cosmopolitan and party lifestyle during the dry season. A cruisers paradise. A meeting place for all the adventurers. Big lizards, big fish, big drinkers. Gateway to the Kimberly's and Asia.

I have spent a day in the St. Francis yard. (The marina entrance at St. Francis is really something different!) The St. Francis company is not a production line business like Robertson and Caine in Cape Town. I would suspect that from inception to delivery for a new boat would be a long time. Very impressed though. I believe you can have just about any lay out you want. They build for the customer, not for a market place.
If you can make it to South Africa, a visit to Knysna could be of interest. They make very individualized multis there. Last time there we spied a few Knysna's sitting at the local marina, including a 50 ft'er.
Maybe a chat with them could be informative. A family business. SA is currently in a mess, so a good deal may be in the offing.
What become clear to us is that the SA small yards can capitalize on lower labour costs. However, the quality is superb.

[mcarthur]

Originally Posted by billgewater

On the other hand Darwin has large tides and many visiting multi hulls sit on the sandy beach at Fanny Bay during spring tides for hull cleaning etc.

I used to swim regularly at Lee Point and Buffalo Ck in the 70's. I hadn't realised the Fanny Bay crocs would be so well fed by now and have acquired a taste for cat owners cleaning off vs monos..

[nortonscove]

I've spent the better part of the last 25 years operating a travelift. Since there isn't a lift within hundreds of miles of me that can handle that cat I would lean toward the mono. I see this as a necessity when cruising because the unknown happens and I would not wish to traverse unnecessary miles in a compromised vessel simply to find a large enough facility to raise the thing. A friend asked me to lift his 47 Crowther years ago and seemed surprised to learn he was about 5 feet too wide. He ended up paying three times as much at a commercial facility many miles away.

If that were an emergency the miles would feel that much longer.

I like the cat life but am too much put off by driving hundreds of miles to work on or just visit my boat.

[Tupaia]

Originally Posted by nortonscove

I've spent the better part of the last 25 years operating a travelift. Since there isn't a lift within hundreds of miles of me that can handle that cat I would lean toward the mono. I see this as a necessity when cruising because the unknown happens and I would not wish to traverse unnecessary miles in a compromised vessel simply to find a large enough facility to raise the thing. A friend asked me to lift his 47 Crowther years ago and seemed surprised to learn he was about 5 feet too wide. He ended up paying three times as much at a commercial facility many miles away.

If that were an emergency the miles would feel that much longer.

I like the cat life but am too much put off by driving hundreds of miles to work on or just visit my boat.

That is hardly reason to make a choice. I know of several places around the world to get hauled out so long as your draft is less than 4 feet. The OP is planning a trade wind circumnavigation where there are numerous places to haul cats and mono's. Plus all of the commercial yards, you may not like the prices but in an emergency then the insurance will likely be paying.


On the other hand you could argue redundancy. Completely destroying a propeller on a cat means you can still cruise, you can even dry out an a beach and fix it. same thing on a mono and you are looking for a tow to that same very expensive commercial yard. Sure there are narrow travel lifts that will haul a mono cheaply but once you are in the know there are equally numerous haul-outs for cats.

So hardly a deal breaker either way.

[Bill O]

Would consider the lift issue something real. The cat is wide and in a 65' mono the type of rig counts also.


A sloop rig on a mono is fine, but a ketch or schooner rig on a large mono, you'll need to find a fairly large lift or pull the mizzen.


Even w/our relatively small ketch, we have some difficulty in some 25/35 ton lifts if they have std. arm lengths on the travel lift.