Multihullers, Tell Us What You Like About Monohulls

[Southern Star]

Just to get an idea of the list of positives about monohulls that have been put forward by multihullers, we have seen:

1. Price.
2. Easier/cheaper to maintain.
3. Often prettier.
4. Generally easier to tack.
5. Generally point higher.
6. Better 'feel' when sailing.
7. Less sensitive to carrying weight.
8. Easier to find haul-out facilities, cheaper to dock.
9. The interiors are often better finished.
10.Typically do not pound to windward.
11.Narrower beam permits transit of areas such as the French canals that are unavailable to most multihulls.

So even if you overlook the 'backhanced compliments' that have appeared in both threads, it seems to me that a number of members had contributed to both threads in a pretty fair and reasonable way.

Brad

[ggray]

Hey, as long as they have sails, it's OK.

[D&D]

Originally Posted by Southern Star

what is achieved by drawing generic conclusions, or generalizing about either group based upon posts which we don't like?

Hear! Hear!

There does seem to be a too frequent tendency to be critical of others' posts, whether out of a perception (whether soundly based, or not) that the reviewer feels the earlier post was beneath his/her own technical knowledge, or the reviewer simply doesn't like the earlier post's opinion(s)...or, in this case, the whole direction of the thread!?!

Live and let live eh? After all, we're all supposed to be kindred sailors and fellow WAFI's.

[andreas.mehlin]

Multihulls:
Big deck
Sails flat
Shallow draw

I have sailed on 65ft monohull and can't say that's what I'm looking for. Still leaning. Sure...it can be fun sailing a leaning boat during a day...but not cruising where you seek comfort.

[webejammin]

I sure love all the solid teak wood work you find on some classy monohulls, my wife and I fell in love with a 01 Natucat 44 in Sattle it was like what you might find in a Disney movie, perfictly done wood work everywhere and the teak deck was awsome too. We also looked at a Hinkley 45 that had beautiful teak interior and really beautifully done teak deck. Both boats were 4 times the price we eventually paid for a boat.

[David_Old_Jersey]

- Cheaper (on average) for a s/h vessel.
- Most do not look like an upturned Skip (Dumpster). Apart from Hunters
- no bridgedeck slap to disturb sleep when sailing, solo
- Hitting some unexpected wind is not a terminal event.

[Dulcesuenos]

Having just switched I can tell you we miss that feeling of sailing, like the hand of god is pushing you as she heels over and digs in. the mono is much more romantic looking and sailing than our cat. I miss feeling like im hauling arse at 6 knots. Weve hit 10.7 surfing and 9 on broad reach it still didnt feel very fast.

Glad we have friends though who have monos cause we are never switching back.

[D&D]

Originally Posted by Dulcesuenos

10.7 surfing and 9 on broad reach it still didnt feel very fast.

True, but you can still see and hear the water flying underneath...and it sure feels comfortable...and now, when I think of how beaten up and exhausted I sometimes felt after long blue water passages on a mono, I realize too how much comfort can add to both well being and cruising range.

"never switching back" here either!

[kaimusailing]

"I hope I don't take that dock out".
I'm in a narrow inlet and when do a 180 with the catamaran, it turns like a ship, and the docks on the far side become fair game. At sea I like the way the boat runs on course like a train on its tracks. In harbor it becomes a calculation if the boat on rails can complete a turn.
In contrast, my monohull with only one propeller could be turned practically within its own length. An older skipper showed me the procedure. Turn sharply, then back down. Reverse the rudder while backing down and wait while the boat loses way and continues its turn. Then power forward and shift the helm again, then steady up on the reciprocal of the original course.
The catamaran just didn't respond fast enough to do this. I learned to plan my maneuvers and take a lot more room to change direction. I articulated my outboard motor to turn with the rudders and maybe give me more maneuverability, but it doesn't look like it helps very much. I can use it to pin the boat at the dock. The best technique out on the water is to cut the engine and let the boat coast, then give it full rudder, then pulse the engine and cut it again. The boat will turn a bit but not go very far. Pulse it again with full rudder, if necessary. Let it continue turning. At sea you can just make the full turn and take up a lot of sea room. The corollary is that the monohull was like a 10 speed bicycle and very touchy at the helm, she'd turn on a dime, but she'd turn on a dime. The cat handles like a large ship and it's less nervous, take your time and make up the sheets, wander back to the helm and make a correction, go forward and make up some more lines. It's a voyaging boat and not a buoy runner.

[Palarran]

Originally Posted by kaimusailing

"I hope I don't take that dock out".
In harbor it becomes a calculation if the boat on rails can complete a turn.

The catamaran just didn't respond fast enough to do this.
I learned to plan my maneuvers and take a lot more room to change direction. I articulated my outboard motor to turn with the rudders and maybe give me more maneuverability, but it doesn't look like it helps very much. I can use it to pin the boat at the dock. The best technique out on the water is to cut the engine and let the boat coast, then give it full rudder, then pulse the engine and cut it again. The boat will turn a bit but not go very far. Pulse it again with full rudder, if necessary. Let it continue turning. At sea you can just make the full turn and take up a lot of sea room. The corollary is that the monohull was like a 10 speed bicycle and very touchy at the helm, she'd turn on a dime, but she'd turn on a dime. The cat handles like a large ship and it's less nervous, take your time and make up the sheets, wander back to the helm and make a correction, go forward and make up some more lines. It's a voyaging boat and not a buoy runner.

I personally can't relate to your experience with turning a cat. In fact, I find that your technique is actually a problem I often see around my marina, which is that people are timid with the throttle. The more I learn, the more I gas it, depending on the situation of course. I use a lot of rudder wash to push me off the dock. Turning in a 360 degree circle could be done by a 3rd grader. Do you only have one motor?

[downunder]

Originally Posted by Palarran

I personally can't relate to your experience with turning a cat. In fact, I find that your technique is actually a problem I often see around my marina, which is that people are timid with the throttle. The more I learn, the more I gas it, depending on the situation of course. I use a lot of rudder wash to push me off the dock. Turning in a 360 degree circle could be done by a 3rd grader. Do you only have one motor?

Palarran,

I suspect the issue is more with his particular Wahram with single(I think) outboard. No comparison with twin diesel shaft or saildrive cats.
Not typical for majority of cats.

[D&D]

Originally Posted by Palarran

Turning in a 360 degree circle could be done by a 3rd grader.

That's a bit harsh...but true...

[kaimusailing]

Yeah, I was more or less stuck with the design of the previous builder. I learned to be very careful maneuvering. There is an aperture in the port hull bow for a bow thruster, but I never followed through on that. The twin engine array is what Wharram recommends on most of his larger designs now and I hear they work pretty well.
I can understand some of the reports I get when a single screw boat has trouble around the docks or trying to pick up a mooring. Try doing it under sail only. The twin engines, redundant power, I envy the production cats at times, and other times I am cleaning out the #1 and only head, or fixing the #1 and only engine. We get to sail though, and all is equal.

[David_Old_Jersey]

My Mono is a cow to steer in reverse - 50/50 on which way she will turn

But what I discovered is that if I put a little of turn on the rudder (I forget which way - something to relearn ) that she reverses straight no matter what (obviously have wind / tidal drift to consider - but once you know what is going on with those they are actually helpful )......I go ahead for turning (and have a favourite side - Again, I forget which ) - and, as already said, using a bit of Oomph on occassion is very useful - and if I wait a second or before hitting reverse I avoid prop cavitation (which means still going forward at some velocity ).

For OP might want to try using a Sculling oar (dual use as part of the rig for a sailing dink?) - on the side - or simply something to add drag to one hull (a bucket?). For me the key was simply experimenting (away from other boats - I used a mooring field so I had fixed points of reference and nothing expensive to hit, probably will again come March ).

Or fit a bow thruster (a couple?) - but may kinda miss the ethos on a Wharram .

[Sand crab]

I'm partial to multis but my friend has a mono and he takes me along. So on that day I LOVE monos. BOB