Catalac 10m for Circumnavigation ?

[fyodor1564]

One of the few on the market at present is: Catalac Catamaran For Sale. She seems to be overpriced in that ive seen others come and go with a lot more swag. Given the price tag attached to the 10m - normally between $80,000-100,000 -are there better multihulls that you might suggest?

[boatman61]

Seems pretty damn good kit to me ... what you after wall to wall TV
Otherwise go for the Prout... the money you save will cover the delivery costs.... hahahahahaha........

[fyodor1564]

Is the wall to wall tv an option? Obviously i'll happily start cruising from wherever the boat lies. Im more concerned with safety and the modest performance to get me to my next destination. I love the use of the layout for a 33' boat

[Eleven]

There are some good 33/34ft Prouts around, same layout for 31ft, 34ft and 37ft.
Note these older Prouts have the rear mast rig that have many advantages for single handing or short crew on long trips.
There are a wide range, with pics and details, on the Multuhullworld.com where my 31ft is for sale at the moment. Pinafore is a rebuilt 34ft, twin inboard new engined and new interior. Mine is Cariad (we called her Poppy) at 31ft which again is ready to go. Both these boats are in the 30 to 36k sterling, say 45k? US dollars. Both would need a couple of thousand for a second sail set, and the other things you would want before a long ocean voyage.
I would recommend that you have the standing rigging inspected and re-tensioned by the best man you can find, and do some serious day trips to get you and the boat to a level of readiness because the sea, for sure, will find your weaknesses.
By the way, I'm really envious, if I was a free bird I'd be off the Portugese coast right now, heading for a few years in the med. with a transatlantic in mind for when the med gets boring.

[barnakiel]

I do not see much difference between a Prout and a Catalac. Probably just get the one which is sounder and a better deal if you put them side by side.

I sailed a Prout (old, about 34 ft long) and she was horrible - slow and not responsive. But then again I have seen in a yachting magazine a Prout from the new pack (after 2000) and she looked great and received good marks from the testers.

Then again I would guess Prouts can be more expensive than Catalacs, are they?

b.

[smj]

Our friends owned a Catalac 10 m so we had a chance to sail on her and next to her on our Cherokee 35. The Catalac I thought was very laid out and also well built. I found the motion to be a little undesirable and she was quite slow with our Cherokee sometimes doubling her speed.

[Eleven]

Speed is to some extent dependant on the sailing you are doing. On my 31ft Prout I routinely see boat speed of a third of the apparent wind. In ten knots she'll go along gently at 3 to 4, in 15 she's making easy progress at five knots, at 20 kts it's getting to the point where I'd reduce sail if cruising, depending on gusts, to keep boat speed below 7 kts, reducing rig strain and risk of surprises. I've seen 12.7kts in a brief surfing run downwind but that was pushing it a bit. OK for day sailing but not 'cruising'.
At five kts that's still a daily average over 100 miles a day. To get higher boat speeds means longer hulls but there is still the comfort factor where speeds over 8kts mean the bows fall off the top of each wave, very tiring after a couple of hours/days.
Good luck in your search.

[Parky]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Ahh Trevor... but it was fun... creeping over sandbanks at low water in the Thames Estuary... banging over short sea's in a strong NE'ly in the Solent....

This is the type of boat Eleven's talking about and I'd tend to agree....
Prout Snowgoose 37 Boats for sale UK, Prout Used boat sales, Prout Sailing Yachts For Sale Prout Snowgoose - Apollo Duck

And if you need it delivered give me and Trevor a shout....lol

As the proud parent of said Catalac and very happy she is now in Turkey - I have to defend her in that she was in a tired state (apart from new engines), so she may not be the best boat to give a comparison! If you are serious about buying one then take some advice from Phil about bits to look for (and if you need delivery - he carries my reccomendation), also very important check out the catalac owners website for advice on differences in rigging and sailing her - they hate it if you put too much weight in the bow and if you try to point too much they just slip - anyway I have one, and I love it!

[Tropic Cat]

Originally Posted by Parky

As the proud parent of said Catalac and very happy she is now in Turkey - I have to defend her ...

Gosh, no need to defend her, Catalacs are somewhat heavier boats and need more of a breeze to get them up and growling. On the other hand, of the 600 boats built, there aren't more than a handful for sale world wide, which pretty much speaks for itself.

I have a growing list of folks waiting for 8M's to come available in North America. If anyone reading this post cares to sell their boat, please email me and I'll put you in touch with a prospective buyer.

Moderators, this is a not for profit offer.

[Immanuel]

Originally Posted by fyodor1564

I've very much become a fan of recent, mainly due to financial reasons of the Catalac 10m catamarans. Ive read up on them extensively but unfortunately, short of some reviews by sully and talbot on other forums (for which i did find very informative) and the two great reference sites of An Affordable Cruising Catamaran and Your Heading Goes Here, i havent gotten alot of info. Id love to hear any and real world experience and/or opinions that this forum might offer. I'm well aware of the poor windward performance and heavy build, which i see as a plus. My intention would be to hopefully find one in decent condition to start a trade wind circumnavigation

I own hull #7, a 1985 10m for about 4 years now. For the same reasons you listed, cost, build quality, lots of space for 34ft. I researched cats for about 4 years and narrowed it down to catalac or prout. I liked the 37' prout snowgoose, but could not get one to fit my budget. Then I found the 10m. It was in reasonable shape with some nice upgrades for the price. Also it was brighter inside because of windows. The Prouts I looked at seemed dark inside. I have had to rebuild the engines, starboard in 2007 & port will be this year. They are Yanmar HM35's which I believe were not the standard at construction. Other than the engines, I have not had to sink significant money into her. All in all, shes a fine vessel. We sail in the N. Carolina area. I had her offshore once to go to Cape Lookout. On the return trip it was SW @ 15 to 20, just off the port bow. A bit choppy, but she handled nicely. I felt safe in her as I am a bit new this size boat. My wife and I took off for a month to Virginia about a year ago via the ICW. The whole month aboard convinced us that we could live aboard this boat comfortably for some time. Of course we have visions of Carribean living, but only time will tell.We still have lots to learn, but am enjoying it with this boat. Feel free to make contact if you have any more questions.
Clif
s/v Immanuel

[boatman61]

Hey Tim... didn't know you were a member here mate... thanks for the recommendation... appreciated,
And Tropiccats right... no need to apologise... we set off on June 9th and arrived at Pendik Aug 31st... 90 days more or less... I've calculated that a total of 43 days was spent either in a marina or at anchor waiting for weather windows or on the hard in Almerimar getting her bow section repaired....
3000+ miles in 47 days in a Catalac's nothing to complain about overmuch considering the wind was from where we wanted to go most of the time.....

[boatman61]

Has anyone ever tried fairing out that hard chine... that I feel is a large part of her problem.. when she gets into a sea they seem to brake her as she slams... also they exaggerate the slam.
Be interesting to see if glassing in a convex.. is that the word...?... to eliminate the hard 90degree inches and creating a flare would reduce the down force impact making for a smoother and thus faster sail...
Just a thought......

[fyodor1564]

Fairing out the hard chine - Boatman, can it really be that simple?

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by fyodor1564

Fairing out the hard chine - Boatman, can it really be that simple?

Gawd Knows mate..... I'm no boat builder.. but something simple enough to seem stupid sometimes works...
My Tiki 21 plans stated 1/3rd inch copper 1/2 round strip along the keel starting about 3ft back from the bow.... I thought that sucked.
As the whole purpose was for her to be a beach-able cat I got 2 x 1/4inch alloy strip and fastened it from 6in above the waterline at the bow.. all the way back to the rudder and filled/faired the overlap with epoxy and balloons mix... then three coats of epoxy.
Worked a treat and the added bonus was I was faster than most 26's and could pace a 26ft tri on a beam reach... I'd accidentally given her lift...

[fyodor1564]

S/V Immanuel - how do you find the comfort level when in a swell as one critique ive heard repeatedly about catalacs is that they can have a very uncomfortable side to side motion? Would you confidently take your 10m blue water?