What Catamaran should I get?

[Canderes]

Welcome to the club of connoisseurs!

For ocean sailing, the cat should be at least 35 ft long. A used Lagoon 38 would be a good start if it is in good condition. This model was built in high numbers for many years and is a mature model.

Hands off homebuilts and/or plywood. Construction, structural integrity and safety cannot be guaranteed. You are trusting your life to the cat! It would be good to consult a good expert before buying. Exclude hidden defects in the contract.

Be careful with catalytic converters that were used in charter or even for skipper training. These had an above-average gear load.

Give second priority to good sailing performance. At the top of the priority scale should be stability against strong winds = safety. If you are in a particular hurry, better take a plane 😊!
Happy Sailing from Austria

[Canderes]

Welcome to the club of connoisseurs!

For ocean sailing, the cat should be at least 35 ft long. A used Lagoon 38 would be a good start if it is in good condition. This model was built in high numbers for many years and is a mature model.

Hands off homebuilts and plywood. Construction, structural integrity and safety cannot be guaranteed. You are trusting your life to the cat! It would be good to consult a good expert before buying. Exclude hidden defects in the contract.

Be careful with catalytic converters that were used in charter or even for skipper training. These had an above-average gear load.

Give second priority to good sailing performance. At the top of the priority scale should be stability against strong winds = safety. If you are in a particular hurry, better take a plane 😊!
Happy Sailing from Austria

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Canderes

Welcome to the club of connoisseurs!

For ocean sailing, the cat should be at least 35 ft long. A used Lagoon 38 would be a good start if it is in good condition. This model was built in high numbers for many years and is a mature model.

Hands off homebuilts and/or plywood. Construction, structural integrity and safety cannot be guaranteed. You are trusting your life to the cat! It would be good to consult a good expert before buying. Exclude hidden defects in the contract.

Be careful with catalytic converters that were used in charter or even for skipper training. These had an above-average gear load.

Give second priority to good sailing performance. At the top of the priority scale should be stability against strong winds = safety. If you are in a particular hurry, better take a plane 😊!
Happy Sailing from Austria

The first Catamaran to round Cape Horn was a 30ftr
They sailed 30,000 miles (48,300 km) across the Atlantic Ocean, through the Panama Canal and across the Pacific, stopping at the Galapagos Islands, the Marquesas, Tahiti and Tonga, before reaching Australia in 1973. They were the first catamaran crew to round Cape Horn.
and a 21ftr ply/glass cat circumnavigate via New Zealand..
"In 1991-97 Rory McDougall sailed his self-built Tiki 21 Cooking Fat around the world, sometimes alone, sometimes with a companion. She was the smallest catamaran to have circumnavigated. In 2010 Rory entered Cooking Fat in the Jester Challenge (single handed 'race' across the Atlantic for small boats - under 30ft) and came into Newport, Rhode Island a close second after 34 days."
Blanket statements about size and material are often wrong..

[ron17571]

Pay someone to take you out on their large Catamaran and then think it over.

[Perfect Ride]

Originally Posted by dowlo

I was wondering what you would recommend. ...
I am new to this world and any advice or tips is greatly appreciated.

Hello and welcome, if you PM me i can send a little writeup I did on new-to-you boat purchase thoughts. In any case I hope you get time to walk some docks and talk to and perhaps even get on the water to experience first hand different boats.

[smj]

Originally Posted by boatman61

The first Catamaran to round Cape Horn was a 30ftr

They sailed 30,000 miles (48,300 km) across the Atlantic Ocean, through the Panama Canal and across the Pacific, stopping at the Galapagos Islands, the Marquesas, Tahiti and Tonga, before reaching Australia in 1973. They were the first catamaran crew to round Cape Horn.

and a 21ftr ply/glass cat circumnavigate via New Zealand..

"In 1991-97 Rory McDougall sailed his self-built Tiki 21 Cooking Fat around the world, sometimes alone, sometimes with a companion. She was the smallest catamaran to have circumnavigated. In 2010 Rory entered Cooking Fat in the Jester Challenge (single handed 'race' across the Atlantic for small boats - under 30ft) and came into Newport, Rhode Island a close second after 34 days."

Blanket statements about size and material are often wrong..

Not to mention circumnavigations in Heavenly Twins 26 and 27, Iroquois 30’s, and god forbid, even a Gemini!

[llmod@aol.com]

You will be limited in what will be available at that budget
A 380 lagoon is a good boat that has been around for a while and you might be able to find an older one fir under $200000. Some of the smaller cats have been known to hobby horse. Most cats have a long lifespan, look for one with low engine hours and well maintained
Good luck and enjoy

[Buzzman]

Originally Posted by boatman61

The first Catamaran to round Cape Horn was a 30ftr
They sailed 30,000 miles (48,300 km) across the Atlantic Ocean, through the Panama Canal and across the Pacific, stopping at the Galapagos Islands, the Marquesas, Tahiti and Tonga, before reaching Australia in 1973. They were the first catamaran crew to round Cape Horn.
and a 21ftr ply/glass cat circumnavigate via New Zealand..
"In 1991-97 Rory McDougall sailed his self-built Tiki 21 Cooking Fat around the world, sometimes alone, sometimes with a companion. She was the smallest catamaran to have circumnavigated. In 2010 Rory entered Cooking Fat in the Jester Challenge (single handed 'race' across the Atlantic for small boats - under 30ft) and came into Newport, Rhode Island a close second after 34 days."
Blanket statements about size and material are often wrong..

....and the first catamaran to circumnavigate was Kiwi David Lewis in a Prout-built 30' in the early Sixties, with wife and two small children aboard, powered only by a 5HP British Seagull outboard. In other words, they SAILED the whole way, except into dock.

He wrote up his adventures in three volumes: Dreamers of the Day, Daughters of the Wind and Children of Three Oceans. He's also an excellent writer.

[WaterLilyCat]

Hi there, I bought my first boat 3 years ago. It was a 40 year old,40ft cat, Stratos 12 design by Robin Chaimberlin. Paid $125k but ended up spending another 50k to get it up to seaworthy condition.
I sail most of the time single handed up and down the east coast of OZ.
My advice is to get an older boat that has been kept well. Get solid fibreglass construction as it will stand the test of time. When I do work on it in boat yards, the biggest problems are with ply or cored construction. Once get water ingress it is a nightmare. My only structural problem was with the cockpit roof. It was balsa cored construction and water ingress results in mush.
Definitely you can find a good old cat and they are not hard to sail. It will be heavy and a bit slow but there is plenty of time to enjoy the journey.

[Catarama]

Originally Posted by dowlo

Thank you all for your replies!

In answer to the research question what would you think about something like this:

https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for...jessica/249577

Also experience wise you could say I am a beginner and I would like something I could sail by myself if I have to.

Thanks in advance!

You could really consider the Easy @ $139k negotiable price. Look up and contact Sailing Popao on utube. Wonderful young couple cruising the east coast of Oz.. From 13 years of studying the market and catamarans this is a great opportunity to to purchase under $140k if she checks out fine as timber/ply boats number 1 enemy is rot. Sailing Popao have great utube videos on surveying and fixing rot. All very achievable for an average Aussie home handyman . Like I wrote, if it checks out... I am suggesting, you jump on this or something similar very quickly.. Good luck, regards Greg

[drparr]

Hi, yes do spend some time doing your homework. Multi hull dynamics is a good place to start your safety verses speed assessments. Many cats are good for moderate conditions and are not what i would call safe in offshore conditions.
I had a look at one of the older Gemini 105 cats Out on the hard and i was able to walk round and flex the hull with a gentle push, i like the boats but unsure about hull lay up.
Privelege 38/40 are fast and safe.
Have fun.

[smj]

Originally Posted by drparr

Hi, yes do spend some time doing your homework. Multi hull dynamics is a good place to start your safety verses speed assessments. Many cats are good for moderate conditions and are not what i would call safe in offshore conditions.

I had a look at one of the older Gemini 105 cats Out on the hard and i was able to walk round and flex the hull with a gentle push, i like the boats but unsure about hull lay up.

Privelege 38/40 are fast and safe.

Have fun.

I don’t believe Privilege ever produced a 38’ or 40’ catamaran. The catamarans that they did build are well known as being a quality build and seaworthy but by no means fast.

[NevilleCat]

Well there's also an Easy 43 in Paynesville for good price
https://www.boatsales.com.au/boats/d...956080/?Cr=113

Does it have to be a Cat though? Your budget will get you a hell of a decent mono....https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for...cruiser/256744https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for...cruiser/256744

[JulianECB]

A friend and I plan to buy a cat between us in the next year or so... for full ocean going cruising. I have also spent a large amount of time looking (and follow the Wynns) and a Leopard 44 is in our price range and pretty much ideal for what we want.

To be honest of we couldn't afford around £200K for the basic boat before we fit it out.. I would go monohull.

I'm sure there are faster and more luxurious cats... but Leopards seem to be a lot for the money... have the forward cockpit... seem safe and solid etc and well layed out.

[ausnp84]

How goes the search? FWIW, I’ve corresponded with the Sailing Papao guys a few times about ply/epoxy and their Easy cat, and they’re very friendly and helpful. For the sort of sailing you’re doing (and given it’s your first cat), a mid-30’s older cat would be perfect, that you can then spend a bit of cash on to upgrade with electronics, new sails, etc etc

N