What Catamaran should I get?

[Mr B]

Last night coming up Westernport bay, Victoria Australia,
Well, 1-30 AM,
Wind well over 40 knot winds on the beam and slightly to the front, 2 metre waves,
We had a very strong wind warning from the BOM,
But we were in it, so just had to keep going,

Genoa only, Doing 8 knots in a Gemini 105MC,
To get into the channel to the Marina, Directly on the nose and motoring at 4 knots flat out,
It was a very wild night,
I crushed and destroyed 3 fenders as I berthed,
They got shredded, Torn to pieces,

Two of us pushing the boat, we couldnt get any fenders between the boat and the walkway, So had to leave it as it was,
The cross wind was horrendous, It was a wild bucking night as we spent the night on board,
Finally tied up at 3-30 AM,

We did a hull clean on the beach, Gave me 3 knots extra on the diesel,
The wind started to scream as we waited for the tide to come in and get us off the beach,
High tide was Midnight, But we lifted off at about 9-30 PM,
Crossing from Philip Island to up the Channel to Yaringa was also very wild with a strong cross wind and big waves,

As we were leaving the Marina, Another Gemini 105mc Turned up on a truck from Port Lincoln in SA, its the first one, Other than mine Ive ever seen,

Cheers Brian,

[NevilleCat]

Jeez Brian, you might want to spend some time checking out the forecasts; you seem to catch some pretty bad weather!
Don't know how your lovely woman puts up with you! Mine would have not spoken to me after that...too much stress! Coming up that channel in the dark is bad enough on a still night.

[Mr B]

Originally Posted by NevilleCat

Jeez Brian, you might want to spend some time checking out the forecasts; you seem to catch some pretty bad weather!
Don't know how your lovely woman puts up with you! Mine would have not spoken to me after that...too much stress! Coming up that channel in the dark is bad enough on a still night.

Its Melbourne Mate, The weather changes faster than you can change your undies,
These very wild storms pop up unannounced,

It was a beautiful day on the beach cleaning the hulls, Perfect summers day,
The day before there was not a breath of wind all day, Hot and Sunny,
I had to motor all the way down to Phillip Island,

Coming up the channel would be easier if Parks Victoria maintained their channel lights, Most were out,
Just black sticks sticking up in the moonlight, ,

My lady knows I dont do bad weather often on the nose, Its just to get us some where out of it, Its not for long I do upwind,

Bad weather following, Its pretty calm on my Cat, The Boat is usually flat and level,
On the nose, Its wild and bucking, So I try to avoid it at most times,
Into Yaringa's channel cant be avoided, You take it as it comes,

I did think of dropping the hook and staying out there, But it would have been a very wild night onboard,
Hindsight, It may have been easier on the hook instead on in the Marina,
The Marina was bad,

Cheers, Brian,

[JulianECB]

Originally Posted by Mr B

Last night coming up Westernport bay, Victoria Australia,
Well, 1-30 AM,
...

Cheers Brian,

Love to see that you beach your boat to clean it.

I have read so many people talk about having their boats taken out of the water for cleaning etc... but people I knew as a kid always did it by beaching.

[Mr B]

Originally Posted by JulianECB

Love to see that you beach your boat to clean it.

I have read so many people talk about having their boats taken out of the water for cleaning etc... but people I knew as a kid always did it by beaching.

Its the first time I have ever beached it to clean it,
Ive been parked on the beach before this tho,
Finding a nice sandy beach with out rocks is the hard part,
The water has to be clear to see the bottom, Essential,
Slowly moving forwards till I ground, Keeps the back of the Cats transom high so the rudders dont dig in as much,
My rudders lift up up clear,
The centreboards are locked up as well,

I didnt realise how easy it is to clean the hulls, Just a scraper,
Two years of crud on them,
The Karcher high pressure washer was a waste of time and effort,
And it drained one of my freshwater tanks of water, Not good,

The Karcher experiment was beneficial,
I now know the Invertor will run it, as I bought it to run my water maker, But thats all connected up to run sea water thru it to make fresh water, ,

Cheers, Brian,

[Jeannius]

Originally Posted by JulianECB

Love to see that you beach your boat to clean it.

I have read so many people talk about having their boats taken out of the water for cleaning etc... but people I knew as a kid always did it by beaching.

I beached my cat in many places around the world for cleaning and, quite often, replacing anodes and replacing lower saildrive seals. Unfortunately not everywhere in the world has enough tidal range. This one does though, Darwin Oz...

[LittleWing77]

Originally Posted by Cadence

I would suggest getting some experience prior to deciding on a purchase.

What Cadence said. +++1

For heaven's sake! Go take a sailing lesson and see if you even LIKE sailing first! It's different than YouTube. Especially in Aus, where common winds start off at 20+knots...

LittleWing77

[Cat_sailor]

Originally Posted by dowlo

Hi all!

I'm new here and looking for a new adventure to get some joy for life back and I figured buying a catamaran and sailing in to the sunset would do that for me.

I have $AUD 150,000 so I was wondering what you would recommend. Initially I would plan to learn by sailing around Australia and then I'd want to make my way to Indonesia when the world allows it. After that who knows. I have been told that for blue water sailing 37ft is recommended?

I am new to this world and any advice or tips is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!

Hey friend!

I am basically trying to do the same! I'm looking at boats below 200k USD, have looked at lagoon 380 but they seem too sluggish so I'm now checking out something faster and more fun.

Now i am looking more towards a manta or a leopard since they seem to be a better balance between performance and comfort.

(if your interested, google "best catamarans under 200k" and there's a "catamaranfreedom.com site with a good overview of some boats)

[Factor]

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!

I know that boat from when it was being built, The owner/builder did a very careful job on her

[Factor]

Originally Posted by Canderes

Welcome to the club of connoisseurs! For ocean sailing, the cat should be at least 35 ft long.

Yeah Nah. The first modern Cat to circumnavigate was under this.

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.

Again someone denigrating ply and supporting balsa.

Give second priority to good sailing performance.

We are talking sailing boats here?

SAee attached Multihull World Article on 4o feet and sailing performance

[Catarama]

Hi
Here's Crowther Windspeed catamaran for $195000 AUD. I've seen people race and live on them. I know nothing else about these boats but I'm sure other do.
https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for...ockwave/255963
Remember they are asking $195k Photos 14 & 19 may show a little imperfection in the cabin roof
She's got the goods, carbon fibre rotating mast, dagger boards, Composite Kevlar / Glass / Epoxy foam core and apparently a huge wardrobe of exotic sails.
You best get there in a hurry, I've made it sound to good.
Good luck

[WaterLilyCat]

If you are buying an old catamaran, keep away from composite construction. When you water ingress it is a major problem. Solid fibreglass construction may be heavy and sacrifice some performance but it is very low maintenance and lasts forever.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by joelhemington

... I recommended foam core but that's a newer method which may be out of the OP's budget. .

Weve been building foam boats in AUS for 40 years now.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by WaterLilyCat

If you are buying an old catamaran, keep away from composite construction. When you water ingress it is a major problem. Solid fibreglass construction may be heavy and sacrifice some performance but it is very low maintenance and lasts forever.

Unless they used polyester resin, then its riddled with osmosis

[Jeannius]

Originally Posted by Catarama

Hi
Here's Crowther Windspeed catamaran for $195000 AUD. I've seen people race and live on them. I know nothing else about these boats but I'm sure other do.
https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for...ockwave/255963

That is beautiful. Wish I was in the market for a new boat!