Minimum cruising cat-size & cost

Its a tri but aside from that I think it has many of the virtues that this thread ascribes to and it might be the basis for a design for a cheap fast cruiser. The free standing cat yawl rig I find especially interesting. I believe its The 36' Chris White design "White Wings". I saved the image on my computer when I was contemplating the new design for my own rig.

 

That's Dick Newick's design.

 

Timothy - tell more - why were you considering it. What did you go with?

 

WHITE WINGS may be for sale -- can't tell when it was posted.

http://www.nemasail.org/memberspage.html

 

My mistake . It is indeed a Dick Newick design. I should have checked before I posted. I read about the boat years ago in an article in one of the sailing magazines and I was impressed. When I started thinking about a cat yawl rig for my Freedom 40 I tried to find the article on the internet but only came up with the picture.

 

With cost savings in mind....
What is it ok to buy second hand and what (definitely)not?
Deck gear/electronics/spars etc etc..........

 

Don't go cheap everywhere

One of my friends saved about $2000 by building his 40ft cat out of construction grade plywood. That was huge blunder. I tried to help him sell the boat and he had to drop the price hugely as the boat was always going to be severely compromised by something integral to the structure.

Chris White has a great motto which is "If you can't chuck it overboard it better be good" I used this credo in my cat and have never regretted it. Go simple with the electronics, the rig, reduce the number of winches but never ever try to save money on something you will spend thousands of hours building. You can never upgrade the structure. So go proper epoxy, marine or void less ply, good glass etc.

You can also save huge amounts if you can purchase properly. I just bought 240 litres of Epoxy for less than I have EVER paid in 15 years of boatbuilding. I got much better at getting better deals and being a good customer. Develop your purchasing skills - don't come across as a scrounger, get to know the sellers and be a quick sale at low overhead.

cheers

Phil

 

Very interesting

Same here in South Africa - I think they are hurting for business and now we know how they have been ripping us off for years and years

 

Structure absolutely has to be high quality. An extra $10,000 is far better spent upgrading from exterior to marine plywood, or from cheap E-glass weave to high strength multiaxial S-glass, rather than spending it on electronic gadgetry. A solid hull forms the basis of the boat's value, and a substandard hull will never sell for what it cost you to build.

I would also put "last resort" safety gear in the "must buy new" category. EPIRB, life raft, etc. and all your fire prevention/extinguishing gear should be new and under warranty; you never know if you can trust it otherwise.

I think the second-hand approach can offer considerable savings on equipment and hardware- winches, for example. Surplus inventory day at the local chandler's is a great chance to pick up paint, plumbing bits, through-hull fittings and other random bits that are nearly new, but have been sitting in storerooms for a while.

Going without the latest electronics (do you really need a $110,000 networked 3D chartplotter/radar/fishfinder/martini maker?) in favour of simple, proven gear bought one piece at a time might be a good idea. Start with a solid hull, and- as you learn how you actually use your boat- add equipment as you find you need it. There are plenty of cheap(er) sources for electronics, but do keep warranty and servicing issues in mind, especially for anything mounted where it might get wet.

 

Couldn't agree more with the last 3 posts. Listen to these guys. Often on here, I see builders who don't have time at sea. It's very difficult to know exactly what you need at sea if you don't have years on the water to figure it out. These guys obviously do have that time at sea. Listening to their advice will save you having to make any costly mistakes.

Chris White also made a very good comment to me and I'll quote him here:

"It costs just as much and takes just as long to build a piece of junk as it does to build a good boat. Might as well build a good one."

The price of hull materials is a tiny drop in the bucket of the cost of building a boat. Never skimp there.

Electronics? You barely need any. Although the emphasis is often on electronics at boat shows, in reality, they are not all that essential to cruising. A basic GPS and a VHF is enough to get you by in many cases.

 

What minimum size for outboard? Thinking 8hp 4 stroke... if 2 then could i go smaller?
Lightwt 9m cat.
Better to mount centrally or at end on beam? May have to steer with it...
Build so that it could be pulled up and not drag.
What minimum interior height for hulls - i am 1.8m?

 

I told you before - our coastal current is up to 6km/hr. You need to beat that or you'll go nowhere. Ask Manie if you don't believe me. You should be looking at 15 to 20km/hr minimum ! 2 x 10 to 2 x 30hp.

 

"Minimum cruising cat-size & cost."
Thats the name of this thread and if it's a small Cat you want, with some decent headroom in the hulls, you can't go past Richard Woods range of Cat designs.
Just MHO.

 

Basically if i were to buy plans, at present it is between Woods and wharram....
BUT am getting that desire (disease) to self design.
YES - i have read the thread on why not to....... and wouldn't go into it without much thought,learning and getting the idea's checked by someone who knows what they are doing.
Present design has between 1.3 and 1.4m in hulls but fear it may be too little..
Fanie - looks like i may be designing for elsewhere if plans go well......

 

Alex you are going arse about face here

first design the boat and displacement
then drag of the underwater body
then windage of above water structures
then determine motor size for this design
dont forget ocean currents
leave Durban for Richards Bay and go backwards to East London
not fun at all