Scored a Donor Cat, What is it?

Greetings forum folks,

So funny story…I just picked up a catamaran for 200$ that was 1,500$ two years ago. Buried behind a warehouse at a park and sell, the lot’s owner wants rid of it…tired of looking at it, don’t know what it is or what it’s worth is, or anything regarding sailing, and can’t find the owner. “give me 200 bucks and it’s yours”….so now I’ve got to hide another boat in my yard somewhere (the wife is not happy as I already have a set of H18 hulls tipped up against the garage to go along with a 21’ yacht, a laser, and a H16).

So I have daydream plans as follows:

1. Chop hulls about 7’ from bow, spin one and sister them together to make amma for western proa, stitch and glue the main hull.
   
   
2. use one hull as a cockpit(ed) center hull and build ply ammas for ripping solo trimaran
   
   
3. (The likely use) build ply center hull and use cat as donor to make strike 18 or something similar.
   
   
4. Lastly, jerry rig the thing together as is and see if it goes like the clappers. This seems like the least likely plan as I already have a fast, wet catamaran: the H16, and this mast looks sketchy.

one pic shows a gusseted splice in the mast...obviously a bad thing there but whatever...

So my real question is….what early 80’s cat is this? A Sol Cat? VIN has been painted over or it's on the hull that's airborne and I can't read it.
Park and Sell gave me a vin but it's not in front of me. I remember the last 4 digits were ...8282

Mast length—34’3”

Mainsail Luff—30’8”

Hull—18’4”

Beam—assuming it’s 10’, forgot to measure.

So all the rigging appears to be there, boom with 6 to 1 sheeting tackle, rudders, carbon daggers (that may not be carbon or even the originals), tilt trailer, boat, sail in decent shape, (spliced) mast with diamond spreaders and Hobie mast Bob, curved mainsheet track with car, ...200$ for the lot! Seems to me the trailer and sail alone might be worth 800$ ?? I couldn't say no...the perfect donor boat.

See pictures to help guess work. Thanks gang!!

 

Sandals, things are warming up in Montana.

Nice score.
Have fun.

It's the first three characters that are of most interest on a VIN.

 

Numbers are in front of me now...the VIN numbers might be: A00368181 (not sure if those are zeros or the letter O)
She also gave me some other numbers...:
BLJ623 (?)
CFZ8042F00005 (i think this is trailer reg)

 

I agree, I think its a Solcat 18. But puzzled by the mast length V mainsail luff?? few beach cats have a boom 4ft off the deck. And even a Tornado only has a 31ft mast (approx.)

Richard Woods

 

Yes,
I believe that it is indeed a Solcat 18 (the hulls are just an inch or two over 18')
That said, it's on a tilt trailer with a 10' beam and a curved main sheet track. None of the solcat pics I can find show a curved sheet track; they are all just part of the rear crossbeam like a Hobie.

I'm beginning to think it's a Frankenstein (which doesn't change what I want to do). Something akin to a solcat 18 with solcat 20 beams and hack mast made from other extrusions. No solcat mast pic has diamond wires either. More after mods...?

Hmmm. Still a treasure trove of parts.

Curious what people think.

 

Anyone know what has more float volume...
Hobie 18 or 1981 Solcat 18??
My hunch is the solcat; it just looks a little taller and fuller.

Most my research says the Solcat is/was slightly faster than the H18.
If I do a strike 20 with the Solcat, I like the fact that the beam sockets are symmetrical; the hull is also symmetrical. The 10' beams might even be just right for the Strike 20.
Anyone think of any other DIY center hull options? I like the simplicity of the Strike 20, but not the lines so much...Plus I'd love to have a sarcophagus to sleep one in, even if tight...and I'm 6'7" so that's gonna complicate stuff

So much potential...all I can do is daydream!

thanks!

 

There is (was) a development class cat called the "18 Square" with 18 square meters of sail and a 10' beam- maybe your Solcat was converted to that class?

 

Kurt Hughes has a daysailor trimaran that can use beach cat hulls as floats. Plans for the classic Tremolino are still available through Pat Newick as well. Kurt Hughes Multihull Design - Catamarans and Trimarans for Cruising and Charter http://www.multihulldesigns.com/designs_stock/daysail/23_tri_day.htm

 

The only one of those that makes any sense is the one beginning with CFZ. CFZ is a California assigned Hull Identification Number. But it is too long. 13 digits. Should be 12. One of those zeros probably doesn't belong. Any way this would bolster the theory that it's a Frankenstein. States only assign HINs to boats that don't have them or are homemade. I suspect someone bought some hulls and built their own.