positives of your multihull

[gunkholer]

in follow up too other thread i launched "what are the negatives of your multihull" i want to hear those liveaboard multihull cruisers who actually sail, anchor out etc to share the positives of your multihull

[gunkholer]

Originally Posted by gunkholer

in follow up too other thread i launched "what are the negatives of your multihull" i want to hear those liveaboard multihull cruisers who actually sail, anchor out etc to share the positives of your multihull

let me start with me praising my 1987 Catalac10m
- it is a inovative design in that when curtains opened one has 360degree panoramic view from saloon seats
- very seaworthy craftas proven sailing the extremely demanding South African coast against Agulhas current in bad weather for 2 weeks in @
2009
- the cat has large interior space comparable with beamy 45foot monohulls that i know well
- the berths in the two staterooms very large, i am 193cm and 110kg and no problem with space
- the sink design of build in cupboards, drawers, sink, pressureized water, lights can be compared to standard of contemporary cat designs
- the ventilation on this cat best i have seen on any yacht, 8 windows clip open, and remain in open position without letting in most rain, they can also be taken out. Then 4 lewmar hatches, 2 sliding windows in saloon, stable door with sliding window next to it, gives lots of fresh air moving right tru
- the two cockpit tents, 1 for shaing entire cockpit, a 16person seat capacity cockpit, and a tnet for under sail that turns the helm station in completely protected space are very nice
- my catalac received new rigging, Selden mast, boom, spinnaker pole, North sails, furling genoa headsail in Jamaica in 2005 until today all as new
- a dome radar high up mast the Raymarin SL72? gives good scanning of sea
- the Seatalk Raymarine instruments, mounted close to helm in helmstation, work very well with ST6001 autopilot and ST40 windex, depth, speed, a second color depth sonar fishfinder of Garmin making for great navigation
- the hydraulic steering system still going strong
- the cat sails at expected speeds for this design with short waterline in particular circumstances determined by weather... actually i never felt it didnt cope well
- the loading capacity of this cat is better than any have seen without impairing cat speed to much
- 900liter integral fresh watertanks with good jabsco pressure pumps is great for anchoring out in areas with difficult access to water, they assist in good sailing balance as they are situated central deep in bilges
- the starboard downhull galley set up does it for me
- great saloon space, table, seats, visibility
- the only head very large and good shower, hand pumped jabso toilet
- the cat has one 2 cyl yanmar 16hp and one volvo d1-30 marine diesel engines which have ample power for moving this cat swiftly, 7knots easy achoievable on one engine
- the redundancy with two deisel engines, and the regulated charging, on the yanmar with balmar 80Amp, and volvo 115Amp are more than sufficient together with the three 85Watt solar panel nounted on the helmstation to provide energy for all electrical items 12v and inverter run.
- the engines are accessed from the outside and noone sleeps on top of engine
- this cat has stern seat for 4 elevated enough to see above the top of the helm and saloon roof, thus making it possible to control navigation from there as it also has mounting and 12V outlet for my 276C Garmin chartplotter, a large bimini on top of the seat provides shade
- the front solid deck of the cat has never led to bow2 ploughing into wave without recovering fast pushed up by the buoyancy provded by the forward storage under deck, this are also functions as crash area of about 1.5 meter before bulkhead that separates the front deck area from the yacht interior
- the cockpit is same level as saloon and tru the stable door one walks staright inside
- the cockpit has 4 large drains that allow any water coming into the cockpit to be drained extremely fast a great safety feature for any yacht
- the cockpit has 3 large storages areas with one drained under to store gasbottles and petrol, drains between hulls stern area very safe

to be continued

[gunkholer]

next set of Catalac10m positives

- huge toerail that with me has withstood enormous starin
- huge horncleats that are startegically placed around the deck
- great lewmar selftaiing
- great boomvand by Selden
- good lewmar windlass abused and still working
- great anchor chain locker anchor tumbling clean down from the vertical windlass
- great diveplatform on my cat, good space to mount one if you dont have one yet
- very well cockpit placed safety at sea locker, fits 6 lifejackets with all other safety at sea gear
- helmstation has plexiglass slide open hatch above helmchair so one can see main sail under way dry from rain if need be, same hatch makes it possible to have great 360degree view from helm position when standing on helmchair and look over yacht via helm roof hatch
- my 3.2 meter hard fibreglass dinghy with 15hp two stroke fits against dive platform and has its own crane with lewmar line stopper control and access to cockpit manual winch for lifting, dedicated horn cleats allow easy tying down of dinghy
- toerails allow two double sea kayaks to be tied along side at deck level without too much hassle
- each hull has three, well joined to hull, bulkheads rendering the cat vitually unsinkable
- the integral fibreglass fresh water tanks make for 450liter air tanks in each hull when pumped empty from water, providing extra buoyancy
- the engine compartment space allows four adults to work around the engines
- 3 battery banks, three professional battery separation switches, a shunt that allows for great battery monitoring with a victron battery monitor, a 1500Watt inverter, 3 solar panels, two regulated battery charging alternators, ...make for very well balanced energy production/use
- vhf radio, compass, radar monitor, color fishfinder, GPS chartplotter, windex, autopilot, speed, depth instruments from Raymarine are all mounted around the helm in easy reach, and very well protected from rain, spray
- the noise of the diesel engines running cannot be heard from the forward staterooms
- 2x50liter fridges, 1 x 144liter freezer make for great cooling, and when alternatively switched on well balanced for our available energy
- strategically placed 12V yacht ventilators/fans cool us well
- 12V and 220V outlets all over yacht make for great plugging in
- flatscreen TV/computer monitor and dvd player give great entertainment
- waterproof cockpit speakers connected to usb ported car radio give great sound
- on-board laptop connected to chartplotter give good electronic chart reading
- i forgot tomention that is only yacht of more than 10year old where i can walk erect all-over with my 193cm height, i suspect that builder Tom Lack was tall
- lockers everywhere for dry stowage
- although cat has relatively narrow beam things dont fall down when under way
- cat gives overall sense of robustness when at sea, in poor weather as well

to be continued

[canibul]

I'm sure glad to read of all the positive things you like about your old Catalac.

That's because we just bought a 1986 Catalac 12M, and are flying to Florida tomorrow to load her up and sail back to her new home here in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

[multihullsailor6]

Ok gunkholer,

Further to your post on the negatives of my cat here are a few positives I can think of (without any order) following on on your LONG above list:
1) One Lombardini diesel engine with twin hydraulic drives - less weight, less engine maintenance, problem though when the engine fails.
2) One retractable centrally mounted rudder and twin daggerboards - great when you want to fall dry or beach her.
3) Deep cockpit with ergonomically shaped high backrests - also great for barbequeing as the cockpit floor is on the same level as the saloon floor so ease of access.
4) Twin helm positions with twin engine controls - great for docking.
5) Galley and eating table plus settee down in the port hull - frees up the saloon. The galley has full view of the saloon so does not restrict conversation.
6) Easy to handle single-handed, all lines (except when reefing) lead back to the cockpit.
7) Both forward anchors are now mounted on the main crossbeam to take the weight away from the front.

Not yet there work- and lookswise, give me one more winter of hard work and I'll have a really nice cat!

[gunkholer]

Originally Posted by canibul

I'm sure glad to read of all the positive things you like about your old Catalac.

That's because we just bought a 1986 Catalac 12M, and are flying to Florida tomorrow to load her up and sail back to her new home here in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

I would love to hear from you about your 12mtr Catalac,

if i could have picked one up when i got this 10mtr would have done.