praising plastic catboats

[Ted Hoppe]

Oh yes - they do make sense when you get old enough to realize you don' t have time to mess with builds and repairs. Restoring them to a quality sail is actually more eco friendly too.

[Dave Wright]

Oh yes - they do make sense when you get old enough to realize you don' t have time to mess with builds and repairs. Restoring them to a quality sail is actually more eco friendly too.

I very much like this thought, I like all of it.

[birlinn]

Oh yes - they do make sense when you get old enough to realize you don' t have time to mess with builds and repairs. Restoring them to a quality sail is actually more eco friendly too.

I'd like one.
Simplicity rules OK, but I'd prefer a tiller to a wheel.

[Joe (SoCal)]

OK Ted we are now friends again, you do know how to get my heart.

God Damn I love Catboats.

[Figment]

which part of Florida is the first pic?

[Paul Pless]

this thread must surely be breaking some forum rule

i'm mashing the button

[birlinn]

Nothing like a bit of heresy to stir the faithful!

[willin woodworks]

Have you priced a Marshall catboat lately? Much as I love cats they are crazy expensive....even used ones go for a big pot of green

[Nicholas Carey]

Here you go, up in B-town.

21-foot fiberglass cat, built 1981. Ask is $9,500.

Not sure I approve of the bilge keels, though (but that would make the cabin quite a bit more spacious).

[Gotta point out, though, that pretty much all cats can "almost tack themselves."]

https://bellingham.craigslist.org/bo...554116460.html









This head-turning cat boat (not a catamaran) was custom built in 1981. Based on the Nonsuch catboat, this boat is custom built for the PNW. Extremely easy to single hand, this boat can almost tack itself. See this video for details

https://youtu.be/FgoJWgDnDe8

Great boat for solo sailor or smaller couple, someone who values simplicity and style. Headroom is 6ft under companionway.

Features:

- Fiberglass hull
- Twin keels (easy to beach)
- Bottom paint 2021
- 2017 Tohatsu outboard 6 hp 8 gal capacity
- Large lazarettes
- Tan bark sail still crispy
- Twin bed in berth but room to make wider with custom mattress
- Cozy wood burning stove
- Solar panel to charge battery
- Enclosed head (porta potty)
- Achilles Dinghy w like new Minnkota trolling motor
- Handheld Cobra marine radio
- 10 gal water tanks
- Ample stowage
- Transferable moorage in Bellingham
- Very dry

The boat is not easily trailerable as the mast is ~30ft keel stepped.

Price $9500 obo

[WI-Tom]

Heck, my boat can "tack itself." It can also gybe itself, which is much more exciting!

Tom

[Jimmy W]

So, does Ledger get equal time?

[Ted Hoppe]

So, does Ledger get equal time?

he has.

http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...Brewer-catboat

[rbgarr]

The top photo showing the Marshall Sanderlings anchored close enough to the beach to wade out too reminds me of the shorefront where the Cotuit skiff fleet on Cape Cod moors in the summer. The tradition there is to wade or scull a punt (no rowing!) out to your boat. It's the oldest yacht club in the country entirely run by those under 21 years of age.

[Canoeyawl]

Some of those glass cats are very reasonably priced and generally can be brought back to pristine condition for a modest investment, and they are eminently trailerable.
I'm all for it, they perfect gunkholing boats, which is a complicated technical event and involves anchoring (or tying to a tree) in some shallow, protected cove and enjoying wine with dinner, while being entertained by wildlife.
(A steel centerboard dropped into the mud is a pretty good anchor btw...)
For me, personally the smell of polyester is a tough thing to get past, but I have a sensitive sniffer. I have recommended plastic cats to several newbies, because they often have a well disguised outboard or a clever inboard, are stiff and weatherly (i.e. safe) and can carry plenty of beer. All were success stories.

[stromborg]

Very cool, I didn't know the wishbone had so much adjustment. There was a Nonsuch that sailed pretty regularly out of Eagle Harbor in weather that kept the rest of on the dock.

[bamamick]

I have two: an HA18 and a Handy Cat. Though not that common around here I think that cat boats are just about the perfect boat for sailing along the northern Gulf Coast.

Mickey Lake

[bamamick]

The photo above was probably taken at Useppa Island, where they have a fleet of Sandpipers and host a big regatta. There are also a bunch of racing cats in South Carolina.

Mickey Lake

[John Meachen]

I saw this flotilla while looking around Port La Foret a little while ago,so they can be found in Europe.

several cats.jpg

[Ted Hoppe]

I sure hope they are operating like this still. They are a cool, quality mass production boat building company making boats for decent budgets and giving still good support.

[Ted Hoppe]

[Paul Pless]

i'm just gonna put this here: https://areyspondboatyard.com/

24 foot, cold molded, carbon spars, full galley, real head

[Ted Hoppe]

^ lovely but stupid expensive.


Also that is a lot of wood to keep shiny. Maybe perfect for people who put their boats away for 8 months a year.

[Ted Hoppe]

cool old video about Catboats

[Paul Pless]

i have that on vhs

[Ted Hoppe]

^ Damn you are a pack rat.

What is really interesting is that the video is about professional boat builders and their customers. The video clearly expresses that fiberglass saved the catboat and made ownership simpler. Removing the problems that owners of wooden boat owners have, spending time more time enjoying sailing and the other parts of the leasure life.

[John Smith]

Pretty boats can be made of many materials. Easier to build an ugly boat from glass than from wood, although with work that can be done

This is, I believe, one must work within the limits of wood bending.