Gludy - the Raggie

[Gludy]

From the other thread:-

All thye cats I am now looking at are made in one of the main Cat countries - South Africa who make some of the best cats in the world and the exchange rate is great.

They also make power cats that can cross oceans using small engines at 10 knots with the option of the occasional burst to 20 knots.

I am in the middle of a delicate finalisation so will not go into detail too much but kist to mention some

Fast cat - they make both power and sail - sailing cat is very fast and full of incredible options and ideas. Even offer electric motors driven by fours ources of power including a hene.

St Francis - a less expensive option starting at about £350k for a 50 by 26 foot cat and much cheaper 40 foot cats. Goddw ell made failry fast cats.

Leopard 46 footer - a mass production but very good cat that starts life at about £260k but will end up about £350k fully fitted out with all the luxuries. Power cat versions also available.

Admiral - also a good fast cat and again at an incredible price.

Claimed consumption on power cats is 4 litres an hour at about 8.5 knots.


I am off around the world on my new cat - I am on a fast learning curve and SWMBO is all for it.

 

[Whitelighter]

Which of thos emake power cats?

 

[No Regrets]

Oh dear, he believes the South African adverts..... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

It's all going to end in tears... /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[nyx2k]

is there any reason why you're not going any bigger than 50feet.
if you were thinking of spending £2 million on a single hull boat you could get a massive cat for half that amount with some real speed and massive comfort. would 20kts not be possible with a greater length and slightly bigger engine(s)

 

[Kawasaki]

[ QUOTE ]
From the other thread:-



I am in the middle of a delicate finalisation

Never! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Good luck this time Boyo /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[nyx2k]

tuonge in cheek.

don't forget the contingency fund for international lawyers.

i really wish you an exciting and enjoyable process of spending your money and getting what you want.

 

[Gludy]

It would be difficult to handle a sailing cat bigger than 50 feet with just two of us.

They already make cats that do better than 20 knots but they are not comfortable.

My budget for this cat is nothing like £2m all the cats I have mentioned are about £400k to £500k.

Its pointless going further.

Mot of the time I will be crusing at 8 to 8 knots.

 

[jimg]

Sounds interesting, looking forward to hearing more......

 

[boatbuilder]

Re: Gludy - the Raggie

Having come across some South african cats can I suggest that you use a specialist multihull surveyour to look at the build.
Rob Feloy is one of the multihull specialists and I am sure his fees would only be a tiny percentage of the total cost.
Give him a call , it may enlighten you to any problems .

 

[Magnum]

Not sure this is going to work out. Cats some strengths but lots of weaknesses. They're also slow.

Forget the cost of fuel and buy what you want.

Whatever you decide I wish you well.

 

[Gludy]

Magnum
Its not to do with the cost of fuel as such - its to do with the style of boating we have evolved into.

A sailing cat can pretty well go anywhere.

Yes all boat types have pluses and minuses - have you any minuses in mind?

I would welcome critical appraisal.

 

[Hurricane]

As a sports cat sailor, I have to say that it seems to me that you have a lot to learn if you are going the raggie way.

Still, its very doable - just dont expect to pick it all up in one session.

There's apparent wind with fast sports sailing boats - if used properly, you can save hours (maybe days) of going in the wrong direction.

I'm sure you'll have fun though.

 

[MapisM]

I found the Fastcat site and gave a look at the Fastcat 455 green motion.
Not only I understood why you said full of incredible options and ideas, but also some of the reasons for the incredibly low consumption.
The 14,300 lbs displacement, among other things - which caught my attention.
Now, I understand the vacuum infusion, kevlar and so forth.
But would you really feel equally safe crossing an ocean with a boat like that compared, say, to an 80 tons self-righting steel trawler?
Frankly, at a first glance, I'd rather go for the battleship, happily burning more fossil fuel till it lasts.....

 

[hobiecat]

Often hear the argument that a heavy steel boat is obviously better than a lighter composite boat. If modern kevlar is stronger and a fraction of the weight why would you still prefer the weaker boat. Pounding into a heavy sea battleship style in a weaker boat or cutting through the sea like Ellen Macarther in a stronger boat........mmm. Which boat is more seaworthy?

 

[Gludy]

Hurricane
Of course you are right - I have a lot to learn but unlike most I can devote my full time to it.
A s I stated in the Water Buoy thread where this started, I would first take intensive lessons, then circumnavigate the UK then take my Yachtmaster practical before setting off across the Atlantic.
I love learning and will enjoy the process greatly.

I understand the use of apparant wind.

 

[Gludy]

Victor is right Mapism.

In a storm we talk about the waves pounding us and the danger of a breaking waves - really that is wrong.

Its more like we pound the waves because we are heading into them. The water in a breakibng wave is a lot of froth and not to dangerous the real danger is hitting the bottom of the wave in front or going on broadside so it can broach you.

So avoiding damage in a storm is all about minimising the energy in the boat due to the velocity of the boat. A boat of mass mass 1 travelling at say 10 knots has a kinetic energy of 50 untis. Travelling at 5 knots this reduces to just 12.5 units and at 1 knot just 0.5 units - it is this energy in the speed of the boat that can damage the boat because it is chucking itself against the sea.

The lighter the boat the lower this energy a Fast Cat would have about half the weight and hence half the energy of a normal cat.

So the good news is that you can anchor your boat anywhere out there in the ocean and stop the punishment by reducing the speed of your boat down to almost zero and turning of the breaking waves in your path by creating a calm slick - even in 40 foot waves. This is done with a parachute.

Ultra light cats weighing a fraction of the FastCat brave the Southern ocean etc and survive.

Now take a proper look at the safety of three boats - a heavily built power boat 0 a sailing mono hull and a cat of either type..

There are two stable positions for the power boat - floating on top of the water or on the bottom.

The same for the sailing mono hull but this can roll and turn itself upright and so is much safer than a power boat.

Then there is the cat which has different stable positions- either floating or floating upside down - they do not sink and are designed to to float upside down with hatches to get in and out of them.

So when it comes to it we can choose to switch off the pounding of the waves in any boat by using a parachute. When disaster does strike would you prefer to be in a very stable upside down hull designed for just that or would you prefer to be alone just floating in your life jacket with your boat a mile underneath you?

/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[PowerYachtBlog]

[ QUOTE ]
Not sure this is going to work out. Cats some strengths but lots of weaknesses. They're also slow.

Forget the cost of fuel and buy what you want.

Whatever you decide I wish you well.

[/ QUOTE ]

totally agree

 

[Guest]

Post deleted by danfoley

 

[Gludy]

Re: Gludy - the Raggie

Thats interesting stuff and yo can be sure that I will be taking every step with caution.

I do not think that SA in particular has this problem though - do you agree?

Which cats have you delivered that you liked?

 

[oldgit]

Neat argument for cutting edge experimental racing type yachts where cost is no object and weight is of paramount importance,but remember all those demastings and breaking up of hulls that have occured over the years due to use of super duper lightweight miracle materials and corner cutting design fixes being put up against real world conditions.
Of little consequence if when your boat starts to fall to bits the tab is picked up using the petty cash from the sponsoring banks ad budget,but not so great when funded by an individual spending his own money.
A nice bit of weight can be a good thing when your boats life needs to be measured in tens of years not just the few weeks it takes to go round the world.



"THE FUTURISTIC catamaran cost pounds 4m million to build and was designed to cope with the world's most treacherous seas. Made from materials normally used in aerospace, it featured two razor sharp hulls which supposedly allowed it to slice through waves rather than bounce over them.

But yesterday the state-of-the-art dream boat built by maritime hero Pete Goss in the hope that it would take him around the world lay in pieces after breaking up off the Isles of Scilly as the crew put it through its paces. The revolutionary vessel, the world's largest carbon fibre structure, was towed into the port of St Mary's on the Scillies by a lifeboat after the catamaran's 120ft long port hull snapped off."
(taken from IOS website.)

The homebuilt aircraft industry is a good example conservative evolution not radicle revolution will keep you safe.