Catalac Catamarans For Sale

Jump to Catalac Yachts For Sale

median sold price

$42,000

sales on record

58

years built

1972–1996

typical length

27–41 ft

for sale now

1

Catalac Catamarans are older British Catamarans, designed and built in the 1980s. They are affordable, a solid boat design, and well built. In short, a good choice for anyone’s next boat. With 600 cruising catamarans built, Catalac Catamarans are a boat building success story and are very well known in Europe, yet not so much in America. Tom Lack, the builder, built 8 meter, 9 meter, 10 meter and 12 meter cruising catamarans. These boats were well built and widely respected, making them a hidden gem in today’s boat marketplace, and one of the best values available in cruising catamarans today.

Catalac Catamarans were designed and built to sail the North Sea by Tom Lack, a legendary builder of British catamarans. The double thick fiberglass hulls are much stronger by design than designs of newer boats where build costs govern designed strength. Their boat design and build quality simply put more “in” them and is probably the reason Catalac Catamarans are still crossing oceans.

Catalac Yachts For Sale

Catalac 8m (Florida)

Asking $30,000 (USD) Reduced!

Location Lake Worth (Florida)

S/V Swan VII is a 1986 Catalac 8M for sale by owner.

RARE FIND! The Catalac 8m pocket cruiser was just put back in the water after cleaning and painting the hull and is ready for a new owner. Comfortable, very solid, a lot of room for the size! Easily accessible for viewing. The Catalac 8M is a pocket cruising catamaran which has a solid reputation for quality, strength and durability. Many of the boats found in North America today, were sailed there from Great Britain. The Catalac 8M, although classified as a pocket cruiser was designed with blue water sailing in mind.…

37 Photos & Details Photos Contact OwnerContact Owner

Educational Articles

DUNJA III Crossing – 780NM on a Catalac 8M

DUNJA III safely took us 780NM across the Mediterranean, from Leros in Greece to Malta. We sailed (actually mostly motored), from Leros to Aegina. Then through Corinth canal to Porto Germeno. From there to Port Killini where we had to be towed in for rudder failure. From Killini we crossed to Syracusa for refueling and great Sicilian food, having the last leg from there to Malta. It was an epic trip I can tell you… Lot’s of stories of broken rudder, 54kt of wind, high swell and currents that slowed us to 3kt… But we made it in less than 2 weeks, below and behind storm Daniel which devastated the Athens region at the time.…

Catalac 8M Review and Owner Interview “S/V Chateau Cat”

In this episode, we interview Simon who owns a Catalac 8M called S/V Chateau Cat. He’s had it for two years. Simon came to catamaran sailing after growing up with a monohull, so we’re really curious about how it’s been to have a catamaran for him. What kind of experiences he’s had. A big thank you for him in participating and generously sharing his stories and photos! Executive Summary Chose catamaran for space and larger solar footprint. Used to have a solar panel business and has 2 small children.…

Catalac Catamaran Performance & Maintenance

Do you own a Catalac Catamaran? If so, this page contains Builder notes and updates on all Catalac Catamaran models. Each of these links is a FAQ which deals with specific boat issues or questions answered directly by the Lack Family or PBO editor. With a few exceptions, each contains important information on either boat performance or maintenance tips. Also, the Propeller drag test page, rigging tune and boat inspection pages offer information critical to Catalac boat owners. Catalac Catamaran FAQs and Builder UpdatesDescriptionPageConsidering a Catalac catamaran purchase?…

Catalac Catamaran Reviews

All Reviews Catalac 8M Reviews Catalac 8M Boat Show ReviewCharles Kanter 8M ReviewOwner Catalac 8M Review Catalac 9M Review PBO Catalac 9M Review Catalac 900 Review Catalac 900 Owner Review Catalac 10M Reviews Yachting Monthly Catalac 10M ReviewCatalac 10M Owner Review Catalac 11M Review PBO Catalac 11M Review…

Catalac Catamaran Articles

Complete Library From time to time we receive an article from one of the hundreds of loyal Catalac catamaran owners. You’ll find these articles listed below in no particular order. Sailing 6000 Miles on a Catalac 10MSven and Sabine, found their Catalac 10M, S/V Blue Felix, sail. number 35, at the German Baltic sea in summer 2012. Aftrer refit, they sail her to the Caribbean.Catalac 900 Atlantic CrossingJeff and Diane were kind enough to share the story of their Atlantic crossing in 2013 aboard S/V Horizons, their Catalac 900 catamaran….Catalac…

Catalac Catamaran Projects and Upgrades

Please see the below links for various articles we have published about projects done on Catalac catamarans. Skeg Rudders Lightning Damage Marine Electronics Cabinet Rigging tune Catalac window leak repair Catalac 8M engine repair Cheap Voltage regulator for battery operated equip…

Tom Lack and his Catalacs

Catalac Catamaran Factory Brochure Catalac Catamaran Build /Layup Photos Designers: Tom Lack & John Winterbottom Hull designs: Hard chine “V” section, load carrying hulls with flared bows to limit spray. They rely solely on sail area provide a safe and stable sailing platform. Tom Lack felt the design was so stable and safe that years ago Lack authorized a £10,000 reward to anybody that could document a Catalac with one hull out of the water. To date, no one has claimed that reward.…

Catalac 8M / 9M Mast Lowering Instructions

The Catalac 8M and the Catalac 9M are unique in that they have a tabernacle designed to raise and lower the mast. Chainplates are mounted at the pivot point and the procedure is both simple and convenient. Read how I dropped my mast, replaced everything at the top and rewired it, all in an afternoon. (click here) . Note the mast support wires in the drawing below. These are necessary. Remove all Sails, The Boom and the Mainsheet ( rope & Blocks ).…

Catalac 8M iPad Chart plotter

by Emile du ToitCatalac 8M8-192I have been looking for a way not to buy a dedicated chart plotter and finally started investigating software options for the iPad. I tried and like two of them. 1) iNavx available for iPad and iPhone has some nice features for integrating data from your instruments if that is desired. It mainly uses NOAA RNC raster United States waters marine charts. Although these are free, I dont like them much as primary source since they are not auto quilting, meaning as you move off of one, you manually have to choose the next appropriate chart.…

Memories of my Catalac 27

by Hak Kauffman (note: Hak Kauffman bought his Catalac 27 in 1977 and sailed it for 20 years. In those early catamaran days, he was one of the brave pioneers who took a chance on these new styled boats. Hak sold the boat when his age caught up to him, but has vivid recollections of his, which he was kind enough to share with us – Rick) Catalac 27 In my search for a new bigger boat, I decided to include multihulls.…

Catalac 900 Information

Catalac 900 Ocean passage After Tom Lack’s Catalac production ended in the mid 1980’s, the company was reformed in the early ’90’s under the new name, Blue Water Catalacs. The old Catalac 9M moulds were sourced and it was possible to put the boat back into production under the new ‘Catalac 900 banner. The Catalac 900 was a major rework of the twenty year old Catalac 9M design, with a sleeker and more modern look, achieved mainly by the removal of the old individual aluminum framed windows and replacing them with sealed full length tinted Perspex ones.…

Catalac 900 Review

by Terry Kennedy The Catalac 900 is the pilothouse version of the Catalac 9M. The pilothouse not only allows for the helm to be inside, but offers standing head room around the salon. The Catalac 900 is a warm, dry and comfortable vessel when inclement weather arrives. This is a dramatic difference from the 8M and 9M’s with their helms exposed to the weather in the cockpits, and their low ceilings in the salon area that only allows for sitting. Naval Architect John Winterbotham designed the hull for the Catalac 8M/9M/900 based on the Sunderland, a British WWII era sea plane.…

Catalac 12M Hurricane Damage

I was going through my photo archive and came across these boat damage photos caused by hurricane Wilma in 2005. This boat in this photo is a Catalac 12M and was owned by Stephen and Janet Metcalf. As to what happened … the Down Easter monohull pictured below lost it’s mooring during Hurricane Wilma due to poor anchoring techniques. As she lost her mooring at the height of the storm, hurricane winds drove her into a very heavy Ferro cement boat. The rigging of the two boats became tangled and eventually the Ferro cement boat lost her mooring as well.…

Catalac 12M Information

Sold as Catalac 12M or Catalac 41 The 12M Catalac 41 is considered a limited production cruising catamaran designed for live aboard cruisers and perfect for passage making. The S/V Angel Louise, pictured above, completed an Atlantic crossing in July 2011 and back across again in 2014. Ed and Sue Kelly began the crossing from Brunswick Georgia and traveled to England via Bermuda and the Azores. Catalac 12M cruising catamaran These boats offer a seven berth layout in spacious style with furnishing and trimmings to match.…

Catalac 12M Catamaran Photos

I was going through my Catalac archive and came across these Original Tom Lack marketing photos of the 12 meter boat. Each photo has the Lack trademark on the back. I had a little trouble with color correction as they are 25 year old photos.…

Catalac 12M Sales Brochure

Step aboard a 12m Catalac 41 and you know immediately that this is a most luxurious seven berth cruising catamaran. Everything is designed for safety, ease and comfort, whether you are sailing at 10 knots on a passage or have made your landfall and dropped your hook at that idyllic anchorage. Perhaps as that onshore breeze changes to an offshore one as evening approaches bringing with it the heat from the land, your Catalac becomes the focal point for a drink and a chat with friends or if you are cruising in company — an impromptu party or barbecue.…

Catalac 11M Review

She started life as a ten-metre catamaran but when Hythe Marine Services bought the moulds and building rights, they decided that a pair of retrousse, sugar scoop transoms would improve both her looks and sailing ability. They also looked closely at her interior with an eye to updating the accommodation. So on a rather blustery day with a good F5 gusting to F6, I made my way to Hythe to investigate their new generation Catalac.…

Catalac 10M Builder Brochure

To celebrate our Silver Anniversary in British Boat Building, we have designed and launched our fourth sistership, the 10 metre Catalac 34 Cruising catamaran. The other members of this family are 12, 9, and 8 metres (40, 20 and 27 feet) over 500 of which are in commission, giving pleasure and leisure for their Owner’s enjoyment. Our new 10 metre will emulate this Company’s reputation for well-built and intelligently designed Cruising Catamarans, giving excellent comfort and safety to all who sail in our Catalacs.…

Catalace 10M Atlantic Monthly Boat Review

Of all the reasons for buying a catamaran, the one which applies overwhelmingly to the Catalac range and the 43ft, 10m, in particular, is comfort. Unlike almost every other production catamaran where weight consciousness and the need not to compromise the performance potential of two hulls have overriding priority, the Catalac has been designed with fully fitted, substantial furniture and hulls which are not shy of carrying the usual paraphernalia of cruising.…

Catalac 10M Review

by Lloyd (Page) Simonson Our Catalac 10M is Serendipity, a 1985 10 meter Catalac (sail #2). We bought her in the Spring of 2004. and now have 3 major trips on her totaling nearly 4000 nautical miles, as well as numerable short trips. This review is based on our experience with her From the fall of 04 through the spring of 07 we were recovering from hurricane Ivan (Aug 04) in Pensacola, or in Oriental , NC or Green Cove Springs (near Jacksonville) working on solving the problems of a neglected 30 year old vessel and upgrading it with new or modern equipment. …

Mark Blaydes’ Catalac 9M

She looks like a steady, comfortable cruising catamaran — but there’s more to the 9m Catalac than meets the eye, as David Harding reports. When the Catalac was introduced in 1971, she took a few people by surprise. Here was a rather boxy-looking catamaran derived from Bill O’Brien’s chunky, chined, glassfibre-sheathed plywood Bobcats. She looked like a practical family cruiser for those who wanted space rather than pace, yet she sailed far better than the world expected.…

Catalac Catamaran Research

Owning a Catalac 8M During what turned out to be many months of reading and research, I was actually considering buying a monohull. Cruising Catamarans kept popping up in my research, and I’m ashamed to admit that I wasn’t even aware of these boats at the time. The only catamaran experience I’d had was on a Hobie Cat. However, in reading the check of desired features, cruising catamarans were matching up better than a monohull and were definitely of interest. Cruising Catamarans were said to be much better at anchor than a mono, and they don’t heel while sailing.…

Catalac Catamarans Silver Anniversary Brochure

The Lack family has been building Cruising Catamarans for the past twenty-five years. Following the successful development with Bill O’Brian of the Bobcat in the sixties, Tom Lack Catamarans Ltd was formed in 1970. The company is located in a delightful boatyard alongside the quay of the Dorset coastal town of Christchurch. Despite its growth in recent years, the company remains a family run business headed by its founders Tom and Mary Lack and their sons Bruce and William.…

Catalac 9M Catamaran Brochure

This brochure includes the specifications of the Catalac 9M, the original equipment, some photos, and a layout diagram. The Catalac 30 / 9 m cruising Catamaran, classic of its day, spearheaded the famous Catalac design that has become so well-known for safety, comfort, and performance. Now 15 years later, it still holds its place in the Catalac family of catamarans.…

Catalac 9M Information

Sold as Catalac 9M or Catalac 30 The Catalac 9M was Tom Lack’s first venture into catamaran design. He commissioned John Winterbotham of MG Duff LTD to design the Catalac 9M in 1968, forming part of a range of cruising catamarans which eventually ranged from 8m to 12m. All were built at Lack’s yard in Christchurch. Catalac 9M This design was envisioned as the successor to Bill O’Briens venerable Bobcat Catamaran. They would be safe cruisers, aimed squarely at the family marketplace.…

Catalac 8M Information

Pocket Cruiser with impeccable safety record The Catalac 8M is a pocket cruising catamaran which has a solid reputation for quality, strength and durability. Many of the boats found in North America today, were sailed there from Great Britain. The Catalac 8M, although classified as a pocket cruiser was designed with blue water sailing in mind. Twin diesel models can easily motor almost 1000 kilometers without refueling. The 70 amps of charging and 70 gallons of stock water tanks in the Catalac 8M and 9M make even these smaller boats terrific coastal cruisers.…

Bravo II: A British Built Bay Cruiser

Hak Kauffman, and bis wife Adele, bad been sailing for eight years when, in 1977, the middle-aged couple found their perfect combination of speed versus accomodation in their 27-foot Calalac cruising catamaran. They were anchored in Spa Creek this week during their annual summer cruise, and the Cherry Hill, New Jersey sailors took time to chat about their spacious little multihull, and their sailing. S/V Bravo II stays on the Middle River. east of Baltimore. The Kauffmans bought the English boat in Amityville, L.I.…

Charles Kanter’s Catalac 8M Catamaran Review

Catalac multihulls were in production from the late 1960’s until the early 1980’s. More than 500 were built and almost all are still sailing. In fact, there has been a flourishing charter fleet of Catalac catamarans in the Mediterranean since the 1970’s. They keep going, and going, and going.…

Catalac 8M Boat Show Review

That I first took the helm of the new catamaran after dark for a trial sail was novelty enough in itself, but I very soon discovered that connected to the other side of the wheel was an excellent blend of well-tried, sea-proven and moreover much-loved ingredients. The art of blending I believe to be a gift, which can be enhanced only by long carefully considered experience and Tom Lack and John Winterbotham between them seem to have thus concocted yet another first-rate cruising yacht.…

Catalac 8M Sales Brochure

Boating is not only about boats, it is also about people. The owners of our Catalacs are special people, and not for the obvious commercial reasons. Over the years, we have built up an exceptionally close relationship with them all, and as there are now 500 Catalacs sailing worldwide, we feel this is rather an achievement in itself. One which we cherish highly. Our motto, built by a Family for a Family, is very appropriate as the majority of our owners are family people, and I in turn, am very ably supported by my wife, Mary and two of our five sons, William and Bruce.…

Catalac 8M Diesel Engine Removal, Rebuild & Reinstall

One of my very few peeves about the Catalac 8M has to do with the inboard diesel engine placement. Apparently boat balance dictated the engine position in the boat. In actuality, the Yanmar 1GM10s were placed so far forward in the engine compartments that the front of the engine is just 3 inches (75cm) from the rear bulkhead. The engines are almost literally mid engine mounted. Unfortunately, the Yanmar water pump, external oil lines, oil filter, thermostat ..etc..are all located on the front of the engine and are not easily accessible for normal maintenance.…

Catalac 8M upgrade Rudders and install Skegs

by Didier Grietencontact Didier Grieten When I bought my 8M, it was equipped with the older style lifting steel blade rudders.The rudder blades however were in very bad condition, with considerable corrosion and rust. Also, the wood support structure had to be replaced as it was rotting away and looking at the rudder blades showed they required some TLC as well. In some areas thickness was reduced to 50% and rust still working to get it even thinner… This meant some serious work on the rudders was required… Here’s what it was supposed to look like: Normal rudder blades I had three options, the first being replace the wood, remove the heavily corroded areas and weld in new material or just entirely replace the steel blades with new ones, get them galvanized and throw on a few coatings of paint… The second one was to replace the whole rudder setup with the newer style Catalac skeg / rudder setup. …

Struck by Lightning while under way

I should be dead I imagine that if you live in the lightning capital of the world, itS unavoidable. Sooner or later the boat will be hit by lightning. However, usually it occurs when no one is on board. I should be so lucky. In our case, we had a front row seat as we were hit by lightning on what began as a perfect sailing afternoon. Southwinds, a sailing magazine, recently featured an article on lightning strikes and boats in their June 2009 issue, and mentioned my experience in their story. …

Sailing through a hurricane

Caught in a hurricane When I completed the sales transaction and took ownership of my Catalac 8M, I was hundreds of miles from home. I couldn’t wait to bring her home and put out a call to friends and family for crew. I accepted my brother’s gracious offer to give me a hand. He has a solid power boat backround these days and when we were kids we spend every minute we could in boats on Long Island Sound and the north Atlantic, and we both survived it.…

Why buy a Catalac Catamaran?

During what turned out to be many months of reading and research, I was actually considering buying a monohull. Cruising Catamarans kept popping up in my research, and I’m ashamed to admit that I wasn’t even aware of these boats at the time. The only catamaran experience I’d had was on a Hobie Cat. However, in reading the check list of desired features, cruising catamarans, with their shallow draft, were matching up better than a monohull and were definitely of interest.…

Sailing 6000 Miles on the Catalac 10M S/V Blue Felix

by Sven and Sabine Seren continued from page 2 Atlantic Crossing with a Catalac 10M Part 3 What a difference it makes to sail downwind!! As we drew closer to the island, we had the current with us and made 7 to 10 kn consistantly over ground with the mainsail still in the second reef and the Genoa only half out. Our new destination would be St. Laurent du Maroni. This small city is located on the French side of the border river Maroni between French Guayana and Suriname.…

Sailing 6000 Miles on the Catalac 10M S/V Blue Felix

by Sven and Sabine Seren continued from page 1 Atlantic Crossing with a Catalac 10M Part 2 Our Atlantic crossing could now begin. Ahead of us were about 1800 nautical miles until French Guiana where we wanted to make for the Îles du Salut which are a group of small islands of volcanic origin about 11 km off the coast of French Guiana in the Atlantic Ocean. The first day under sail was dominated by local wind effects from the Cape Verde islands.…

Sailing 6000 Miles on the Catalac 10M S/V Blue Felix

by Sven and Sabine Seren Atlantic Crossing with a Catalac 10M We, Sven and me, Sabine, found our Catalac 10M S/V Blue Felix, sail. number 35, at the German Baltic sea in summer 2012. The purchase and the handing over passed without problems due to the good and ready to sail condition of S/V Blue Felix including a set of new sails. Our Catalac 10M has been named S/V Blue Felix since his launch in 1988. He has two Yanmar engines with 27 hp each with saildrives and folding props.…

Crossing the Atlantic Ocean on the Catalac 900 – S/V Horizons

continued from page 1 by Jeff & Diane Curran We were making good progress, averaging 90 miles but after 5 days the wind died and we were then faced with the prospect of grossly exceeding our ETA at Barbados. The last thing we wanted to happen was for our girls back in the UK to become worried because were unable to contact them or let them know in any way that we were ok (in fact, this became the greatest concern during the trip).…

Crossing the Atlantic Ocean on the Catalac 900 – S/V Horizons

by Jeff & Diane Curran (Jeff and Diane were kind enough to share the story of their Atlantic crossing in 2013 aboard S/V Horizons, their Catalac 900 catamaran. – Rick In 2012 Jeff reached the Canaries aboard Horizons a Catalac 900 having sailed from Madeira single handed. It was not without some difficulties, gale force winds certainly helped him on his way but halfway through the journey the electronic auto helm broke. Hove to, a repair was attempted but it became apparent that the wheel pilot motor had burnt out.…

Atlantic Crossing in a Catalac 9M Continued

Continued from Part 1 By Christopher Langham and Esther Minter During my brief stop in Spain, my paternal Grandfather passed away and in the midst of trying to compose myself in dealing with my grief, I continued moving forward despite my lapse in funds and having to refit the Genoa. I tried to figure out a way to leave the boat and fly home, but I couldn’t. No more credit, no money to pay the marina, and only provisions to do one thing… Continue moving forward and I’m glad I did, because God always provided enough funds to keep moving forward. …

Trials and Tribulations of an Atlantic Crossing in a 40 year old Catalac 9M

By Christopher Langham and Esther Minter When I started my journey in late June 2015, I envisioned emblematic escapades. Nevertheless, what I encountered was tremendous challenges that I never could have fathomed. These surprise factors after embarking on the journey from Largs, Scotland to St. Thomas USVI were mostly unnecessary, and had I known in advance what fiascos were ahead of me, I never would have left the comfort of my Government Housing Subsidized Apartment, in the Crime ridden projects of St.…

Original 1987 Catalac Catamarans Product Price List

Catalacs have been out of Production since 1980s 6/87CATALAC CATAMARANS LIMITEDPRICE LIST8 Metre 27′ PRICE £ STERLINGStage ICarcass£14,750Stage IIFloataway£19,995CompleteOutboard£25,000 Inboard£29,470 9 Metre 30′ Stage ICarcass£17,875Stage IIFloataway£29,000CompleteInboard£39.000 10 Metre 34′ Stage ICarcass£26,000CompleteQuarter Berth£66,000 Freezer /Shower£69,000 12 Metre 41 Stage ICarcass£29,000CompleteFrom£98,000 Stage ICarcass: Mouldings complete, Main Bulkhead bonded in, Locker Lids and Hatches supplied loose, Wiring installed in conduit. Deck and Hull mated and bonded.Stage IIFloataway: Hull and Deck bonded, Steering fitted, Windows installed, Hatches fitted, all Deck fittings, Mast and Rigging supplied, Water and Fuel Tanks installed, basic instrumentation fitted, Engine/Engines installed.*No interior furniture or linings.CompleteWarps,…

Catalac 8M Performance Page

This page is fairly technical … but in 2005 the Catalac 8M was my new boat and calculating performance characteristics satisfied my curiousity. Essentially this page displays crucial data which is used to calculated max speed and stability for the Catalac 8M / 9M (same hulls). The data can be used in the context of hull design or racing handicaps. There’s no way a Catalac 8M (or most cruising catamarans for that matter) can be mistaken as a racer. The link to my hull design formula page can be found here.Catamaran…

Catalac Catamaran Owner’s Corner

On this page you’ll find photos of Catalac Catamarans in North America, Britain, Europe and the Caribbean in a FIFO arrangement. If you would like me to add a photo of your boat and bio to this page, please email me and we’ll make it happen. –Rick) Catalac 8M S/V ScubaCat Dagnall Clutterbuck runs the Catamaran Cruising Association in England and has owned his Catalac 8M “Scubacat” for the last 15 years. British catamaran owners may contact Dagnall at catamarancruising@gmail.com Catalac 9M S/V Zorba Lennart Dekker is the owner of S/V Zorba sail number 39 since October 2019.…

Catalac Catamaran Builder Photos

Catalac Build Quality Catamaran construction techniques have evolved over time. Boats are now built with some type of coring in their hulls and decks to reduce weight (weight= material cost) and improve performance. While newer boats do perform better because of the use of coring, they have a whole set of construction issues which develop because of it. When a prospective buyer considers the purchase of a cored hull boat he must understand that any used boat which was designed and constructed with coring material has to be carefully examined before the purchase. …

Catalac Catamarans Design Review

Catalac Catamaran Some of the arm chair sailors prowling around on the boating forums have called Catalac Catamarans a ‘dated design’ because of their hardchined hulls. You will note that catamaran hull design migrated to rounded bilge designs in the ’90s (ie… Gemini). The reason I mention this is that if you paid attention to the America’s Cup racing series last year you may have noticed that BMW Oracle uses a hard chine main hull on their boat, and they’re obviously very successful campaigning that boat. …

Catalac Catamaran Update

by John Lack Catalac Catamaran Maintenance Issues Your Honorable Secretary has a printable short fail for this month’s letter – so who should walk past, the door when pressure was on but myself ! The timing is totally inappropriate as this is our busiest time, coupled with my ineptitude towards written work, as many of you will have encountered, but I wi11 do as I am told – after all, it may prejudice a babysit one evening! It has always been very difficult for me to write to the association members via the letter without being seen to promote the services I have to offer.…

Letter from John Lack – with News and Recommendations

Catalac Catamaran Maintenance Issues Dear Association MemberWell, here we are, yet another year flown past and still without the association spares listing. Whilst I am pleased to report that we have been so busy this last season, it is not particularly helpful to you, nor indeed of any assistance to my turnover. My apologies!As the year aged towards its close, I learnt that a winding up order had been placed against Catalac Cruising Catamarans Ltd. Lest reprisals be taken, I understand that this does not affect John Williams, the contracted boat builder.…

Bobcat and Catalac Assc Update by John Lack

Catalac Catamaran Maintenance Issues The early Spring and Summer saw us slowly wading through the repairs, the first 5 being usable and in varying states of cosmetic completion for the Whitsun Rally, the more serious cases following up during the “summer” months.The absence of the building company put a “further strain” on our already stretched resources, dealing with queries and supply of Catalac parts. However, with a few delays, I hope we managed to accommodate everyone and, indeed, I would like to thank those who did come to us, whether it was just advice required, a hinge or a complete engine installation package.…

Rotostay Furler Instructions

Jib furling Each ROTOSTAY is made to measure and comprises the following components. Identify and check them before assembly: 1.) Rotostay top swivel (with or without mast toggle).2.) Forestay complete with eye terminal, upper swage bearing and…3.) Stud terminal.4.) Rotostay drum with deck toggle. 5. Anodized aluminum luff spar.6. Spar links,7. Flexible wire halliard and shackles.8. Halliard tail and shackle.9. Reefing line. N.B. In some installations the deck toggle may be replaced by a bottle screw and toggle – see Fig.…

Flavel Vanessa marine cooker operating manual

Notes on a Propane Regulator A note to American owners of this Flavel cooker. The time will come when the propane tank regulator will need replacement. The pressure required to operate this unit is specified as 37 mbar for Propane. A conversion to PSI is required for Americans. 37 mbar converts to .5 PSI. I repeat ….. 1/2 PSI.If replacing the old propane regulator, Ace hardware or any local hardware store will sell propane regulators. Make sure you buy the proper size!!!! Again 1/2 PSI is all that is required.I…

Getting the most out of your Catalac Catamaran

Catalac Catamaran Maintenance and Performance Issues Now and then, people write asking me if I have experienced this or that trouble with my Catalac (because they have). Sounds awful, doesn’t it! Mostly they say that their particular Catalac “isn’t so good to windward as others”, or “is very heavy to steer in a breeze”, or “keeps, breaking her steering cables (same thing.) Since most of these letters come from “second-hand” owners, it seems that not all Members have benefited from the personal advice of the Lack family.…

Catalac Windward Performance Tips

CBH Century Business Horizons Inc. 19 Rensselaer Drive, Spring Valley, New York 10977 Albert J ShapiroPresident June 4, 1996 Mary LackFlagstaff House Dear Mary and John, I would like to seek your advice, related to Catalac sailing.. Before I do, let me take a moment and tell you how much we enjoy our 9m. We enjoy the layout, the solidness of the construction and the maneuverability with the twin diesels. As we have finally found the time to do more cruising and even some fun racing we have found a number of situations in which we could use some guidance and advise.…

Catalac 8M/9M Rigging Tune

Sailboat Rig tuning is an art rather than a science and varies from boat to boat and from low winds to high winds. Remember that the rigging on a monohull unloads as the boat heels and spills wind out of it’s sails. When you look at Catamaran rig tuning, we have to keep in mind that our rigs never unload. We have stiffer masts because of this and larger diameter wire stays. As with all sail boats, the rigging not only holds up your mast, but also has an effect on sail shape, and therefore affects performance.Racing…

Fixing the infamous Catalac Catamaran window leaks

A dry boat interior To say that I’ve had a problem with my Catalac windows leaking would be the understatement of the year. Catalac Catamarans have had a chronic window leak problem and yes…. my boat is no exception. The leaking windows have been my pet project especially the port and starboard cabin window units. Let me tell you what I’ve done so far, and what works and what doesn’t.The first thing I did to stop the leaks was to grab a caulking gun and put a bead of latex caulk around the exterior of the offending windows… I was neat and meticulous and very proud when it was done.…

Catalac Catamaran inspection / haul out recommendations

When considering a Catalac catamaran purchase, one should always hire a boat surveyor. The list below are some things to watch for which are unique to Catalac catamarans. Surveyors should add these to their normal list of items to check. Basic Catalac Construction Catalac catamarans have: Solid fiberglass hullsEnd grain balsa cored decksSafety glass. No plastic windowsSolid fiberglass cabin tops with 8cm end grain balsa sandwich “battens” for extra strength at hardware mounting points. These battens run fore / aft.Cable / Quadrant steering systemSteel chainplates mounted inside the cabin on forward bulkhead.All…

About Catalac Catamarans

What is it about catamarans that holds people’s attention? The America’s Cup actually went as a completely multihull event for a few years, and that got people’s attention. Then, of course, the Caribbean is literally overrun by catamarans, which has made them a popular topic in sailing circles these days. People are now including them in their boat research, and discovering cruising catamarans have as much as 50% more room than a monohull of the same boat length. What is just as interesting is they are bright and airy inside, they do not heel (lean) under sail and are incredibly stable both at anchor and under way.…

Catalac Catamaran History

Following the successful development with Bill O’Brien of the Bobcat Catamaran in the 1960s, Tom Lack Catamarans LTD specialized in building these early cruising catamarans. In fact, they built hundreds of Bobcat Catamarans. It was 1970 when they came to the decision to end building O’Brien’s Bobcat and working with boat designer John Winterbotham, created their own design, the Catalac 9M. This marked the beginning of the Catalac line of cruising catamarans. Catalac 8M The Catalac 9M was formally introduced in 1970, followed by the Catalac 8M in 1975, 12M and then the 10M.…