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| An Affordable Cruising Caramaran | |||
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| Catalac Catamaran boat information page | |||
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General Catalac Catamaran information and history is below, boats
offered
for sale in the link above. Specific boat information is accessed by the
buttons on the menu bar at the left. Here's a shortcut to the boats description section:
Go directly to Boat design description The construction photos were taken during a build at the factory in Christ Church, Dorset, England. | ||
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Brief Catalac Catamaran History | |||
| Following the successful development with Bill O'Brien of the Bobcat Catamaran in the 1960s, Tom Lack Catamarans LTD stopped building Bobcats and began production of his new design, The Catalac Catamaran. The Catalac 9M was the first boat, introduced in 1970, followed by the Catalac 8M in 1975, 12M and then the 10M. The boats had a stellar reputation for build quality and seaworthiness. Over 1000 cruising catamarans were built by the Lack family, 600 of them were Catalacs, making them a catamaran success story. A related footnote is that boat builder Tony Smith of Performance Cruising Inc. (Gemini Catamarans) worked for them at that time. It's no | Learn to Sail! with Multimedia!
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coincidence that the layout of Gemini's and Catalacs are very similar. "Another interesting bit of history. One of the Catalac rivals in the early 1970's was the Aristocat. It failed to sell as it wasn't as good a boat as the Catalac. Years later Tony Smith got the Aristocat moulds and it became the first Gemini. Which maybe gives an indication as to how good the Catalac actually is." Richard Woods of Woods Designs www.sailingcatamarans.com
usually come at a poor time and this was no exception. The introduction of the 12 meter Catalac at this time put unusual financial strains on the company, as
the boat was a huge success at American boat shows. Alas, the company did not survive the combination of these events.
After 1985 production becomes confused with some boat repair boats finished and sold by Lacks sons and or builders associated with them. Additional boats were made/sold by several builders including Catalac Cruising Catamarans LTD, which appears to have been the most successful making 10M's until 1989. After the demise of CCC, John Lack (Tom’s son) was to finish two 10M's for owners who had boats that had been started but not finished by CCC, and was producing Catalac 8M's through at least 1990. Sometime around 1995 the British boat builder Hythe Marine Services LTD of Southampton, started making the Catalac 11M, a updated 10M with "stern scoops" which increased LOA by some 1.5 ft (.6 meters) , and rerouted all sail control lines to the cockpit. They also featured handcrafted interior joinery and plush upholstery. While the boat received great reviews and from all reports was well made, sailed and motored better than the Catalac 10M, it was not a sales success. I have a letter sent to a 10M owner where they were exploring an upgrade, and have added the Catalac 11M data to the menu bar. Then during this same time period a "new" 9M came on the market, made by Blue Water Catalacs, renamed the Catalac 900. The boat was also less than a sales success story in that only 26 boats have been manufactured during the company's existence over 10 years. The last we heard, John Lack is making Catalac 8M's on a special order basis. I received an email from Nibby David, who lives in Seaton, East Devon, UK concerning the Catalac moulds. He has personally seen the moulds for the 12 meter Catalac at Burnham-on-Sea boatyard, Somerset, Bristol Channel west coast UK, and is fairly certain John Lack still has the 8M moulds. He also reports that the 9M moulds were bought by Blue Water Catalacs and moved to Piddlehinton in Dorset. This was the basis for the Catalac 900. As a side note, Blue Water Catalacs also moulded a few of the Solaris range of cats. I wonder where the 10M moulds are? There was at least one "official" upgrade which was the Mk II about 1980. It is believed that the changes were: modifying the mould to include steps on the forward cabin between the windows for easy access to the cabin top, a square window replaced the round one in head and aft cabin/storage area, and skegs and fiberglass rudders replaced the flat steel 'kick up' version which increased windward performance. There had also been different engines mounted over the years but those are not structural.
Designers: Tom Lack & John Winterbottom Hull designs: Hard chine "V" section, load carrying hulls with flared bows to limit spray. They rely solely on lateral resistance to prevent leeway. The design was coupled with moderate 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. The reason the boats are so stable is that the relatively short rig combined with the Hard chine hull design allow the boat to unload the sail area by slipping the boat sideways in a sudden gust. It's very hard to turn turtle with this design and this along with the high build quality, is the reason most of these boats are still sailing today. In addition, it should be noted that these boats have solid Fiberglass hulls which will carry heavy loads far better than many others due to a wider hull-beam ratio, deep rocker design, extreme deadrise hulls with hard chines, and big, powerboat- like transoms (this was written by the noted multihull author, Charles Kanter). They also handle extremely well. Unlike others of that generation, they tack securely without backwinding the jib and handle smartly around docks, easily turning in their own length. Sailing Rig: Bermudan Sloop Design Features: Their shallow draft and opening cabin windows all with removable screens make these boats perfect tropical cruisers. Construction: Solid fiberglass Hulls and cored fiberglass bridge deck are one piece moldings bolted together. 3/4" Plywood wood bulkheads are bonded to the hulls.
Which Cruising Cats Hold Their Value?by Charles KanterCatalac, Cherokee, Iroquois, and Prout are cruising catamaran names that live through the decades. Bill Ware of 2Hulls brokerage in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, says, "Generally speaking, the English cats have the best resale value. They built the most enduring catamarans in the world." Depending on condition, they can fetch higher prices now than they did when they were new, even adjusted for inflation. The Iroquois, designed by legendary Rod MacAlpine-Downey, is a high-quality, fast-sailing, Weatherly vessel with pivoting centerboards and kick-up rudders. Catalacs, an 8 meter (27-foot), 9 meter (30-foot), 10 meter (34-foot) and 12 meter (41-foot), each rugged and with great carrying capacity, exceptional layout and good handling, sail the other end of the performance spectrum, but many have crossed the Atlantic.(an excerpt from the book)Cruising Catamaran Communiquéby Charles KanterCatalac catamarans, with over 600 units built and sailing, have probably brought as many hours of happy, comfortable and safe boating to more people than any other vessel. It is hard to find any comparable production vessel that has so well achieved its design objectives. One that comes close is the monohull, Morgan Out Island series, the most popular cruising boat ever. | |||
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