Compare sailing a Cat Boat vs. a Sloop (i.e. CP Horizon Cat vs. CP19)

[rdcvsmith]

I only had experiences and schooling on typical bermudan sloop type boats, never been in a Catboat yet. You obviously are not dealing with a foresail on the Catboat, but you have that single gaff rigged sail that is certainly a bit different than the triangular sloop sail.

Is sailing a catboat "easier" since your not trimming 2 sails, or does it come with its own particular set of issues?

Just wondering.....

[Bremer Speck]

I cannot comment about the CP19 but compare to the ketch I do normally sail on. With my Horizon, there are 3-5 less sails to trim and worry about. What a difference... :-) ... As best as I can tell, after barely 5 weeks of ownership, the cat does not point as high but she is great going downwind.

[CaptRon28]

I don't consider myself an expert cat boat sailor yet, but I've noticed a few differences. I've had the boat for one season and much of that was lost due to shoulder surgery. The single sail and the gaf rig both conribute to the differences.

First, you should not bring the boom close to the center line when close hauled. It won't like it. The Horizon points fairly well when you back it off maybe 10 to 15 degrees, depending on the wind. Better than I thought it would do.

I've also noted some performance increases playing with the two halyards, allowing the gaf to assume different angles. Tight does not always work, especially in light air. Ditto for the outhaul.

The other thing I really want to do is play with the tension of the shrouds. They cannot be as tight as a fixed mast (if you intend to occasionally lower it), but I think most of them were set up much too loose. Mine almost flap in the breeze. You loose perfomance when the stick does not stay vertical (in relation to the deck).  And with the leeward shroud that loose the mast head and gaf are definitely moving around up there. I may replace the turnbuckle with an easy adjustment version or use a tensioner similar to the one on the head stay.

Rigging and sailing a cat boat is about as easy as it gets. Thats the main reason why I bought it.

[capt_nemo]

Having found that my CP SunCat was quite underpowered in light air, under such conditions I sacrificed some of the simplicity of the Cat Rig and willingly accepted the added complexity of a home-made Rip Stop Nylon light air headsail. For details see the post "SunCat with Jib" in the SunCat Forum. I'm happy to say that my boat's performance in light air with free flying nylon Drifter not only met, but exceeded my expectations. With regard to sailing with the large Gaff Headed Main'sl, it is trimmed quite differently than on a Marconi Rig, especially on a very close reach. We don't ever pull the boom in tight on the boat's centerline (which stalls the boat) so I refrain from using the term "close hauled". Instead, we let the main'sl "breathe" a little with some twist at gaff level, the long boom end a little off the stern cleats or directly over either stern quarter. Those of us ex marconi rig guys, with a tendency to pull the sheet in and "pinch" into the wind,  experiencing some performance degradation, are reminded of the Cat sailor's watchwords, "When in doubt -let it out!". Also, in addition to downhauls, outhauls, and main halyards ("Throat" halyard on Cat Boat) common to both rigs, a Cat Boat's main'sl SHAPE can be further adjusted to match wind conditions by varying the Peak Halyard tension which exerts an upward pull on the gaff with main'sl head attached therto. There is a lot more skill involved in really achieving a Cat Boat's full potential under sail than meets the eye. It is not only challenging, but quite enjoyable as well!

[tmorgan]

I find my Suncat is a lot easier to sail on a daily basis; particularly single handed.  Much information is available here and elsewhere on how to adjust the sail.  The one thing I think it is harder to do is reduce sail area in higher winds.  A sloop rig just has more options.