30'-32' Cats... educate me please!
 

Got some questions about 30-32' cats from Motion, Spectre, Skater, Eliminator, etc. with twin big-block inboards. I'm taking my time and doing my homework/research on these. My maximum budget for my first cat is about $85k but I'm looking for bang for the buck also so it doesn't have to be that much. Wanting a 100mph boat that will handle LOTO slop basically.

Why are some brands cheaper similarly equipped? Is there a brand to avoid due to its lay up/construction? What boats are "splashes" of other brand boats? Which hulls are faster than others? What should I look out for? Are any harder to insure than others?

Any and all information that can shed some light on the subject is highly appreciated.

One of the reasons I posted this is because it seems that Spectre/Motion's seem to be priced lower than Skater/Eliminator's.

Here are the kinda boats I'm looking at:

2001 30' Motion 30 Catamaran at Aqua Mania
$99,900 just marked down to $89,900
Twin Mercruiser 500 EFI's w/ Pro Comp Heads, Cam and Dry Headers, 625 HP each, Naturally Aspirated, XR Drives, Quarter Canopies, Race Hatches, Custom Paint, Custom Trailer, Full Cover, New Interior Gauges and Rigging in 2008. This boat has less than 10 hours since repower and re-rigging in 2008. 110 MPH on GPS!!!!!

30 Spectre twin 500

32 Skater

i owned a 30 spectre w 300x outboards and was a great boat that ran 107 and i ran in everything from glass to 2-3's without a problem. THe 30 is a better outboard boat then an inboard outboard board in my opinion. 32 and up for i/o's

skaters are an epoxy boat and are much more rigid and in my opinion do not ride nearly as nice as the others BUT with comprable power are faster. Skaters are not gelcoated either so there exterior fit n finish isnt as pretty without paint or vinyl. that price range is most likely going to be 30 motion or spectre w outboard money. when i had mine a few years ago i was insured thru Allstate for under $1000 per year but im sure i lucked out at that time.

American Offshore should be considered....

Buy a 35 Motion. It handles the rough great and run 105+ with stock 500efi's! I just so happen to have one for sale that can be bought very close to your budget!!:D You can also insure a Motion easier than the other brands you mentioned.

http://www.seriousoffshore.com/class...age=out&id=327

Great info :drink: I don't know anything about outboard motors so I don't feel comfortable buying a boat with them.

I'd consider them too. Haven't seen one with twin inboards though.

Very nice boat! Why are Motion's easier to insure?

Btw guys, the door on the new building is gonna be 14' wide so I gotta be able to fit it in without trying to squeeze it in tightly.

You better call for insurance first!

Very, very, very true!!

Outboards have a much better power-to-weight ratio. The Merc 300s can be upgraded to about 400hp.

Of the many American Offshore 3100s I've seen, only a few had outboards. An AO3100 has an 8'6" beam so it will go through a 14' door very well.

I wouldn't spend close to 100K on a used 30 right now. There are alot of nice 35-36 boats in that price range.

so true.

Hit up myself or Upperhand on Speed and we can cover a few of the ins and outs with ya.
Cats have their plus's and minus's but unless youve got a few years behind the wheel of one. LOTO is no place to be in a cat under 30'. My 30 gets lost in the swells now and again but I manage it ok.

I own a very nice 30 and agree with your statement.

very few 30 skaters so probably not a fair comparison. However I doubt many would claim a 30 spectre rides nicer than a 30 skater. I would agree the 28 Skater has a rougher ride than a 30 Spectre. I would accredit most of that to the size difference however.

I have a bad ass 27 Nordic Thor in your budget in the classifieds.

Headed to chicago right now to look at this boat. A little birdy told me it could be had for $69k without trailer but I don't know how accurate that is.

There's a 32 Skater in Kansas City for $85k that I wanna go look at also that has been for sale for a couple months.

Really wanting something entry level with twins for poker running that I can upgrade to bigger power later. For the time being, it could have stock twin 496 HO's and I'll be fine with it.

That spectre looks very clean!

auqa-maia
 

buyer beware, i bought a boat from aqua mania recently and they did not do what they were supposed to and did not fullfill contract.

aqua mania
 

bought a boat from aqua mania and the entire experience was horrible

buyer beware aqua mania sold me a boat recently and did not do what they said or did not fullfill contract!!!!

bern, just wanted ot correct a few of your "facts".

skaters are epoxy, but use vinly ester based gelcoat with a binder coat then they layup the epoxy resin and glass.

actual epoxy is slightly more flexible that poly and vinly ester resin built boats. almost every one that you guys named uses least expansive polyester resin other than skater with epoxy. epoxy is also stronger therefor you can use less. the custom flatdecks are not gelcoated but the conventional style decks are.

epoxy boats normally ride better since the boat has some "give" to them. they actaully have some flex to them vs a poly boat which can not have flex since the type of resin will start to fatigue and normally will show stress cracks.