Cats vs. V's
 

I was doing some brainstorming about future boats I'd like to own and couldn't really make up my mind. Here are the list of boats I was thinking about maybe trading up to one day.

29ft Fever w/twins
29ft Baja outlaw w/twins
vs.
25ft Daytona
26ft American Offshore


Now there are plenty of other boats out there that I've been thinking about also but these are the one's that really catch my eye. What are the benefits of each.....cat vs. V hull?

What type of water do you run?
What features are important to you? Cabin(nonexistent in a small cats)?
Speed(Cats will crush Vs)?
Give us more details on what you are looking for in your next boat.

The Fountain is a better build and handleing then the Baja, but is smaller.
The Eliminator is a better boat then the AO - performance, build, etc.
Single is more efficient then twins in most cases, but with twins if one breaks you can still limp in.


Don't forget Warlock. They build cats and V's.

if you havent done it already , check insurance cost for a cat.
it might narrow down your decision :(

Well put Steve. I agree a littel more info is needed about your needs in the boat you choose. There are definitely benefits and drawbacks to each style.

Pluses for a Cat aside from the obvious SPEED !!
And For a well designed cat it would be as follows.

1. The Ride : Look Air is compressible and Water follows the rules of say Hydraulic's can we say pounding

2. Fuel economy less power is needed and the MPG is higher due to the efficiency factors anyway.

3. Ease of launch and recovery on a properly designed trailer.on say cats 12 meters and less.

4. Most cases it is easer to work on.

5. Visual Impact. they are just cool.

6.Maneuvering the engines are further apart so their influence is greater.

7.No oil drum type of rocking while stopped in open water.

8. If you want a great cabin get a Penthouse Suite to party with your chick in.

HAHA great advice ;)

I run on a local resevoir here and it gets choppy at times...but not really that bad at all. Occasional trips to destin might be in the future as well. I like a cabin but we wouldn't spend the day in it or anything. The one thing that would matter is a nice engine cover to lay out on. Most of the 25 Daytona's and AO's I've seen are perfect.....as well as the Fountains and Baja's so that should be no prob. Oh and I didn't forget Warlocks...I'd love to have one of them also. Ok let me narrow it down a little further....lets take the best of the 2 I've listed.

Lets say a 25 Daytona vs. 27 or 29 Fever


I'm not sure of the speed of a 29 Fever w/twins. I know a stock 25 Daytona is like 75mph right?

Cabin room hands down would be the Fountain
Looks well.....I really like Fountains....but Cats do look smooth and they just demand attention ;)

Heck I could just keep the Hammer and throw a blower on it ;)

Hammer LOL:D

West Coast Cats
 

If your looking at cats. Take a look at some built out west like in Havabrew. You can pick up a 28 with more cabin than what you can get a fore mentioned 25 or 26 price wise.

Some brands to look at.

magic
advantage
laveycraft
force
conquest
etc
etc.

We ran a Magic 28 last year and enjoyed it alot. Handled the washing machine water we see really good.

I found out the the statement "once you go cat you don't go back" out first hand. It is so true for me.

I'll have to check that out....yeah the prices of some of the Daytona's I've seen are way beyond what I can afford. Thats one thing I have not done is check out some other brands. Right now I'm just daydreaming....but I'd like to do some homework if the opportunity comes up one day for me to step it up. I guess everybody's talking me into cats ;)

stock daytona? what engine? with a 496 expect 72 to 75 on a good day,with a 500efi mine ran 82 to 83. Is it good in chop,hell yes. 2 to 3 footers feel like rumble strips at 80 :)4 foot and above not a good idea though. they handle awsome and actually get 2mpg at 70mph.The looks factor is way up there too :)

This might be the wrong methodology for choosing a boat but I tend to look at what boats the racers are running when considering a boat. I figure they have put the research into it and if a boat hull is good enough for the pounding they put a boat through it is good enough for me!

As far as cats vs v-hulls, it is just a matter of personal preference. Do you like to be able to stand up while you drive? If you do V-hull is the only way to go as far as I know.

Geeez cat,do you read before you post? I never said one handled better than the other. I said the daytona handles great.As for the talon being the best 25 foot cat ever designed,ever driven one? I have,compared them head to head and bought the daytona. Prettier,better ride and faster with identical power.(79.8 vs. 82.1) back to back test 5 minutes apart,similar fuel and passenger load. Both hp500efi powered. I haven't driven an AO 26 so I can't make that comparison.

HTMs are stand up cats right? So are the big boys, if you desire, Nor Tech and MTI.

Personally I wouldn't want a 29 ft V-Hull with twins. Extra engine = more weight - more fuel and usually less speed. I'd go for a composite 28 - 29 ft stepped single engine V-Hull. If you are thinking about the extra engine for dependability to get home - buy a SeaTow membership for $ 119.00. BH

Check out WPM
 

Pretty reasonably priced and their 23 would be a very fast boat with bravo type power. I hope to get one maybe next season. No cabin space though.

I could be wrong but I don't think the smaller, less than 30' cats, are stand up.

Older 25' Obsession Vortex hulls were equipt with drop out seats. Heavy hull is great on rough water but it takes a lot of power to get good "cat like" speeds compared to some of the newer models out there.

I know the AO isn't. Had a ride in one, and it was sit-down only.

The Sr-24s are standup.

Just go buy a 28 Sunsation and bolt on a blower if you want speed.

Ok explain why not a 29 w/twins. I thought with twins it would fly but I see what you all are saying as far as weight goes. So I guess a single (stepped if possible) Fountain would be the way to go?

I had an 89 27 Fountain with twin 350's and it was a great boat. The 350's were bullet proof and the boat rode great. If I was in the market for a 28 V hull I would want twins. An Apache, PowerPlay or Pantera would be at the top of my list!

Hey !!!

The 25' Daytona is great if your about 5' tall and like sitting flat on the ground !!!

CJG

so far I like my 29 outlaw a lot, handles great and has good speed [for a non step hull] the price was right on it, I would have bought a cat, but the high price of insurance where I live[gulf coast] twisted me into a V hull, some cats I have riden in are the 28daytona with twin 496's, a sweet machine, and has a cabin in it with seating, has a center pod and rides great, another cat was the 30 Spectre[no cabin]with twin 500's in it, it passes on a great ride also[after center tab install] but my favorite was the 3100 American offshore, deep freeboard and a cabin, really cool boat, to me I like having an extra engine, its easier to dock, extra insurance if you are far from home, plus it sounds better to me, there are a lot of other great boats I did not mention, check them out
Mark

Like the 3100 AO, check out the Awesome Cats they make 28, 31 and 38. These are very big boats inside for there size. I had a chance to talk to the guy in Miami with the 3100 AO with the American Eagle graphics. What an awesome boat. Unlike most of the guys there, he let me get in the boat walk around, look anything and he answered a lot of questions. He seemed like a great guy to work with. The 3100 I was in had a bed underneath with some seating and a flat panel tv also. The boat had 500efis with 5 people I believe he told me he ran 98 on gps. 2-3 people over 100mph. What a great boat

Nice Post Dreamboater:D