Which Cat

[Wanna]

G'day

Major dilemma. My wife and I decided we need a cat before we wrinkle. We were nearly stuck on getting a Kevlacat 2400 / 2800 but now looking at Cougar Cat.

Dilemma No.2 - To trailer or berth (advantages / disadvantages)
Dilemma No.2 - Suzuki's???

Any help would be most appreciated

Wanna & Rhonda

[saurian]

Wanna, sounds like you have decided on fiberglass.
Depending on where you are located marina berths can be an option.
anything over 2.5 tonne and remember cats are streamlined bricks
will be fun to tow ( scare the poo out of you when a low loader goes past etc....)
I have 7.5 m overall ali cat . 2.5 ton ?? ( not sure) 3.6 m high.
2400 kevlacat is easily trailerable . 2800 is trailerable but not really
any long distance in safety without f 250 , 3 ton up light truck.
3 ton trucks are not really expensive to run or drive for that manner.
Realistically look at real life costs/scenarios , fuel from marina , maintenance, berthcosts
your abliity/experience in towing /loading / launching / launching facilities
dealing with oversize regulations ( 2800), but most of all if you are still going to enjoy it after you have forked out 100/150 plus on whatever
model it may be ...
Lets not forget you can not take it with you , 150 Thou you use 3 times a year with lots of hassles is not as good as 100 thou plus 15 thou a year for hassle free (when has it ever been) boating based from a marina.
I personally think that in the end the choice is very personal , one that only you have the answer too. Look at all these posts on this website all different , thats boats.
Any suzuki on the two kevlacats mentioned is a wise choice...
Very safe long term bet...
Make sure the power is closer to max than min, as cats are sportscars of the sea , not chuggers... poo i wrote a bit about this ...
best of luck...

[Wanna]

Saurian

Thanks mate. Yeh, I've since been surfin' and thinkin. I'm edging towards berthing(antifoul and parking fees) vs the hassle of fighting for ramps and the price of shed, trailer, rego, truck etc. The Cougar Cats have got my interest. I was looking at a nice Odessa but I'm just trying to see what experiences anyone's noticed between the two hulls. I'm sure I'll be happy with what I choose, but it's always good to test the waters. I've been out of the picture for a while, but It's good to have reassurance on the suzukis. How do you find the ali - GRP???

[saurian]

Not much of grp fan , have always lived in large tidal areas.
Cougar , one experience ex cop boat , turned charter.
2 by 200 2 strokes , guzzler.
put 2 by 200 yam 4 strokes wider on transom , mounted further away from tunnel, faster .. non guzzler.
But cougar choice is more for money .
Strange bigger moored 30 + ft same price as 24 ft same age trailerable .
Seems like once you get to a certain size , it becomes clearer.
If moored is the go , only limit size by horespower and running costs
not size alone.
I wish, i can not afford marina and associated costs up front, next one .
Anyway follow your&wifies heart , enjoy...

[trout3030]

What brand ali cat u got Saurian?

[flatstrap]

G'day Wanna & Rhonda,
There are advantages in a)trailer boating and b)mooring a boat

a) Your boat can be kept at home (in sight) safer...
b) You choose your body of water to fish in...Gold Coast today...Whitsundays later
c) The hull and engine legs are CLEAN...no marine life growing in water vents and trims
d) No ongoing costs when idle
e) No seagull/pelican cr*p on it
Dis.
a) 1 off Cost of trailer + upkeep
b) Must improve driving skills
c) Cost of suitable towmobile

I like working on my Edencraft cat when I like, as after work and having all my tools, power accessible etc. Sheer enjoyment for me to just muck around the boat without causing too much disruption to family dynamics. Also, when really bad weather is on, you don't have to worry about the boat's status such as... bashing up against poles after rigging has broken; marine vandals, lots of water and the scupper is blocked with a plastic bag, etc. etc.

Just something to consider...flatstrap

[Wanna]

Flatstrap

G'day. Well, we've come full circle, which is good - haven't rushed into it. We decided to have the trailer and going with the Kevlacat 2400 with 140 zuk's. Went for a spin the other day in Mackay (2.5 - 3m seas from all directions)in one and most impressed (moving at 25kn most of the time). None of that mono smack & crack.

I agree with what you say, especially convenience of shed tools and protection. Just have to maintain the excitement now until the big day( whenever it is)

Cheers

[flatstrap]

WANNA
Must be exciting waiting for the new arrival. I just realised where you're at. I've done my share of bait drowning in your area. Close in: Cockermouth Is, Prudoe Is, Wigton etc.. the reef at Stevens and Cole Reefs. This your area of operations? You lucky man!
Enjoy...flatstrap

[MulletMan]

Well from a fair bit of experience in the marine rescue business I would not be heading towards a Cougarcat personally.

There have been a couple of disasters in the big ones (AVCG Manly sold a new one as a barge eventually #;)) At full speed it did about eight knots! #:-/ :'( :-/

Once bitten twice shy I guess............

Wouldn't touch a Noosa Cat with a barge pole - for unknown reasons a small percentage of them have a history of "chine walking" which is a really bad characteristic for a boat, and I reckon the finished product is far too expensive for the finish and what you get for the $$$$$$$$

Other than that I don't know much about cats - but most of the VMR rescue uinits have dumped the big 200/225 4-stroke Yammies as they had serious fuel pump problems and the usual ratty after sales service. They have now gone for the new Suzukis and appear to be having no problems.

I was on a charter trip a couple of weeks back that was running big Suzies and they had a hell of a problem fitting them to a cat and getting them running right, but once done they swear by them! Apparently they use a bit more fuel than they wanted but I noticed a huge rooster tail behind the boat so looks like they didn't do too great a job in rigging them properly - too deep in the water by the sound of it!

I just love Honda 4-strokes! Magnificent motors and trouble free! And surprise surprise, their after sales service is slightly worse than Yamaha - if that is possible! Like most anything, the warranty and workmanship is only as good as the dealer and we had all sorts of trouble getting someone who could reliably work on the Yammies or the Hondas.

Storage for sure!

[Sportfish_5]

While we are on the subjects of cats ::) ::) ::) ::)

I was looking over the Glacier Bay cats at the Sanctuary Cove show and they were fitted up with Suzis and the engines had a distinct "toe out" ie Powerheads were leaning into the middle of the boat instead of straight up. Thought it was just my eyes at first but they all seemed to be rigged this way ?

How does that help a Cat ? Is it just steering at low speed or something else ?

Cheers

Greg

[flatstrap]

I forgot to mention other big advantages of trailer boating...
You can shop around for your fuel and
you can take your boat to your fav mechanic...flatstrap

[Doug_Juergens]

Greetings. I'm newbie to Ausfishing; yank living in American Samoa. You guys seem to know a lot about cats.....I'm looking at a Marlin Broadbill 600 Sport in reasonable condition with twin Yammer 0's ..any thoughts on value. Doug

[Doug_Juergens]

70's....big fingers small keyboard. Doug

[flatstrap]

Doug_Juergens
There's an 8 metre (26+ ft} with twin 150's for 14k (AUD) no trailer at www.boatpont.com.au
Hope this confuses you like it does me...flatstrap

[perko]

Don't forget about Sailfish and Dominator. Both 7m models are trailable and are equal if not better than the Kevlacat. Both have a raised floor in the cabin area which is excellent, run well with fourstrokes and have excellent resale. I have a 6m Sailfish and it is excellent. Have had a few other cats including a Kevlacat and another Sailfish and like my current boat the best.

[Doug_Juergens]

Thanks Perko. Will check out the Sailfish. Doug

[Doug_Juergens]

G'day Perko, I like your boat....a lot! Doug

[reef_king]

hey,
heres my 2 cents.......
I currently own a 7m Coastal Cat powered by twin 140hp Suzzie's. I have personally tested a 2400 Kevlacat powered by 2x130hp yammies(very dissapointed in the ride) , a 7500 sailfish powered by 2x150hp hondas(very impressed), 7m dominater powered by 2x100hp yammies(good features but lacking in ride quality), and a 780 cougar powered by 2x200hp yammies.

From my experences ride quality is best: sailfish, cougar, dominater, kevlacat. With coastal cat being the pick of them all.

Knocking out the cougar(bigger), these cats all perform similarly with same horsepower, and yes more is better. The sailfish is very well finished and becuase of its alloy construction, custom features are simple and endless. The dominaters and Kevlacats are also well finished, however it is my opinion that the dominaters have better features. The cougars are good boats but are most likely older and more costly to run etc....

I did 6-7 months of research and ended up with the coastal cat. It is completly hand-made and built mostly for commercial fisherman(says something about it). It is a true walkaround(rare in cats) and makes fighting a stubborn fish/pulling anchor alot easier. It is a semi-planing hull unlike most cats being planning hulls, this causes the boat to suck to the water slicing thru it riding on its air, rather than skipping over the top getting plenty of wave jumping action. Becuase of its hull shape it isn't as fast as the other cats, but can be powered easily by small horsepower. The twin 140 suzuki four stokes are magnificant, they have done 720hours not missed a beat, sometimes running 24hours straight. They start first time every time and are quiet and efficient. My boat does 33knts loaded with 1.2tonne of gear. Increase to 35knt light ship. It also has great load carrying capabilities. Sitting on 22-23knts at 4000rpm fully loaded in offshore conditions it uses 2:1, litres:per nuatical mile. dropping to 1.4:1 lightship offshore.

Just another thing too, don't get sucked in by salesman talk, and watch out for the actual length of the hull. eg. 2400 kevlcat is not a 24ft boat. The actual hull length is much smaller.

cheers, ty

[Wanna]

Flatstrap

Yeh. Those reefs and islands are just off the coast, but the tinny won't let me get there. Well, I seal the deal tomorrow and sit back and wait. So, when it arrives, I plan to be a permanent fixture out there...

[nevd]

While we are on the subjects of cats ::) ::) ::) ::)

I was looking over the Glacier Bay cats at the Sanctuary Cove show and they were fitted up with Suzis and the engines had a distinct "toe out" ie Powerheads were leaning into the middle of the boat instead of straight up. Thought it was just my eyes at first but they all seemed to be rigged this way ?

How does that help a Cat ? Is it just steering at low speed or something else ?

Cheers

Greg


I have nothing to do with Glacier so I can't speak for them. Some Cat manufacturers slope engines to try to decrease roll in cornering and go close to banking like a mono hull.

[rob cady]

Well done on your new 2400 kc i am also from mackay and waiting on new delivery how is your rig going i know the weather has been average lately in mackay.I have ordered the same 2400 offshore after a test run in average conditions it sounds like you fish the same areas.I currently have a 24 huntsman deisel turbo for sale whilst waiting good riding for a mono but honestly regardless of what people say there was no comparising to the cat i know its a lot dearer and you only get what yo;Du pay for but i was very impressed with it cheers

[Greg P]

I have nothing to do with Glacier so I can't speak for them. Some Cat manufacturers slope engines to try to decrease roll in cornering and go close to banking like a mono hull.


Hey Nev - thanks for the reply. I asked at the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show and apparently it lets the props stay in clean water - according to the rep. :-/

[julian1]

Well from a fair bit of experience in the marine rescue business I would not be heading towards a Cougarcat personally.

There have been a couple of disasters in the big ones (AVCG Manly sold a new one as a barge eventually #;)) At full speed it did about eight knots! #:-/ :'( :-/

Once bitten twice shy I guess............

Wouldn't touch a Noosa Cat with a barge pole - for unknown reasons a small percentage of them have a history of "chine walking" which is a really bad characteristic for a boat, and I reckon the finished product is far too expensive for the finish and what you get for the $$$$$$$$

Other than that I don't know much about cats - but most of the VMR rescue uinits have dumped the big 200/225 4-stroke Yammies as they had serious fuel pump problems and the usual ratty after sales service. They have now gone for the new Suzukis and appear to be having no problems.

I was on a charter trip a couple of weeks back that was running big Suzies and they had a hell of a problem fitting them to a cat and getting them running right, but once done they swear by them! Apparently they use a bit more fuel than they wanted but I noticed a huge rooster tail behind the boat so looks like they didn't do too great a job in rigging them properly - too deep in the water by the sound of it!

I just love Honda 4-strokes! Magnificent motors and trouble free! And surprise surprise, their after sales service is slightly worse than Yamaha - if that is possible! Like most anything, the warranty and workmanship is only as good as the dealer and we had all sorts of trouble getting someone who could reliably work on the Yammies or the Hondas.

Storage for sure!

so if not Cougar cat or Noosacat then which cat ??
pretty big comments seeing as though lots of VMR's use both of these brands ?

[Fish Guts]

julian,

i back up what your saying there. Mullet Man please let me know why the following AVCG & VMR bases currently have Noosa cats as their primary rescue vessel.

Coastguard Redclifee - 4100 series noosa cat
Coastguard Tin Can Bay - 4100 series noosa cat
Coastguard Caloundra - 2300 noosa cat
Brisbane Coastguard (manly) - 8.3m Shark Cat ( Noosa Cat)
Coastguard Redland bay - 7.2 m Noosa Cat

VMR Weipa- 30ft Noosa Cat
VMR Mornington Island - 7.2m Noosa Cat
VMR Bowen - 8m Noosa Cat
VMR Gladstone - 8m Noosa Cat
VMR Roundhill - 8m Noosa Cat , 7m Shark Cat
Vmr Hervey Bay - 8m Noosa Cat, 7 m Noosa Cat
Vmr Brisbane - 7m Noosa Cat
Vmr Jacobs Well - 6m Noosa Cat
Vmr Southport - 1x7m Noosa Cat , 1x8m Noosa Cat, 1x5m Noosa Cat

I wont even bother listing the QPS Noosa Cat flotilla or id be here all day. You must have had a bad day on a noosa cat somewhere along the way. Just look at the freeboard comparission between a 3900 kevlacat and a 3500 noosa cat. It speaks for itself. and as for chine walking, what size noosa cat were you in when this occured or is this something you heard ?

I dont know how they had probs with fitting suzukis to a cat, what type of cat was it, and did it have pods prior to the instal.

As a big advocate for noosa cat, and their handling i couldnt let that one go through to the keeper without saying my two cents. Sorry if i aggravated anyone but thought it beneficial to point out that noosa cats arent a "ahh i woudnt touch them with a barge pole" type of boat, and the slagging wasnt warranted. Not to mention Noosa cat's 4100 series with the ips drive systems took out the overall Australian boat of the year in the cruiser non trailerable for 2006.

cheers

fish guts

[julian1]

and .... i find it hard to believe the comment re the Cougarcat, I though they were one of the better cats once you get out of trailerboat land ?
unless it was grossly underpowered ?? :-/

[Kerry]

Some of the Big/BIGGER Noosacats were absolute shockers and attributed to the owners wanting "inappropriate and non recommended" engines and these are especially in shaft drive versions. There are quite a few instances of this and quite frankly if the engies were not recommended then why did they allow them to be installed in the first place, almost knowing full well it would probably result in court action?

Totally different scenario with Stern drives and outboards but like the old saying, not all cats are the same, same are good and some are not so and one can discuss the pros and cons of this all day and not achieve a thing!

As a one comment line the bigger cats do not work as well as the smaller cats and by big cats once over the 35 foot (or there abouts) mark but depends on the make!

As for Cougar and historically the bigger you went the more problems you tended to have especially once into that shaft drive size.

BIG is not always better until it starts getting real BIG BIG and things get back in line with the design characterics of a modern typical cat and not simply an extended grey hound.

Regards, Kerry.

[saurian]

Just scrolling through the last couple of posts and mention was made of rooster tails in regard to ill - fitting engines ie : to deep.
Is this the cause or are there a few reasons ..????
Like water pushed out of the tunnel etc ...?????
Ta

[bastard]

I love it when something comes up about cats,i had my heart set on one since i was a kid but when it came to the crunch i went mono,it seems to be a grey area that is allways a split decision.Does any won no anything about the power cats.

[Kerry]

It might be a grey area for the uninitiated? As for rooster tails :) the worst rooster tail anybody will ever see from a cat is when the yanks tried to re-invent a 2800 with surface drives, but then it could only happen in America :)

[julian1]

Kerry, what are your thoughts on the 7-9m Cougars and also the Coastal Cats? I know you are a Kevlacat man and I would dearly love a 2800 if I could stretch the budget (a long way) and you rarely see them advertised s/hand

cheers Julian

[Kerry]

Some of the Cougars were simply too long for their beam or should that be too skinny for their length? The Gov got into these a lot in the 30-32 foot mark for the obvious reason!

As for Coastal Cats? never seen one around here so don't have any thoughts.

[julian1]

surely the 7.5m Cougar wasn't to long for its beam ?
and excuse mu ignorance but what was the Governments obvious reasons ? :-/

[Kerry]

How about price?

[julian1]

so the cougars don't perform that well ?

[Kerry]

You should ask some of the old national parks people, they tell it better :)

[julian1]

You should ask some of the old national parks people, they tell it better :)
I don't know any old national parks people
c'mon do tell

[Fish Guts]

turn it up kerry. theres nothing wrong at all with the cougar cats. Just out of curiosity how many cougar cats have you driven ? Have you seen the handling characteristics of raby bay vmr's cougar ? i think you will be very suprised.

[julian1]

thre is one Cougar cat down my way i think its the 7.5-8m (Odessa ?)with wheelhouse and runs 225 EFI Yammies (glad i'm not fueling it) and i don't think there would be anything in our area that would perform the way it does, its almost majestic to watch it through the water, thats why i found the statements hard to swallow, but I have never driven one or been in one so thats why i am asking the question, I suppose evry brand has models better than others