[quote=turbohobo]I agree with coastrat, you have skills that will stand you in good stead, but you have no experience with catamarans and little experience with sailing. Start out sailing, small cats are extremely demanding physically, they are not daysailers, in other words, one does not sit comfortable under a bimini (awning) drinking a cold one eyeing the missus sunbathing on the deck. That kind of sailing is relegated to monohulls, so first you need to decide what kind of sailing you want to do, your decision should be based on age, physical condition, type of sailing you want to do, then choose your boat.
If cats are what you want, then be prepared for a longer-than-usual learning curve. Keep in mind that typically, small boats are up to the 24' - 26' range and then you get into the larger boat range. There are people out there who build ocean going catamarans out of wood, marine ply to be more exact, I've stumbled across their websites from time to time. Start off small to gain experience, you can move on to the larger ocean going catamarans of even trimarans as you gain experience.
There are the smaller cats such as:-
Stingray:- [url]http://www.thebeachcats.com/index.php?module=pictures&g2_itemId=12286[/url]
Shark:- [url]http://sharkcatamaranclass.org/[/url]
I know that one can purchase plans to build a shark catamaran and I find the design of the shark hull one of the most attractive shapes I've ever seen on a cat. I recommend you start there. John Rogers will sell you complete plans on how to build a catamaran for just $80, you can contact him at [email]cedarshark@aol.com [/email]
Hope this helps some.
Turbo <!-- editby --><em>edited by: turbohobo, Nov 28, 2009 - 08:58 PM</em><!-- end editby --> [/quote]
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