Hello All,
I am looking at purchasing a mystere 5.0 and had some questions about them.
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1. I am a learning how to sail would this be a solid learning boat or is it to much boat to single hand?
2. Checking both pontoons I found one had a lot of water in it. Checking the bow I noticed a sizable hole/crack 3-4 in on the bottom of the starboard pontoon. Looks like it ran aground. How easy are these to patch and should I steer clear of this ?
3. How durable a boat is this and are there any overall issues I should look at when checking the boat out?
4. I will be trailering this most of the time so will have to step the mast a lot. Is this possible with one person or will I always need a crew member around?
Thanks
Hello Prana.
5.0's are great cats. If its in good shape its a wonderful boat.
perfect for a newer sailor or experienced. not to big, not to small
if there is water in the hull, yet a large crack in the hull (on the bottom) the water MAY be coming from elsewhere like the jib track or other?
I am not a glass/epoxy pro, but most cats eventually need a bottom job (unless they just sit in a yard) from sailing up beaches/hitting bottom etc. typically not a big deal. but if the holes are really bad, and all the way through.. and water has wicked into the glass.. could be a deal breaker. IF POSSIBLE i would bring the cat to a local shop and ask a pro's opinion
There are some real snobs who get their undies in a bunch when you call a catamaran hull a pontoon (like me :)) pontoons are for ugly floating platforms .. hulls are for cool kids <img src="<>/smile.gif" alt="smile" title="smile" height="15" width="15" />
its middle of the road as far as durability. its not a tank like a TheMightyHobie18 but it can take a fair amount of punishment.
standard things to look for like soft spots in the gelcoat (esp in front of the front beam), rust on the beams.. etc.
the rudder castings (upper and lower parts of the rudders) are known for breaking.. i would take a good look at them and make sure they are solid
most parts are still available from canada but in my expeieince they are used.. and take up to a month to clear customs.
very possible with practice (or a gin pole , see murrays.com and the e-z mast step system. again doable without a pole, but you will need to step it a few dozen times to really know all the steps and be comfortable doing it solo
Hi Andrew,
Thanks for the reply I think ill drop an offer on it and see how it goes.
Couple other things on it.
Is the mast neutral buoyancy in case it goes over? Most of the areas I will be sailing will be -20ft deep so the mast would get stuck in the mud most of the time, which I hear is a huge pain.
Thanks for the hull vs pontoon advice <img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" /> still learning the vocabulary of the sailing world.
Also is this the system you are talking about?
http://www.murrays.com/mm5/merchant...
Thanks
as long as the mast is sealed it should float, or at the least not sink. you can test this by placing the mast in a lake, pool or ocean and look for bubbles. you can seal it with simple marine silicone or similar.
yes that is the e-z mast system i used to have and used on my TheMightyHobie18. when i bought my 5.5 i started to trailer my cat backwards (stern to the trunk). this way after i put the pin in the mast base the mast is angled up on the mast yoke (attached to the trailer). a combo of angling my mast, and pointing my bows down the surf line.. i can pretty much self step. but don't get me wrong..i will gladly ask / take help any time i can get it.
they also sell hobie bobs (little plastic ball) that attaches to the top of the mast. they are ugly and add weight to the mast making it a little harder to lift, but they prevent the mast from sinking.