I am buying a 2005 Nacra F18 this weekend, what areas of the boat should I inspect carefully? Are there any areas of that boat that are known for failure that I should pay particular attention to? I know the trampoline will need to be replaced, there is a hole the size of a dime, I am not sure where, this was factored into the price though. Other then that I am told it is in perfect condition. I'm relatively new to sailing, I have some experience on a 420 and thats about it, I'm not too concerned though, I learn quickly and one of my friends who will be my crew has a decent amount of experience, just not on a cat.

Thanks for the help, can't wait to join the club!

Welcome aboard! Good luck with that

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Nacra 6.0 NA
Ogden Dunes, IN
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Try this....

http://www.sailingproshop.com/catamaran_guide.aspx

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Bert Scott
Niceville, FL
Nacra F18
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Holy... That is quite a first boat. It's a little like getting your drivers licence and buying a Lamborghini as your first car. Not impossible but the boat is so high performance you are bound to find it twitchy, overly responsive to small inputs on the controls. Would highly suggest sailing with an experienced cat sailor the first several times! And you will always need to have crew with you. The F18's are designed as 2 person boats and they mean it! There is too much to do for one person and you need the counter weight to keep it down in even medium air.

The good news is that that is the dream boat of half the guys on here. High performance, overpowered and fast as all hell. The newer Infusion type boats have slightly better hull shape and maybe a few more bells and whistles but unless you are an expert those mean little. They are still competative on a regional level.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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That's the impression I get, I almost feel like I might be a little crazy, but in the past everything I have bought that is good for learning I outgrew in less then a season, this boat is for sale near me, seems like a fair price so I might as well grab it. The guy I am buying it from said he would be more then happy to take me out on it. I know the infusions are a better design but I'm not planning on racing it and I don't need that to learn on. I am on the CT shore and I was hoping to find a group to join to get to know other people and learn from them. It sounds like it is legit and a nice boat, I was just looking for some things I should pay attention to and be aware of since I have not owned one before.

if you don't plan on racing... get something more toned down. "cruising" on a overpowered boat doesn't really exist (atleast in my limited experience).

Well overpowered is a bit of a relative term (yeah I used it). Other than the Wave, Getaway and Hobie 21 SC almost all production cats are overpowered. The whole point of most cat designs is to take advantage of the inherantly stable platform (much more so than any keelless monohull) and put the biggest mast and largest sails you can onto it!! That is pretty much true for every racing cat there is from the Hobie 16, Nacra 5.2, etc etc, to the newest boats. Really throwing a 30 ft mast on an 8 ft wide boat is kind of crazy in of itself.

All of our cats get out of hand really quickly if we let them. An F18 is no different. Just learn how to sail it and depower it correctly. And learn your boat. Even a Lamborghini can be driven 65 mph, it's nice to have the option to go 200 mph if for no other reason than to scare your friends. :) If it is cheap and close AND you know what you are getting into you might be OK.

That being said, also realize that these boats are no joke! You can really hurt youself (and other people) on them and get into some really serious trouble really quickly. Get the books, Phil Berman's Catamaran Sailing from Start to Finish, Rick WHite's Catamaran Racing for the 90s and maybe even my new favorite the RYA Catamaran Handbook(lots of good picture in there) read them cover to cover and again after your first couple of sails. Get on some of the more F18 oriented forums (not a huge amount here - these forums are mostly populated by recreational sailors although many of them race) and read up and make sure you get out several times with someone familiar with the boat.

If any of this starts to sound like too much work, you might want to downgrade a bit to a simpler boat. Maybe another 18 footer but maybe not as high tech. Hobie 18, Nacra 5.5, 5.7, 5.8, Prindle 18, 19 are all good fast boats.

I hesitate to tell right out not to get it because I was faced with a similar situation when I got into sailing. When I first started and said I wanted to get a Nacra (17-18 footer) and would mostly be single handing it my local hobie dealer said I was nuts and should get a Wave. A couple on here also thought it would be a bad idea, it's quite a more complicated boat from the H16 I used to sail on. But bought a local Nacra 5.2, I read up on her and made a few mistakes but have never regretted buying it and will never look back. My only regret is I would have liked a boardless, boomless boat like a Nacra 5.7 or 5.0, and everyone on here knows it. :) Buying an F18 is on another level but as long as you realize that you won`t be single handing it and you will likely need at least a relatively astute crew to sail with, its still just a sailboat and everything works the same way as all the others.

D.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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mdscarpa

That's the impression I get, I almost feel like I might be a little crazy, but in the past everything I have bought that is good for learning I outgrew in less then a season, this boat is for sale near me, seems like a fair price so I might as well grab it. The guy I am buying it from said he would be more then happy to take me out on it. I know the infusions are a better design but I'm not planning on racing it and I don't need that to learn on. I am on the CT shore and I was hoping to find a group to join to get to know other people and learn from them. It sounds like it is legit and a nice boat, I was just looking for some things I should pay attention to and be aware of since I have not owned one before.

You sound like you have a handle on this, take the owner up on any the offer to sail with you. The Formula 18 class is extremely popular for a reason, these are great sailing boats that can handle all conditions.

Please keep us updated on your progress. Also please fill out your signature for better communication.
http://www.thebeachcats.c…Forums/Forum-Signatures/

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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN

How To Create Your Signature

How To Create Your Own Cool Avatar

How To Display Pictures In The Forums.
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Cool, another F18 on the site. Take your camera and get pictures of it rigged. There are a ton of lines. Don't let these guys scare you, without the spin, it's a nacra 5.5 sloop. The hole in the tramp can be patched by putting tramp material on top and bottom and stitching with UV resistant thread.



Edited by nacra55 on Jul 28, 2011 - 10:53 PM.

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Ron
Nacra F18
Reservoir Sailing Assn.
Brandon, Mississippi
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+1

If you can start on an F18, do it. No reason to downgrade. The only thing that makes soloing my 5.5 rough is the size of the jib, and you've got a smaller jib, with a much more manageable hull design. It's a different story when you pull out the kite, but there's nothing forcing you to do so before you're ready.

I agree you should get the owner to take you out, as there will be no shortage of lines to learn, but within the first season the lines will all seem simple, and the least of your worries.

DO IT.

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Rob
OKC
Pile of Nacra parts..
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i taught myself to sail in a 420 clone

and then 2 years later bought an old 17' nacra 5.2 which i solo

on a small it must be sail

so it can be done, take it easy and don't be afraid to sail without the spinnaker when it's windy

even skipping the jib teaches you alot about sail trim and cat handling

(in today's light wind race cool cat and i absolutley slaughtered the very mixed fleet
finishing in 49minutes. then lots of old monos and 45? minutes later the only other cat, a crewed H16 chucked it in as the wind died away completely.....sorry had to gloat somewhere;o)

Heck the first sailboat I was ever on was mine. It ain't rocket science

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Nacra 5.2
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Like Daemon says, take the owner up on sailing it with you. Your getting your self into alot of fun so watch out.

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Mike Jenkins
1989 H18
Lexington, SC
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Picked up the boat yesterday! It appears to be in great shape, took it out for about a 30 minute test sail, it's about all the previous owner and I had time for that day. He said he would be willing to come out with me whenever so I'll have to take him up on that. He claims that he only used it 25-30 times, 5 times a year tops so everything looks pretty good. I heard from someone that I should replace the mast cables. Other then that I have to figure out how to get the trampoline patched and I should be good to go. It seemed pretty simple to operate yesterday until we put the kite out which he actually rigged wrong, the whole thing ended up tangled up, I'm sure there will be many good times to come on the boat. Thanks for all the help guys.

congrats, a small tramp hole is not very important, neither is the kite in the 1st year and a close visual of the mast rigging should allow you to use the boat a lot this year

post season you could chase down tramp repairs etc

buying a cat sailing book or getting the rick white dvd highly recommended, things like how to stop and park the boat if someone falls off are pretty important and not self explanitory...