i have a '97 P16 and it doesn't have reefing, and never did. i suppose i could add reefing points to the sail, but i can't see why i would want less sail. the helm is fine at 15 knots.

The Prindle 18-2 is significatly easier to sail than the Prindle 18 classic or the NACRA 5.7 at a crew weight of 360 lbs. The Prindle 19 would be biting off a lot all at once but the 18-2 should be manageable if you have proper instruction. The Hobie suffers from the same flaw as the NACRA 5.8, 6.0 and the Hobie 20 etc with the daggerboards. The centerboards on the Prindle kick up (Although it's best to bring them up beforehand) in the event you hit a sandbar or other unmarked underwater feature.

I took the plunge and gave Mark a call. He gave me some additional information that I found quite helpful.



In my earlier emails, I mentioned the Pamlico Sound, but I didn't mention that most of my sailing would be on Lake Jordan, where the winds are light. For that kind of sailing, it sounds like a big sail area is a good idea, and the P19 would be a great boat. And the P19s are often available for a lot less than the P18-2s.



But we're nowhere near ready for it yet! We're going to have to learn to sail on something a lot tamer. Since we're still having fun on the P16, there's not a compelling need to switch right now. Of course, if something we can handle becomes available at the right time....



Jonathan

Mark, can you explain why you say :"The Prindle 18-2 is significatly easier to sail than the Prindle 18 classic ... at a crew weight of 360 lbs"



Thank you



Wouter

Wouter:



The Prindle 18 is a tough boat to sail at 280lbs (suggested crew weight). It doesn't tack well (especially above the 280 crew weight). The long waterline and low prismatic value make the boat a beast to manuever especially intacks in choppy water. The Prindle 18-2 sits up much higher and has a nice centerboard to rotate around. The buoyant hulls and high prismatic value on the 18-2 mean the boat will have a lighter helm and be more responsive especially at higher crew weight values.



I have personally beaten the Prindle 19s boat for boat in winds over 20 knots on a regular basis with the Prindle 18-2.



I hope this answers your question!



MM

I have had two twenty foot cats... A hobie 20 and a Nacra 6.0. I loved my Hobie 20. In heavy air the comptip spilled the top of the main off wonderfully and made heavy air sailing fun. I love my 6.0, too. However, what it gains in power it looses in comfort.



The Hobie in heavy air put a big grin on my face. The Nacra 6.0 puts a GIGANTIC grin on my face and fear in my heart. I would never trade back to the hobie (the wife thinks otherwise), but the power can be overwhelming.

Paul,



I find your remarks interesting and that they do not match my own experience. I switched from a Hobie 18 with Compost to a Mystere 6.0 that has a square top sail. The Nacra 6.0 has that square top, right?



(btw, I usually sail solo)



I find that the top of the Mystere sail spills, when overpowered, much more effectively than did the ComPost. The diagonal batton that extends the top of the leech bends wehn the sail is overpowered. When that top corner bends away, it takes much of the leech of the top portion of the sail, out with it. This results in a huge loss of sail shape up top and dumps a lot of pressure out of the windward side of the sail. That results in reduced healing.



I had a normal Hobie 18 before I had the one with the Compost. I was never satisfied with that compost. I also never noticed that it was any good at dumping air when overpowered.



Perhaps you are far more observant than I am. But while I never noticed the compost dumping air, I often see it happen with the square toped sail.

Hi,

The Nacra 6.0 NA is a pinhead (class). What I noticed most about the Hobie 20 main was how much the downhaul opened up the leech of the main. The comptip bent off much more than the spar on my 6.0 can. The Miracle was in my opinion much easier to depower, where the 6.0 is a lot more powered up. The fact that the Hobie had a boom and the Nacra is boomless adds a twist to the comparison as well.

A post from another lifetime G-Cat owner.... I rig and sail this boat mostly solo, and I weigh only 145lbs

In light air, I spank the pants off my friends sailing P-18-2s and P-19s. They've both got brand-new Smythe mylar racing sails while I'm using some 1981 Smythe dacron racing sails that are well worn and much patched.
Since the Jib connects to the forward xbeam, it has a lot more area. With the forward trampoline installed, you can lounge up front and pull the rear of the boat out of the water. With a little maneuvering I can lift the rudders clear out of the water this way. Needless to say- this is a great boat for shallow water sailing.

*The G-Cat 5.0 (~16') will easily handle a 360# crew, but later on you'll most likely want to go to an 18' boat.
*The G-Cat 5.7 (~18') will handle a LOT of weight- and it has the room to carry it. I've had 7-8 people aboard my G-Cat, easily over 1000#s, and the hull-stripes weren't even in the water. We had ~12 knots of wind and nice 4' rollers to play on, and the boat moved and handled very well.
*The G-Cat 6.1 (~20') is an all-out racing boat, with as many control lines as the P-19s and Nacras. To my knowledge only two of these were ever built, and my friend owns one of them.
*The G-Force 21 (~21') came out in response to the Hobie 21 race boat. It's another racer, but not many were built. I've only seen one, and it's been heavily modified with an 11' beam, 34' mast, square-top main and roller-furling jib.
* The G-Force 36 (36') came in two varieties- the Sport Cruiser version with an open tramp fore and aft, and the Salon Cruiser version with a cabin aft of the mast. I know one person that uses the Sport Cruiser for a charter boat.

As for parts.... stock replacements are hard to come by, but parts from other boats will interchange. H16 mast hounds, Hobie rudder systems (with a little shortening of the arms), etc. If you snapped the mast, the mast-hinge section could be transfered to something like a H-18s mast. Due to a beach capsize during a storm, I've had to replace the spreaders and rudder system on my boat. I've also replaced all standing and running rigging, and most recently bought all new Harken blocks to replace the old SeaWay and Ronstan units. These boats are incredibly durable, a friend of mine has four 5.0s and four 5.7s that he uses for his rental business. He's had some of these boats for 20 years and counting!

The 5.0 and 5.7 boats are incredibly simple to rig. I usually rig mine solo with no mechanical devises for assistance.
There are not many control lines. The main sheet and main traveler (I have them both on different ends of the same line), the downhaul (and you can add a main-camber adjustment that works like an outhual in reverse if you feel the need), the Jibsheet and the Jib barberhualer (wich I've seen set to "automatic" on a few boats by using bungee cord and some snap-shackles)