Ohh, it is definately the best rotomoulded cat design that I'm aware of. Many times better then the others.




I don't know. No particular reason. I think in the beginning of this thread I used the name Dart 16 and only after Bills post started calling it laser cat.



Still the SCHRS handicap uses 135 kg for the complete ready to sail boat; With each hull quoted at 48 kg by Laser themself ( http://www.lasersailing.com/disp/uk/dart-16/vital-statistics?i= ) I find that suspect.

On the website http://www.dart16.com/ they even claim that the alu mast weights only 10 kg !

Texel measurement says the boat ready to sail is 150 kg.

Now I don't know what is right (although I think 150 kg is believable) but if 150 kg is used then Schrs handicap singlehanded no spi comes out at 1.18.

That still makes it the fasterst rotomoulded boat outthere. And it is heaps better looking then the rest.

Wouter

So with the Getaway tipping the scales at 390 pounds (177 kg) and only slightly slower than the Dart 16, I suppose Hobie USA has done as best that could be expected, performance wise. They certainly have found a niche with a stable craft with a high payload capacity. In regards to "the majority of sailors don't care about performance", seems like a catamaran has to be one of the logical choice if you do care about it, so I'm not ready to sluff it off as not applicable.

Is the material and moulding process such that durability suffers with lighter hulls? Could not lighter and more refined shaped hulls in addition to a larger rig, without the complexities of a high performance mast and daggers, produce a boat capable of a 10% speed increase?

One of the problems in making rotomolded hulls is that the material does not have stiffness in flat panels. Due to the manufacturing process, putting in stiffening members (frames and stringers) is very hard, and would add more weight. So you need to design in support in the hull shape itself, or compensate with thicker hulls. So there will be limits to what you can achieve with this construction technique.

I think you have to bear in mind that rotomoulded dinghies are improving rapidly - you just need to look at the Dart, Laser or RS ranges and see how they've progressed from small, singlehanders like the Pico and Topaz to "full sized" boats like the Xenon, Omega and Vago in a relatively short time. The Dart 16 has been around a while now and it certainly can't be state of the rotomoulder's art anymore. I'm sure I read that Topper are launching a range of rotomoulded cats next year (I'd guess at the London Boat Show in January). It'll be interesting to see how they go.

Laser claim that the new Dart 16X has hulls that are stronger and stiffer and almost 15% lighter than the original boat. So, presumably the technology has improved.
The new Toppers are also Yves Loday designs and should be interesting.