Leopard 46

The leopard 46 standard specification can be found on the Leopard website (see LINKS page).

Below are the factory fitted options on Tulliana: - 

 In addition to the above factory fitted equipment we have also fitted the following cruising gear and equipment: -

·         11ft RIB with 10hp Honda 4st outboard

·         Windlass chain counter and remote at helm

·         ICOM SSB and Pactor III modem

·         Raymarine AIS 250

·         Digital TV aerial

·         Wi-Fi Booster antenna

·         260W Solar panels with Bluesky regulator

·         Air Marine wind generator fitted to mast top

·         Sterling alternator to battery regulator

·         22” LCD TV & DVD

·         Harken Battcar system to Main

·         All lines upgraded to Dyneema

·         Full offshore SOLAS safety equipment

·         Sea Me active radar reflector

As power usage is a critical subject on a boat a number of calculation have to take place before decisions can be made on alternate power sources such as wind and solar. This involved creating another spreadsheet (here) which as you can see gets quite complex.

A weighty Issue

Catamarans unlike mono-hulls are very sensitive to weight. Adding weight to a Cat increases the wetted surface area therefore increasing drag and in turn reducing performance. Catamaran manufacturers worldwide play very silly games with advertised weights trying to show their boat as lighter than the competition, hence faster. Some weights are advertised as “lightship” which is without any options, sails, fuel and water. Others cloud the issue even further with partially loaded weights including a standard sail set and a limited amount of fuel and water. A few aren’t even measured and rely upon the designers CAD system to calculate the weight for them which normally comes out around 20% lighter than they actually come off the line at.

Due to all these smoke and mirrors I asked that my boat was weighed using calibrated load cells as it left the factory rather than relying upon an un-calibrated gauge on the launching crane. The Leopard 46 is advertised in their brochures and on the web with a lightship weight of 11,000kg or 11 metric tonnes so I was surprised when the email arrived with 14.2 tonnes? An investigation then commenced with the following results: -

Tulliana as weighed                         14,200kg

Fitted options when weighed

Generator                                             -235kg

Watermaker                                           -36kg

3 full length mirrors                                 -9kg

Saloon blinds                                          -12kg

St/St swing seat                                       -8kg

54hp upgrade from 39hp                       -54kg

Shore power pack                                   -15kg

Inverter                                                  -25kg

2 additional 210Ah AGM’s                   -122kg

Air-conditioning                                      -60kg

Lewmar electric option                           -10kg

Additional water heater                         -12kg

Washer/Dryer                                         -67kg

2 additional stools                                  -10kg

Davits and platform                              -125kg

50 litres of fuel                                       -50kg

150 litres of water                                -150kg

Anchor & Chain                                     -225kg

Equipment not fitted

No St/St doors                                         +75kg

Mast & Boom                                        +550kg

Total lightship                                    13,650kg

So there you go 2.65 tonnes heavier than advertised or 24%. Only the test sail will tell if performance has been badly affected by this increase. Watch this space.