gunboat catamaran review

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• By Herb McCormick
• Updated: January 5, 2007

The first, most critical thing to know about boatbuilder Peter Johnstone-who’s now twice entrusted his vision of the ideal offshore cruising catamaran to the highly capable design team of Gino Morrelli and Pete Melvin-is that he absolutely loves to sail. We’re not talking mere infatuation. What we have with Mr. Johnstone is an all-consuming passion for the art and science of propelling waterborne craft by the cleanest fuel of all, a fresh breeze.

When he decided to take his young family cruising a few years ago, Johnstone worked backward from a very simple question: What’s going to be the most fun to sail? Safety, reliability, and seaworthiness would all need to be inherent parts of the solution, of course, but that central tenet was non-negotiable. Why go cruising under sail, he reasoned, if sailing wasn’t going to be a focal point of the exercise?

Johnstone had a pretty good idea of what he was looking for: a big, powerful, no-holds-barred catamaran built of the latest, lightest materials, with ample accommodations, and manageable by a shorthanded crew. Ultimately, he formed his own company to produce such a vessel. When the seagoing Johnstones finally set sail for the Caribbean, they did so on the M&M-designed, South African-built Gunboat 62 Tribe. After returning from his 15-month cruise, Johnstone rolled up his sleeves and got back to boatbuilding in earnest. The Gunboat 48 is the company’s second model in production, and the next will be-yikes-an 80-footer, currently under construction.

Conceptually, the 48 hasn’t wandered far from the precedents established on its larger sibling. The deck layout is centered around a forward cockpit accessed through a door that separates it from the central bridgedeck saloon/wheelhouse/galley. The forward cockpit, as Johnstone acknowledges, wasn’t an original Gunboat idea; noted multihull designer Chris White successfully employed it on his Atlantic series of cruising cats. But it works well on the Gunboat, with almost all the relevant running rigging and sailhandling devices-including a suite of Harken blocks and winches and an array of Spinlock clutches and jammers-stationed at chest level near the base of the towering carbon-fiber spar.

The steering wheel, engine controls, chart plotter, and instruments are a couple of short steps away, tucked just inside the aforementioned front door. So, too, is a handsome folding dining table with veneers of Brazilian mahogany fronting a forward-facing settee that’s plenty inviting when the boat is coursing along under the Raymarine autopilot. When you’re peering out the front and side windows, it’s almost like watching a sailing movie on a big screen, and it’s a very enjoyable view.

In fact, the entire free flowing deck layout maximizes the use of space and is very well thought out. Moving aft, the bridgedeck leads to a roomy “back porch” for dining or drinks, and it’s functional, too, with easy access to the dinghy davits and the molded, transom-mounted steps providing access to the swim ladder and to the twin Westerbeke 35-horsepower Universal diesels.

Below, there’s a pair of staterooms complete with queen-size berths, and a third is equipped with a single. There are also two heads with showers, both stationed forward in the respective hulls.

As befitting a sailboat with a seven-figure price tag, the overall build quality of the vacuum-bagged, oven-cured monocoque hull and deck-a foam sandwich utilizing epoxy, biaxial and unidirectional glass, Kevlar, and carbon fiber-is quite phenomenal. The daggerboards and lifting rudders are also carbon fiber, as are the stringers, ring frames, and crossbeams.

There’s nothing else out there quite like a Gunboat. Peter Johnstone set out to build what designer Bill Lee has called a “hot-rod cruiser,” and he certainly succeeded.

Gunboat 48 Specs

LOA: 48′ 4″ (14.74 m.) LWL: 45′ 11″ (14.00 m.) Beam: 24′ 3″ (7.39 m.) Draft (boards up/down): 1′ 1″/7′ 5″ (0.33/2.26 m.) Sail Area: 1,106 sq. ft. (102.7 sq. m.) Displacement: 20,100 lb. (9,117 kg.) Water: 120 gal. (454 l.) Fuel: 120 gal. (454 l.) Engines: Twin Westerbeke 35-hp. diesels Designer: Morrelli & Melvin Sailaway Price: $1,680,000 Gunboat, (401) 619-1055, www.gunboat.info

Herb McCormick is the former editor of Cruising World

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Gunboat catamarans reviews and opinions

Nov 18, 2020

less than a min

Gunboat catamarans are high tech boats that use the latest race technology while still maintaining a cozy character that appeals to families. These boats were first introduced in 2002 as a combination between a high-performance multihull and a family-friendly cruiser . As such, a new branch of the industry started to become extremely popular, that of fast catamarans that feature large volumes, comfortable interiors, as well as sturdiness and ability to sail safely offshore.

Gunboat catamarans are considered luxurious , very fast , and innovative yachts that aim to push the boundaries of what is possible in the marine world. These features however did not seem to be enough to keep the company going strong. In 2019, the US company that oversees the production and sale of Gunboat catamarans went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy. While the reason still remains unknown, one could speculate that Gunboat catamarans appeal only to a certain class of citizens and have not managed to gain the respect of the masses, therefore not being able to generate enough sales to keep the company afloat.

As of May 2016, Gunboat catamarans are owned by Grand Large Yachting . They are produced and assembled in France while the main support service headquarters are in Newport USA. Since then, Gunboat catamarans have displayed better features and aimed to achieve new designs, especially with the support of VPLP. These boats can be chartered as well, mainly in the Caribbean area.

Gunboat catamarans: reviews and opinions

Gunboat catamarans have quite peculiar features. They have been established as a high-tech, cutting edge fleet of catamarans. Two of the most popular Gunboat catamarans are listed below:

The Gunboat 68 catamaran has solar panels supported on the fixed cockpit. It is designed to participate in fleet racing and features a lot of futuristic ideas. Gunboat 68 has reverse bows and a sleek exterior. In addition, the interior of the saloon is modular and demountable in order to appeal to racing owners as well, who want to remove everything from the interior during events. Moreover, it has a fixed roof, a walkthrough cockpit, tilers and bucket seats for outside steering, symmetric daggerboards, midships beam and bowsprit, rotating wing mast, and a fixed rig.

This yacht was introduced in Annapolis. It is a new and improved version of Gunboat 55, also known as one of the coolest boats to roam the Caribbean. This boat has a better steering system with lifting daggerboards. The cabin has been redesigned to reposition the engines and achieve a better trim. All in all, the Gunboat 57 is a lightweight boat that can be operated by a small crew. It evokes simplicity, safety, and accessibility. Despite being a luxury cruiser, this boat also appeals to sailing with family or friends as well as taking part in races.

Compare and explore more of the features of these two Gunboat catamarans on TheBoatDB. This is our platform and software that provides a publicly accessible database containing a large number of boats. You can create a shortlist of your favorite yachts and compare them to the Gunboat catamarans. In addition, you are also able to benchmark your boat and get all your boating life in one platform.

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Gun Boat 48 – Boat Review

By BWS Staff While most cruising cats are conceived to maintain a fairly even balance between performance and comfort, the Gunboat 48, like the 62 before it, was designed from the keel up to be a screaming high-tech performance boat that also has a fine and comfortable interior. Designed by Melvin & Morrelli, the 48 is more a Lamborghini than a minivan. The 48 is built in South Africa Guboat 48 and endowed with an ultralight cored hull, reinforced with carbon fiber stringers. The rig is all carbon and set up in the manner of offshore racing cats, with Kevlar shrouds and massive amounts of sail area. To read complete story – click here for Gun Boat 48 – Boat Review on Blue Water Sailing website

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GUNBOAT 62 - Successful Synthesis of Cruiser and Racer in a Bluewater Catamaran

This 62 footer reacts like a sport catamaran…

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The GUNBOAT 62, Peter Johnstone’s synthesis of racing catamaran and blue water cruiser, has been sailing the world’s oceans since he launched Tribe, his personal prototype of the design a couple of years ago. Since that time, 3 more 62s and a 48 have been built, a remarkable accomplishment considering the world’s economy, and the state of war in the Mideast. In this article, we give a tantalizing glimpse of Mr. Johnstone’s collaboration with designers Morrelli & Melvin.

General Appearance.

A distinctly more angular outline than many of the cruising cats in its size category is the GUNBOAT 62’s most distinguishing feature. With plumb bows, level decks extending to short sugar scoop transoms and a flat top bridge deck, the GUNBOAT 62's lines are distinctly different from the elliptical outlines of the majority of other contemporary catamarans, especially those made in South Africa as is the GUNBOAT 62. Walk-through doors from the front of the salon to a working cockpit just behind the mast are the second distinctive feature of this catamaran. This construction alone subverts an inverted bowl shape bridge deck outline. Mr. Johnstone continues a vertical and angular theme in the nearly vertical windows and square corners of the bridge deck roof and sides. The lines of the bridge deck follow those of the hull to give a consistent and balanced appearance. Placement of the working cockpit forward of the salon imposes new proportions on the overall layout of the GUNBOAT 62 compared to many more abundant cruising catamarans in this size range. Starting from the bows, mesh trampolines are larger in size than those on other catamarans, and the distance f...

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Yachting World

• Digital Edition

The best bluewater multihulls of all time: a complete guide

• Toby Hodges
• October 6, 2021

Toby Hodges and François Tregouet consider the best bluewater multihulls and look at the options for sailing the oceans in spacious comfort

What are the best bluewater multihulls for long term cruising? The one you own, or the one you can afford is the simple answer.

There is a wealth of proven designs to suit bluewater sailing and a variety of budgets. While we have focussed here on the best bluewater multihulls in production, we’ve also included some cracking pedigree multihulls which tour the planet and might occasionally pop up on the brokerage market.

If you can afford to, then pushing towards the 45-50ft length will buy you space, pace and that extra payload capacity needed to take all the items you’d want on your home afloat.

When looking at the best bluewater multihulls, the choice will come down to that perennial balance between comfort/space and speed/weight. Choosing a lighter weight performance design will obviously help you cover distance voyages more rapidly and potentially allow you to outrun weather systems. It means you can sail faster, with less sail up and less load and stress. But you’ll have to sacrifice some luxuries and need to be quite scrupulous about keeping weight down and centralised in order to maintain high average speeds.

For the majority of cruisers, however, it is the amount of space multihulls offer once you’ve reached your destination that really appeals. As well as the non-heeling living area and real estate they provide, they’re well suited to typical tradewind sailing .

If you’re considering your first or next multihull, we hope the following will serve as a taster.

Best bluewater multihulls for performance cruising

Outremer 51/55.

When you think of multihulls designed for bluewater cruising, Outremer will likely be one of the first names that comes to mind. Its heritage lies in building catamarans that can sail fast and are built strong enough to do laps of the globe.

The 51, the current version of which launched three years ago, is an archetypal example of what to look for in terms of blending speed and space is a dream design for a family circumnavigation.

The French yard’s new 55ft VPLP design may look boldly different from its past models, but the philosophy behind it remains the same. It is designed to match windspeed up to 12 knots and Outremer reasons that its ability to sail in 5 knots of breeze will allow it to sail for 95% of the time on a circumnavigation.

Read more about the Outremer 51 and Outremer 55.

Photo: Diego Yriarte

Seawind 1600/1370

For nearly four decades the Australian Seawind brand and its founder Richard Ward have been gearing catamarans around safe bluewater sailing, including performance, protection and ease of handling. Its Reichel Pugh-designed 1600, which launched three years ago, is an elegant looking cat with relatively low, long lines and some smart solutions for fast bluewater sailing.

Seawind also launches its new 1370 later this year, a staggering 60 of which have sold on plans alone.

This first 50 is built from a composite sandwich of basalt fibre, a cloth made from volcanic rock, and PET foam from recycled plastic bottles, which helps to reduce carbon emissions by nearly 50% when compared with traditional glassfibre methods.

This new 50 footer is perhaps a more appealing and practical prospect than Rapido’s previous 60 (with its significant fixed beam), particularly as the amas on this new model can fold to reduce beam to 18ft.

Infused carbon foam sandwich construction is used, along with beams, daggerboards and rudder in pre-preg carbon to keep displacement to 8,200kg.

Read more about the Rapido 50

This OC50 is designed as a more affordable cruising alternative, than the HH models which have preceeded it. This model targets ocean sailing.

It’s still stiffened and strengthened by carbon, but built in vinylester composites with a gelcoat finish. This adds an additional 300kg or so over a full carbon HH50, but cost savings are in the region of $400,000.

Read more about the HH OC50

Balance 526

The 526 launched four years ago, designed to suit short-handed sailors and families looking to sail long distances, hence it can carry large payloads and promises easy maintenance. It looks good too.

Berman’s Versahelm design is a key feature. The wheel cantilevers, allowing the helmsman to steer from outboard with clear sightlines or from the hardtop protection of the aft cockpit.

Photo: Christopher White

Atlantic 47

The A47 suits short-handed fast ocean sailing at an approachable size. Lengthening it to 49ft allowed for an aft cockpit. It is available as a sloop or with White’s patented MastFoil ketch rig – rotating aerofoil masts designed for easy short-handed cruising without sacrificing performance.

Read more about the Atlantic 47

A combination of sharp design from François Perus and high build quality brings plenty of appeal to this sporty Italian-built cat. The first example launched three years ago with a light displacement of 10.5 tonnes, thanks to an E-glass epoxy-infused build with carbon strengthening. The yard offers semi-custom construction and full hybrid packages.

Catana 53/Ocean class 50

Catana’s performance model from 2017, sports twin aft helms (which may not suit ocean sailors), reverse bows and carbon daggerboards. The high topsides help create good bridgedeck clearance and plenty of accommodation. Its new Ocean Class 50 seems more in the shipyard’s bluewater DNA. The light weight, and dynamic and modern shape with slim hulls and a relatively short nacelle suggests a seaworthy nature and high speeds.

Read more about the Catana 53

Best bluewater multihulls for pedigree performance

Veteran multihull designers Morrelli & Melvin designed this smaller model for the Gunboat range. It was built to be more manageable for an owner-driver yet still capable of up to 300-400 mile days.

The Gunboat 48 is something of a rare breed, just six 48s were built between 2004 and 2009. Oh, to have a spare €1.3m right now… one of them is actually on the market.

Read more about the Gunboat 48

At the start of the Millennium, Catana offered fully equipped boats as standard for long distance cruising. The Catana 471 or 472 (one or two helms respectively), represented at the time the optimum in ocean-going catamarans.

Chincogan/Lightwave

Tony Grainger has been drawing fast multihulls for 35 years, including racing trimarans and the Lightwave and Chincogan cruisers. The popular Lightwave 38 has admirable performance and comfort, and the Chincogan 52 (pictured) has the length to clock high average speeds.

Outremer 45 G. Danson

With its characteristic roof, narrow hulls and daggerboards, the Outremer 45 is a standout design which has become somewhat iconic. Despite a rather spartan interior, it has been a great success with fast cruising enthusiasts. On board, family ocean crossings at an average of 10 knots are the norm.

Best bluewater multihulls for family cruising

Photo: Nicolas Claris

The Lagoon 450 remains the most popular model in Lagoons already popular range. It exemplifies the VPLP/Nauta design partnership which has made these the very definition of modern mid-size cruising catamarans which can appeal to families and charterers alike.

Indeed the 450 marked the modern look of Lagoon and was the first with interior styling from Nauta. It originally launched over a decade ago as a flybridge design with central helming position (450F), before this ‘sport top’ option (450S) was offered with a starboard helm station and lower boom.

Read more about the Lagoon 450

Photo: Guilain Grenier

Fountaine Pajot Saona 47

The 47 has a modern shape, with straight bows and a reverse sheer line. It incorporates significant volume in the hulls below the bridgedeck to create room for the optional athwartships cabins. Cabin space is a prime selling point, particularly the owner’s suite to port, where there is also abundant natural light and headroom.

Photo: Tui Marine

Leopard Catamarans, together with designer Simonis Voogd and builder Robertson and Caine, produce the archetypal dual-purpose owner-operator or charter boat in their modern catamaran range.

Key features of the 45 are the amount of light in the saloon and the incredible volume and space on offer in the cabins above the relatively narrow waterlines. Vast social living areas include the flybridge, saloon and dual cockpits.

Read more about the Leopard 45

Photo: www.jfromero.fr

Nautitech Open/Fly 46

During the 1990s and noughties Nautitech earned a good reputation for its elegant catamarans. The 441 is a timeless example and the 44 can be credited with the ongoing trend in hardtop biminis. While its acquisition by Bavaria seven years ago helped Nautitech implement industrial build techniques, the French brand has retained its DNA at its Rochefort sur Mer yard.

The modern Marc Lombard designs have tall rigs with generous square-top mainsails. Twin wheels in the aft quarters of the Open 46 offer a direct feel on the helm, however those spending long periods in the tropics may prefer the shade of the bimini-equipped flybridge option. The layout is also open, with a saloon more outside than in. Styling is clean, modern and simple, and the standard of build and finish are good.

Photo: Olivier Blanchet

First impressions of the Neel 51 are sure to centre on its sheer size and space inside. But as you’ll see from our review of the Neel 43 on page 83, when you sail one overriding impressions quickly centre on its performance.

These trimarans are becoming a popular mass production-built option.

Photo: Christophe Launay

The Excess 11 packs plenty of potential as the smallest yacht offered by the big production yards. A little like the Lagoon 380 of old, it presents a good value new entry-level boat for genuine cruising in a more sporty, modern and enticing design. Some may argue against aft helms for ocean sailing, but those coming from monohulls will appreciate the more direct steering they offer.

Broadblue 385S

Broadblue is a UK brand which offers a distinct line of cruising and Rapier performance catamarans. Its staple 385 packs a lot of cruising comfort into its length, including generous tankage, and has been sailed all over the world. Broadblue built its first electric drive catamaran 12 years ago and offers the only all-electric production sailing catamaran under 40ft in Europe.

Photo: Christophe Breschi

Bali Catspace

For those looking for maximum volume within 40ft, it’ll be hard to beat the Catspace – although it is more of a holiday apartment than a traditional bluewater cruiser. Bali’s garage style sliding aft door does help offer an enormous amount of enclosed (or open) living space.

Best bluewater multihulls for luxury cruising

Photo: Nico Krauss

Privilège 510 Signature

The 510 is designed to take a serious amount of cruising gear – up to six tonnes of it in fact. The excellent helm station now has a fixed windscreen and all lines lead to hand. Finish quality including the electrical installation is first class and Privilege’s trademark, an admirable full beam (26ft) forward cabin, is sumptuous.

Photo: Jérôme Houyvet

Garcia Explocat 52

Garcia Yachts has cornered the market for series-built aluminium monohulls and multihulls in the last decade and this new Explocat 52 is sparking real interest. We ran a full test report in our February issue, describing it as a go-anywhere cat with an enticing combination of space, pace and rugged construction.

Read our review of the Garcia Explocat 52

Built in Argentina, the Antares 44 is the ultimate evolution of a model launched 21 years ago. Entirely dedicated to bluewater cruising, it is the yard’s only model and is constantly being improved according to owner feedback.

Time seems to have no hold on this boatyard and, against the trend, the standard equipment of the Antares 44 is extremely complete

Photo: Richard Langdon

Discovery Bluewater 50

This luxury Bill Dixon design may be a decade old now and into its third iteration, but the concept behind its original appeal remains. For those used to sailing high-end thoroughbred monohulls, here is an option to consider for a comparative level of build quality and fit out when moving to a multihull.

Read more about the Discovery Bluewater 50

St Francis 50 MKII

With this latest version of its original model, this experienced South African builder has optimised a catamaran cut out for the unforgiving seas of the Indian Ocean and the South Atlantic. The MKII allows for an increased load capacity, an important point in long distance cruising.

Xsquisite X5

Intelligent features on the X5 include the protected helm station with glass windscreen, integrated rainwater catcher, UV-protective glass and generous tankage.

Best bluewater multihulls for size & speed

Mcconaghy mc52.

The MC50 (now MC52) was the first and promises some high speed sailing, but it’s the open plan main living deck which will attract the majority. It incorporates an intelligent centreboard system, which hardly affects interior space, but arguably its exposed helms at the aft end of the flybridge will not suit serious ocean cruising.

Photo: Florian H. Talles

HH in Xiamen is building some really impressive large, luxury fast cats up to 90ft. This was its second model to launch, a high-end, high performance Morelli & Melvin design capable of rapid passagemaking speeds and enjoyable regatta sailing. Features include C-shaped boards and central or aft helms.

Photo: Mike Jones/Waterline Media

Ocean Explorer 60

If Nautor’s Swan made catamarans, they may look like this… The Ocean Explorer 60 uses the same designer in German Frers and some of the same builders who worked at the famous Finnish yard to produce this world cruiser. The resultant quality shines through. A new OE72 is due soon.

Kinetic KC54

A young company with plenty of experience, Kinetic produces custom fast ocean cruisers, which can occasionally race. Its 62 is a serious performance vessel with carbon hulls, rigs and rigging, daggerboards or centreboards. With fast bluewater cruising the goal, carbon is used to minimise weight so features/toys can still be added. The swim platform and hardware on the newly launched 54 weighs just 90kg, and the generous sized tanks are all in carbon too. Views from the saloon and forward cockpit also look special.

Best bluewater multihulls for ultimate performance

Marsaudon ts4/orc 42.

Few catamaran builders produce genuine performance cruisers at this ‘smaller’ size: this one is kept minimalist and light weight (around 6 tonnes) – the yard’s philosophy is ‘simplicity, then add lightness.’ The 42 is a cruiser-racer with the ability to outpace most yachts across the Atlantic, win a regatta and still offer some space for island hopping. Standard tankage is minimal however. Marsaudon recently rebranded its TS range to Ocean Rider Catamarans (ORCs) and has an ORC 57 in build.

Dazcat 1495

Dazcat builds fast, seaworthy cats from its Multihull Centre in Cornwall. The 1495 is a true ocean cruiser-racer, which is stiff and rewarding to sail, with direct steering linked to carbon rudders. The 1495 can hit 20+ knot speeds with relative ease, but it is the consistent high average speeds which will attract those looking to cover serious miles. Weight is centralised including engines, tanks, and systems all located amidships to help reduce pitching. Dazcat has a semi-custom build approach and creates all sorts of weird and wonderful craft for all abilities.

Dragonfly 40

Dragonfly trimarans are known for their high quality construction and ability to delight sailors with their ease of planing speeds. For those who can live without the space of similar length cats, the new flagship 40 is large enough to offer cruising space, while folding outriggers and retractable appendages mean you can dry out where others wouldn’t dare.

Looping 45/Freydis 48

These two designs by Erik Lerouge both offer a high-performance vision of ocean cruising. The Loopings were built individually and the Freydis in small series, and on both you can sail as fast as the wind in complete safety. Interior quality depends on whether finished by an amateur or by a shipyard.

Swisscat 48

An attractive combination of luxury, comfort and performance, the S48 is a stiff, go-anywhere premium cat that is easy to manage single-handed. The lightweight build (11t) is in epoxy infusion with carbon reinforcement.

Schionning Designs

Jeff Schionning has catamaran design in his blood. His designs exude performance and seaworthiness with flowing, even aerodynamic lines. On all tradewind routes you’ll find a G-Force (models from 12m to 23m) or an Arrow (12m to 15m) sailing more quickly than the rest. His latest venture is with Current Marine in Knysna, South Africa.

Best bluewater multihulls for pedigree cruising

The long-time best-seller from the world leader in catamarans, with more than 1,000 produced over almost 20 years from 1999. With its characteristic vertical windows, the 380 and its big brother the 410 made the purists scream when they were presented. But the 380 proved a pioneer of its kind. Safe bow volumes and light displacement (7,260 kg) helped its seaworthy behaviour. The high number of boats on the market makes this the most affordable bluewater cruising multihull for its size, even if price range is as wide as condition is variable.

Casamance 44/46

Between 44ft and 46ft depending on the year of construction and the length of its transoms, the Casamance was an impressive catamaran on launch in 1985. The design by Joubert/Nivelt offered good volume and load capacity. Of the 490 units produced, many joined the charter fleets. The exterior of the Casamance is dated, but the interior in grey ceruse oak has retained plenty of charm.

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Description

The first Gunboat, a 62 named Tribe, started out as a fairly spartan family cruiser (well, for Gunboat, anyway). Then came the 48. And then came the 66.

For many, the best Gunboat As the orders came in, new owners wanted more space  and the ability to carry more load for luxury kit, and so Peter Johnstone with Morrelli & Melvin added feet to meet the demand while keeping performance levels up and the Gunboat 66 was born. This length has since become the “sweet spot” for Gunboats with the new Gunboat 68 coming in at a similar length.

The extra feet gave room for four en-suite staterooms plus crew quarters with a huge living platform.

Photo credit from Instagram: @safeharbornewportshipyard, @gareth.m.reeves, @eastcoastsailor, @bruceslayden, @seabreezeart

• Blistering sailing performance on all points of sail. The aim? Regular 300 nm days.
• The organisation of the boat, highlighted by that forward working cockpit
• The visibility and ventilation in the saloon
• The price. At least you won’t be spending as much as you would on a brand new Gunboat 68!
• Not as pretty as some of the other Gunboats. Thats subjective, I know, but she does look like they stretched the 62, but hey, I’m splitting hairs here. I’ve got to put something in the “Cons” section.

Sailing Performance

This is a Gunboat, and the Gunboat 66 doesn’t disappoint in this department of course. Even with all of your kit on, you will be sailing faster than the wind in single digit wind speeds and when the breeze fill in, the Gunboat 66 takes off onto a mid teen to 20 knot gallop. This is a boat that has inspired a number of newer designs such as the O-Yachts Class 6 catamaran and the HH66.

Signature Gunboat The forward cockpit feels like the nerve centre of the Gunboat 66. It’s the trademark for this luxury brand, a configuration inspired by Chris White’s Atlantic cats, and the perfected for this 66 footer.

You can control all of the sail systems from here and it’s organised to Space-X levels. Many Gunboats have a secondary wheel in the cockpit (another Chris White innovation) so that you can helm and manage your lines at the same time. 2 powered winches help with the considerable loads, with a manual winch for the mainsheet and traveller. The anchor windlass is also controlled from this space with foot controls. Although this is a 66′ performance cat, the systems have been designed for a short handed crew.

The aim is for 300+ mile days.  The self-tacking jib track allows you to head upwind easily with dagger-boards in each hull maximising your VMG. Because the 66 sails at such a clip, she generates her own wind, so you’ll be packing plenty of flat-cut sails to move you upwind in lighter winds.

It’s Carbon Baby Pretty much everything on these boats is built of carbon fiber. The designers went over the 66 with a fine toothcomb to keep the weight down and the result is a ultra-weight cruiser with the sail power, beam and length to carve up the field in a regatta.

Living Accomodation

The fully protected roomy aft deck flows seamlessly into the open plan saloon with it’s galley and sofas with the traditional Gunboat forward helm that spills out into the forward cockpit and working area.

Views. And Then Some. The most astonishing feature inside the saloon is the 360-degree views. Do you like a sea view? Prepare to spend much of your time with your mouth hanging open and with that forward cockpit door open, there is no need for air con: the breeze flows through the length of the boat. Most owners have fitted A/C anyway for marina days.

Down below are 4 queen sized en-suite cabins.

Under Power

The original power package was twin Volvo 55s, but many owner’s have upgraded to 75s.  They’ll push those fine cut bows along at 8.5 knots on one engine in a kind sea and 9.5 knots with both engines going.

Gunboat 66s

66-01 Coco De Mer (ex-Kanaloa)

66-02 Outnumbered (ex Flash, (ex-Panthera, ex-Mayhem, ex-Sugar Daddy first to circumnavigate)

66-03 Moondoggie (ex Tiger Lily, ex-Gazelle)

66-04 Phaedo (2010)

66-05 Laguz

66-06 Slim (8/2012 – finished at Jaz Marine)

66-07 Extreme H2O (finished on West Coast at Westerly)

Gunboat 66 Polars

Another design classic  from Gunboat. The 66 slips fast upwind, tacks tightly and roars away down wind while giving you all of the comfort and space of a luxury cruising cat. With its dagger-boards and retractable rudders, the 66 can take you places in the Bahama Banks and other shallow water destinations that luxury monohulls can only dream of.

Technical Specification

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