Maricats are Australian catamarans which were originally designed and built by the Mariglass company. The most common Maricat the Maricat 4.3 metre is a assymetric hulled catamaran. The M 5.0 (5m) is a rare form, with only 20-30 ever produced. It has a long flat hull shape and has centre boards making it look simular to a Taipan or A Class. There is also a Maricat 4.0 meter which has shorter and stronger hulls than the 4.3 and these are mainly used as a resort boat. All three classes of Maricat are built out of fibreglass.
Maricat 4.3 Specifications Overall Length 4.27 m. Max. Beam 2.35 m. Min. Weight 95 kg. Boom Length 2.65 m. Sail Area 10.9 sq m Construction fibreglass
Maricat 5.0 Specifications Overall Length 5 m. Hull Weight 115 kg. Sail Area 18.2 sq. m. Construction fibreglass
The Maricat 4.3m is a very versatile catamaran, being an ideal boat for family fun yet as it comes standard and it hcan be made into a top racing catamaran in the 14ft division. The trampoline joins smoothly into the curved fibreglass decks, styrene foam filled hulls will keep the boat afloat. As well as having sufficient buoyancy to sail in comfort with 2-3 people, features such as storage lockers in each hull, and the stability of the Maricat 4.3m have helped to make it Australia’s largest selling 14ft catamaran.
As to how well Maricats perform against other 14 ft catamarans,Maricats and Hobie 14s have simular performance as far as speed is concerned.
Maricats seem to perform better in light winds, and have a distinct advantage in these types of conditions over other 14' cats.
As these classes dont have dagger boards they have the same performance in terms of pointing when sailing close to the wind.
