How much would YOU pay for a Supercat 20 in your area?

One just popped up right down the road,so I'm trying to get a feel for prices and problems to look for (yes, I'm searching too!) Trailer is non expanding, the boat's been sitting for years getting lichen covered but should pressure wash off, but has a new tramp that's never been rigged, dacron sails. The guy bought it 8 years ago, then had hip problems and never actually rigged it and sailed it...Thanks ahead of time for anybody's info.

Check your pms.

Dave

Check out the classifieds on this site.

Yep, checked those, but also interested to hear first hand stories of problem areas on the boats.

I know that there are at least a couple guys in hobiefleet 32 that have Supercats. If you could contact them they may be able to help out.

I'm one of those guys in Fleet 32...

A 20 in good shape with everything could be $4500 or so, but if it needs a tramp, sails, rigging and general work, it could be $1000-1500. Parts for them aren't cheap.

If it has solid beams, then that adds a lot--the telescoping trailer is nice, but not necessary.

Check out the forums at http://www.aquarius-sail.com/ to get more focused info. Someone may know the boat and could give you more info.

Problem areas:

Supercats are usually bulletproof, but sometimes there are issues.

Older SC20s had an issue with the bow tangs pulling out. That was fixed, but I have heard of a few that had the failure. I think there is an article about it on Aquarius' site. If not, ask and someone could tell you about it.

I have never seen one that has delaminated! If yours has delamination, it means it was really abused and neglected.

I have heard a lot of horror stories about the sterns getting ripped off the boats. The SC steering is really nice and it locks down (and releases well) but sometimes people have them over tightened and they don't flip up when needed. It isn't a factor of poor engineering, it is a factor of poor rigging (IMHO).

The biggest problem with a SC20 is finding the stones to sail the thing. When it is blowing and you are screaming along, it sounds like a freight train and the spray coming off the bows is like a fire hose.

I was on one last summer when the rear crossbeam ripped free of the hull. I've also seen a few nacras do that as well. If you're going to sail one, bring a good radio with you to call the Coasties when you flip, cause you aint gonna right it.

Regarding righting... I have a SC 20 and have solo righted it and am 200 lbs. The key is in the shroud extenders which get the hull over center so that the weight of the hull helps right it.

As for issues I think they are pretty good. I'd check the hulls around the dagger wells and the transoms. If they look good then I don't know what else to look at.

-Eric
SC20 #113

If you go to NADA and look under Matrix Marine the will have a guide for used price for the years 1985-1986 after that it would be Aquarius. Remember this is just a guide. I owned a SC20 and loved the boat. Dan is right about the fire hose comment. They say you can't pitchpole one but that is untrue, I have done it. The mast hit the water so hard and the noise made me think that I had snapped the mast, but the only thing was I broke every batten (the tubular taper ones) and a few rips in the batten pockets. A great boat but bring friends as it is a beast to move around on the beach.

Sorry, I meant to say 1985-1996 for Matrix Marine

You need Craig from CyberSpeed he keeps a keen eye on the SC20 market. He has owned several and has about 1 1/2 boats right now. I think I've worked on most of his boats at one time or another. Craig keeps his boat on the beach, on the ocean, and sails the snot out of it! Both Craig and I have beaten our boats over the years with hard use and Tons of Fun.

They are a good boat, look around how many beach cats period are still sailing that are 20 - 30 years old. If they are used actively or raced then they had some work done to them. Why would you expect a boat to be different then anything else?

The SuperCat is a foam sandwich construction so repairs have to be made properly. I’ve worked on several different SuperCats and never seen any major break that could not be fixed and it was usually caused by abuse from the skipper.

Here is a link to a restore I did to a SC20
http://www.themanshed.net/archived-projects/supercat-20.html