www.cunningcat.com


Designed By The Hughes Group of Companies al@spot.com.au	www.cunningcat.com		The Cunning Cat is for sale for $129,000. Please contact us for more information al@spot.com.au
		Howie Hughes dreamt of a boat to sail to and through the Tropical Islands of Australia, to take his family to fish, eat crabs & coconuts- basically- he wanted to relax.
The Newest Catamaran to hit the Australian Waters The Cunning Cat

Having had extensive experience in manufacturing & design, and considering his Degrees in Architechture, a history with boat building and successful business of twenty five years, which manufactures the Ultralight- the 'Australian LightWing'-

He spearheaded an idea for a Catamaran, which you could pack up on a trailer, drive to where you wanted your holiday, set up and launch your boat and have a relaxing holiday.

Howie and wife, Jenny, had seen their share of bad sailing weather and decided that a boat you could drive around the bad weather was what they wanted.

So Howie set out to design a 30 ft Catamaran which would be light and trailerable.

Thus, we bring you, 'The Cunning Cat'


	So, from dreams to drawing boards to reality, the Cunning Cat was born. The Cat sailed her maiden voyage on the 25th of February and was extremely successful. The sails filling with the wind and cruising calmly along at about 8 knots exampling their aeronautically designed sailpower.

The Cunning Cat Specifications:				Sail Inventory
Displacement:	1,750kg empty 2,750 tonnes	Fresh Water Capacity:	400 litres max	Mainsail area:	32.4m sq
Length:	9 metres	Engine:	2 by 15 hp	Jib Sail Area:	14.8 m sq
Beam:	5.4 m (folded 2.5m)			Total Sail Area:	47.2 m sq
Mast Height:	11 metres	Length Water Line:	8.9 m	Construction:	Completely Australian Manufactured and Designed

The Two Versions of the Cunning Cat:
The Trailer Sailor Cunning Cat	Photo Gallery	The MultiHull Magazine	A Little History
The Fixed Bridge Cunning Cat	Assembly of Cunning Cat	Port Hull Interior	Where are We?

*So ...*
1. If you have an inner desire to *scoot past most other yachts like they are standing still.......* 2. If you're like me and you don't like the idea of paying hundreds of dollars a month to keep your boat in a marina while you don't use it then this will help you get to like *Cunning Cat*.	3. If you to want to get every fun hour out of your annual leave that you can by *getting to and from your cruising destination fast,* ie on the road rather than out on the ocean in whatever sort of weather conditions come along ! and 4 If you like to take some friends along with you but like me, you value your privacy, you will appreciate that's why *Cunning Cat* has 2 totally private double cabins.
*We think you might like to take a serious look at Cunning Cat*
*Cunning Cat* *Objectives:* One: A practical boat Two: Room for 2 double cabins with full headroom, double bunks plus room for additional crew.	Three: It has to be a fun boat and must be capable of serious speed..... 10 kts plus. Four: The boat must be affordable.
Five: The boat must be safe, *Cunning Cat* is protected from capsize by our Cunning Cleat, if the boat heels past a preset angle, (usually 9 deg), the *Cunning Cleat* lets go of the main sheet.	The only prerequisite.... ownership or at lease access to a larger than normal towing vehicle (a 4wd preferably) and ownership of or access to an average sized backyard for winter storage if required.

	Cunning Cat on the water, one of its two unique rigs uses 2 smaller sets of sails rather than one large one. This permits one or 2 man erection of the entire rig in less than an hour, also mast height is reduced for navigation under bridges on inland waterways. For a high aspect ratio rig we provide a 20% wing mast fully battened mainsail and roller furled jib.
Note: Cunning Cat hulls can be built up to 11.5m long on request. A rigid saloon area can also be provided.

The Trailer:

The tri or tandem axel trailer can be provided as an option by the Hughes Group, a welded frame permits the hulls to be separated from zero to 3m for assembly of the boat then wound back to zero separation for trailering. The system uses 4 sliding beams controlled by a central winch.	We recommend a large car or a 4WD is used to tow the cat, the total load is approximately 1.9 tons. The Hughes Group can supply a complete trailer with electric brakes as standard.
*Of course, it's possible to live on the boat on the road as the bunks and cooking are easily accessible with the boats boarding ladder.*

*Summary*
Cunning Cat (named partly in memory of Charlie Cunningham, designer of a range of successful multihulls including the QB2 and Quick Cat) achieves all our objectives. A *trailerable boat* with 2 double cabins each with its own shower and toilet, *serious entertaining space* with settee seating for 9, *additional cabin space for 2 in single bunks*.	A boat that can be taken home at the end of the sailing season or trailered to your favorite sailing spot and assembled by two people in a couple of hours, *multihull cruising speed at around 14 kts* average and an affordable price tag for either a kit (under $100,000 Aud) or a complete boat (a little over $150,000) and trailer $18,000
Cunning Cat is Proudly manufactured using Oz On Time Computer based Time and Job costing software.
Thank you for your visit to our *Cunning Cat* web page, I hope you find it interesting. Please call again as the page is updated each week with progress on the first *Cunning Cat* which has been under construction at the company headquarters located at Ballina Airport and has now been launched and is Moored in Ballina, NSW, Australia. Also, please feel free to visit the factory. We are the designers of the *Cunning Cat* so please call and ask for any further information. Sincerely, Howie Hughes (02) 66 86 8658 or email al@spot.com.au
The Fixed Bridge Hull		The Trailer Sailor


The Cunning Cat is Produced, Designed and Manufactured by The Howard Hughes Group of Companies.
Ballina NSW Australia
Ph: (02) 66 86 8658 Fax (02) 66 86 8343 email: al@spot.com.au
www.cunningcat.com	www.lightwing.com.au	www.ozonhold.com

Cunning Cat is shown above with a wing mast. The 20% wing is fabricated (riveted) from 6061T6 alloy in 3.6m sections. the mast is 600mm wide and 200mm thick. It is supported by 2 back stays, 2 intermediate side stays and one forstay. The sail areas are main 25.6 m sq, jib 10.2 m sq.
*The CunningCat has changed !* The design of *Cunning Cat* is an evolving process. Initially we thought that providing direct access from the galley area to the saloon via a hatch would weaken the hull in the area around the hatch but tests and engineering computations reveal this is not the case so the rear sliding hatches have been deleted and direct access is now in place. This means that the cook can talk to the crew while he / she is in the galley and also serve food directly from the galley to the saloon. The same access is also available from the single cabin to the saloon area. Scroll down for details. As of 8/2000 both hulls are finished and the main x-beams are being fabricated along with the rudders and rig.
		ALSO.. we now have a walk through transom on each hull. The cockpit seat folds to allow access over the rear of the boat to a dingy or the marina.


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