leaving the bahamas

[jimlong]

I recently purchased a PDQ catamaran and plan to use it on the Eastern seaboard and Bahamas. In the event that I might get bored and want to leave the Bahamas for say the Grenadines or points South would this be a comfortable cruiser?

I've read where a lot of the PDQ catamarans have crossed the Florida straits without any difficulty and sailed successfully throughout the Bahamas but it doesn't seem like any of voyages go any further than the Bahamas. I know that these cats are referred to as near coastal cruisers and not really blue water boats and is that because of the under deck clearance and/or shallow draft. I wonder if possibly aside from the few diesel models that are available that maybe sailors don't feel confident in the outboards.

I believe this will be a great first boat for my wife and I and would just like to hear from those of you who have ventured out past the Bahamas and the problems you have encountered. Thanks, Jim

[Ed Ellis]

Welcome to the PDQ community and congrats on your new boat. You'll love it!

I've crossed the Gulf of Mexico (from Pensacola) and sailed to Honduras a couple of times. It's all about the weather and picking a good window and having a crew who know what they are doing. I've also (stupidly) made a 50 mile passage off a lee shore in Mexico mainland headed to Cozemel at the tail end of a hurricane and got caught in steep 12-15' waves coming in three different directions with the wind on my nose. It was a very rough ride but the boat did fine with both engines supporting the sails.

The PDQ 36, however, is NOT bullet proof. There have been two off-shore sinkings in recent years. Both captains were experienced off-shore sailors. If you are not an experienced blue-water sailor, I strongly suggest you get very familiar with your new boat by sailing it in all kinds of conditions before you attempt an extended passage. The PDQ 36 has some "waterproof" compartments that, supposedly, will prevent it from sinking, but the air pockets in these compartments are obviously not sufficient to prevent sinking... so don't get suckered into thinking you're safe. You are not. It just takes these boats longer to sink. Take the normal precautions you would on a monohull (e.g., life-raft, SSB, sat phone, epirb). Also, although I've never had to deploy it (thank goodness!), I also carry along a parachute anchor for use in those "oh my God, I'm gonna die!" conditions.

If you bought one of the older PDQs that have a baby-stay that connects to a chain-plate that goes through the foredeck to the bulkhead between the two forward cabins, these boats have a history of leaking at this point and rotting out the bulkhead area around the chain plate. It your baby-stay goes down into a locker, you have one of the newer boats, and these apparently haven't had this problem. Both of the sinkings I referred to previously seemed to have been connected to this problem. Although opinions vary, I think the chain-plate itself is inadequate, so I replaced mine with a much beefer, longer one that also utilizes a backing plate. The problem is that the chain-plate is covered by hull liner, so your bulkhead can be failing and you not realize it. Thus, you should peal-back the liner and inspect the chain-plate (use contact cement to reapply the liner after the inspection). If you see any water intrusion whatsoever (e.g., stained or darkened wood), you should assume your bulkhead has been compromised and take appropriate action. If you plan on off-shore sailing, I also strongly suggest replacing the chain-plate with a longer one even if there is no evidence of leaking.

Finally, when I was shopping for a PDQ, I noticed that some of the older boats had compression cracks at the base of the mast. These are fine, hair-line cracks in the gelcoat steaming out from the mast. If your boat has these, you might consider having this part of your deck reinforced by a fiberglass man. This work can be done on the underside of the deck and thus not be visable due to the ceiling liner, and it shouldn't be too expensive. Compression cracks don't look like much of a problem, but they signal that the boat has been under considerable strain and that the joints where the bulkheads connect to the deck may also have cracks and thus be compromised. At least one of the sinkings previously mentioned had this problem. Thus, if your boats have these, you should also have a pro inspect the seams along your bulkheads before considering any serious off-shore passages. If you find cracks in the seams, they can be easily reinforced by a fiberglass guy at minimum expense.

I hope you enjoy your PDQ as much I have mine. It's a fantastic boat. Ed

[jimlong]

Thanks Ed its good to know these boats are capable and have "been there done that". That's a really long passage and it must be seaworthy otherwise you wouldn't have done it twice. Jim

[Bob]

I'm one of the two who lost a boat and I went right out and bought another one (36045). I have since made 2 trips, one north and one south from Norfolk to Maine. I leave the Chesapeake and go 15-20 miles offshore and head for NYC, through the LIS, CC Canal and then across the Gulf of Maine. I trust these boats! Leaving NYC out the Ambrose channel last fall we had 5-7' seas with an occasional 10' roller and never felt unsafe. Bridgedeck slam is unnerving until you get used to it.

[jimlong]

I appreciate the post Bob and was curious to know if the baby stay on your new boat goes down into a locker as Ed mentioned ? My PDQ is at Herrington harbor in Maryland and I'm in New Mexico (not easy to check) but if your hull#45 and I'm #49 then yours and mine would be the newer ones that Ed is speaking of.

[swithen]

We have sailed to the Virgin Islands from Norfolk via Bermuda with Kia Orana (9 1/2 days), then back alone via Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic (meeting other PDQ36's en route), then Mexico/Belize/Rio Dulce (where we met Ed on Tranquility) and back .
We really don't have much to add to Ed's excellent response to your query. We like Chris for weather but failed to use him for the Key West/Isla Mujeres leg and wound up seeing 40 knot winds behind us against the gulf stream. Not pretty. Slamming on the bridge deck makes the center of the sleeping births untenable and bounces anything on the table. Back in harbour, however, all we had was a few loose screws around the interior doors and no structural damage. Our view is that the PDQ36 can take much worse treatment than the crew can handle. Incidentally, we have outboards and find that Cadenza sails better than she motors. Our standard setup is full 110 jib, one reef in the main, and one engine. This works well for wind speeds up to 30 knots or for going into the wind which we seem to do a disproportionate amount of the time.

Colin and Ruth Swithenbank
Cadenza 36051

[Bob]

You should be OK. The earlier boat had a traditional cap plate that slid over the baby stay chain plate and was secured by 2 screws. The newer design has a welded cap plate and 4 screws. I have not peeled back the interior but do check for any signs of moisture after every rain or when the boat has been working hard and to date have found no signs of moisture.

[jimlong]

Colin, I've read a lot of your articles in the quarterly rag and know you've done some serious sailing. I can't wait to cruise the Rio dulce and read the Chisme Vindicator regularly, thanks for the post.

[Cat Tales]

Jim,

When we originally looked at the PDQ in 2004, the staff at PDQ told us of a 36 that crossed the Atlantic from New York to England (northern route) on it's own hull. Unfortunately I don't know who or which hull number, but maybe some of the others on this forum may know.

FYI... Our hull number is 36081, commissioned in 2000, and our baby-stay chain plate goes through the deck, and attaches to the bulkhead between the forward cabins. It is hidden behind the liner, and is NOT visible from the forward-center locker. As of now (knock on LOTS of wood) we have not had leaking or any excessive wobbling/play. We have the taller rig, an extra 4', and frequently sail in 15-20 knot winds (we don't reef until above 20 knots) and there are no signs of stress. I know that there are different standing rigging arrangements among the boats. Ours has backstays & double spreaders. Maybe the different arrangements, flawed & undersized baby-stay chain-plate, coupled with improper tensioning may have led to it's failure. Either way, I feel the rigging should be constantly inspected & upgraded for any serious offshore excursions.

Chris

[jimlong]

Chris thanks for the info on the chainplate and I really appreciate the photos you sent of the saloon table, I haven't converted that yet but all in good time. I'm currently trying to wrestle a washing machine out of the port side aft cabin.

Thats interesting about the transatlantic voyages and am sure those logs would be interesting to read.

[juanma]

Jim,

My PDQ 36 is hull #46 (1995). The boat has the 4 bolts baby stay chain plate. In 2002 I had to repair the forward bulkhead due to it being rotten from water coming thru the chain plate. I used the same chain plate but left an easy way to get back to the bulkhead and inspect for water leak. The first sign of trouble was water in the bunks and water stains on the liner.

Juan.
s/v Albita, PDQ 36 LRC - 46

[jimlong]

Thanks for the post Juan and upon arriving at Herrington harbor this weekend thats the first thing I checked, actually Sandy Daugherty examined it for me and it looks like I'm good to go.