Seawind Buying Guide 2024 – Part 1
Whether you are a first time sailor, or an experienced around the world circumnavigator, the iconic Australian-owned and founded Seawind brand has a boat and design for you for all levels of experience and planned adventures. But with four boats that are only a few feet apart in length, it can get tricky to decide which is the right boat to choose and the best fit for you. So, we have put together these special buyers guide to help unpack the design concept behind each and its characteristics, its pros and cons, and who we recommend them for to help you select not necessarily the most expensive boat, but the best boat for you.
If you follow our channel, you will know that we have filmed lots of videos and content on Seawind Catamarans and lots of other brands. Having spent over a decade working at the Seawind factory myself and then another decade selling new and preowned Seawinds, we have gotten to know these boats very well. We are not here to sell you the most expensive boat or package possible,but rather the best option for your plans and experience level. We might even save you a dollar or two. And even with updates in the product range, we will keep you updated with new developments so be sure to subscribe to our channel below. If you do think one of these Seawinds are suited, be sure to follow the links below for an information pack including pricing and specs and one of our brokers can help package you up a boat either in person or via a video call. And our in house service team can then help with the launch and after sales service, insurance, and registration.
Ok onto the Seawind range…
With hundreds of catamarans built over a 40 year period, Seawind has carved a reputation for super strong, safe, and speedy cruising catamarans that fit into a nice niche between the mass produced comfort but slow condomarans and the more expensive and more slender high- performance cats. A youtuber recently said they are the Landrover of the catamaran world and I think that is a pretty good description. Tough, high quality, function over form but always ergonomic, and better than average resale.
We won’t be focusing on the things that are similar on each boat, but rather pointing out the key differences and why these may be important to you. For example, almost all models feature double helms, large forward opening windows in the saloon, and all roughly point at between 38-40 degrees – unless they have daggerboards of course. So, let’s explore these now.
SEAWIND 1160
Though its style might be from an earlier era, this classic design makes up for it in every other aspect. As the smallest boat in the Seawind range, it punches above its weight literally, with a displacement of only 7.4 tonnes this is one of the lightest production cruising catamarans in the world and with a self tacking jib and mainsail combined sail area of 80 square metres it has a very respectable Sail Area Displacement Ratio of 22.6. This is possible due to a carbon forebeam, lightweight foam core furniture, and outboard motors that not only save weight but save drag when sailing…plus you always have a clean propellor and low maintenance. Of course, you can upgrade this to diesel motors and jazz up the interior with a beautiful ash timber interior, leather upholstery and flexiteek cockpit like this new charter boat going to Victoria’s Gippsland Lakes.
With a base price of USD$420,000 this boat offers incredible value and if you are a couple or even single, it’s plenty of boats and has plenty of living space thanks to the famous tri-folding door arrangement – which was invented for this very boat.
The boat has a galley down which I know for some people it’s a show stopper, but when you look at the amount of space you get here and the storage, combined with openness into the saloon, it’s huge and beats plenty of much bigger boats.
There are two forward queen-sized beds, one an island and the other fore and aft with an ensuite. Plus, a smaller double in the stern. Office midships down.
This boat would suit a couple wanting to coastal sail to say the Whitsundays and island hop up the coast. It’s an ideal first catamaran as it’s super forgiving and easy to sail due to the smaller size of the boat and sails with spade rudders…equally, it has the strength to take you as far as you can handle.
The outboards do have a limited range due to a 270 litre fuel tank. Consuming 8 litres per hour combined this provides a range of about 236 nautical miles doing 7 knots.
So if you are wanting to more range for longer passages the twin 29hp diesel motors using about 6 litres per hour combined and a fuel capacity of 360 litres giving you a range of 420 nautical miles.
SEAWIND 1190
Next in the lineup is the 39 foot Seawind 1190 Sport. Now this boat really takes the Seawind 1160 Lite to a whole new level of performance for those who enjoy more optimised and technical sailing, featuring a larger rig, daggerboards, and lifting rudders, and more waterline length. There is also more carbon fibre throughout the structure of the boat taking it down to 6.9 tonnes. With a larger combined sail area of 85 square metres and featuring aramid sails, synthetic shrouds, and endless mainsheet trimmed on from either helm, the boat has plenty of power and an expected high sail area displacement ratio of 23.6.
The interior fitout is the same as the Seawind 1160 but with some nice carbon trim throughout, while the daggerboard cassettes do take up a little space in the galley which isn’t too intrusive as they are outboard of the companionway.
One other nice feature of the 1190 Sport is that you can lift the rudders allowing the draft to drop down to just 2 feet, making it ideal to motor up into shallow creeks and tidal areas.
This boat will suit those who come from a racing background but want a cruising boat and like to tweak the sails. As the boat is much more powerful you need to trim your sails more to balance the boat with the high aspect lifting rudders.
Starting at USD$499,000 the boat is at a slightly higher price point but you definitely get a more optimised boat to go with it. If you just want the lower draft from the rudders and daggerboards, Seawind does offer this package for US$40,000 less with a non-sport version.
SEAWIND 1260
The 41 foot Seawind 1260 was designed to really cater to those wanting to explore the islands of the South Pacific. Not only does it have more waterline length, but the boat is higher off the water with greater bridge deck clearance, has a taller rig, and is about a foot wider than the other models.
With a displacement of 8.9 tonnes and a combined sail area of 94.2 square metres this boat is a really lovely sailing boat and shares a similar sail area displacement ratio of 1160 at 22.3.
The additional width does allow for a slightly wider saloon lounge with day bed, plus L return lounge in the cockpit with sink. While the cockpit hardtop is a little wider offering slightly more shade. The cabins are much the same as the 1160 bit with a little more headroom throughout.
It also offers more storage in both the forward sail locker.
The fuel tanks are also slightly larger at 480 litres giving a range of 560 miles at 7 knots with the 29hp diesels. You do have the option to upgrade to twin 40hp Yanmars on this model due to the extra engine room space. While this won’t really give much more top end speed due to the hull speed and will reduce your range slightly, it will give you more torque in testing conditions.
Priced from USD$549,000 , 1260 is a little more than the other models around this size, however, is competitively priced for a 41 foot long distance cruiser.
SEAWIND 1170
The 39 foot 1170 is the newest design from Seawind and subscribes to the new styling and comfort features the larger 1370 brings. Though it has the same beam as the 1160 and 1190, it offers a considerable step up in terms of internal volume due to the flat decks, double chined hull, and considerably more headroom in the cabins, saloon, and cockpit. It actually does a really nice job of jamming some nice features of the 1160, 1260, and even the much bigger 1370.
There is a transom bench seat, a nice saloon with a similar day bed and nav station to the 1260, and though slightly narrower, the saloon seating is spacious and the table drops snugly in the middle. The forward beds are a similar size to the other Seawinds, however, these cabins feel much larger due to the flat decks and additional hull width above the chines. The beds also have these nice side tables seen. Some of these features and design ideas come from the larger 1370, which shares very similar styling with raked bows and a similar window profile.
The forward longeron and stayless bowsprit also make using a screecher easier and less intrusive when anchoring with a bridle that sometimes gets in the way if you have the stayed bowsprits on the other models.
The additional volume, head height, and overall size of the boat comes at a slight cost to your displacement which is a smidgen heavier than 1260 at 9.2 tonnes, and with the combined sail area of 93 square metres it has a sail area displacement ratio of 21.6. So if sailing performance is important to you, I would recommend adding a genoa and screecher to bring that performance up and enjoy the best of both worlds.
The boat will suit couples wanting to cruise the Mediterranean and sail home to Australia via the Caribbean and South Pacific Islands due to it being exclusively built from the new purpose built factory in Turkey. It handles lumpy sea states very well thanks to its narrow but high freeboard on the raked bows and really loves to be powered up with pressure in the sails due to the buoyance in the stern.
While the water tank storage is slightly less at 500 litres rather than the usual 700 litres on the other models noted so far, the fuel tanks are larger at 520 litre total capacity. With the twin 29hp Yanmar diesels this means a range of approximately 565 nautical miles running at 6.5 knots.
SO there you have it, the first part of our Seawind range review. Tell us which boat you prefer in the comments and why?
Click below links for more information:
Seawind 1160 Lite:https://www.multihullcentral.com/boat/seawind-1160-lite/ (NEW-order) or https://www.multihullcentral.com/used-boats/seawind-1160-lite-2024-stock/ (IN STOCK)
Seawind 1190 Sports:https://www.multihullcentral.com/boat/seawind-1190-sport/
Seawind 1260:https://www.multihullcentral.com/boat/seawind-1260/
Seawind 1170: https://www.multihullcentral.com/boat/seawind-1170/
