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I would buy a Leopard anytime again. But it would be interesting to know what boat you own and what catamaran you would recommend from firsthand experience?

Awesome! Please have a look at our website www.sailingsisu.com We are mainly operating in BVI, but let's talk when you ready 😊

@@SailingSisu I'll be Registering the boat in the BVI, which is a piece of cake for a British Subject, and to me anyway, is worth the expense, plus no Tax on Boats, and will be a semi base for me to cruise from and to the Caribbean, though up to Massachusetts for Gurricane Season. That's the plan anyway, for about 5 years before sailing home. I abandoned all plans for a circumnavigation years ago, and replaced it with Specific Destinations instead, to travel to as interest in specific places grabs me. When things in the Middle East settle down for example, I really want to go to Saudi Arabia, to take a look at the wonderful job they are doing with Farming the Desert via Water Desalination and Drip Agriculture and spray irrigation. They are producing such high quality Fruit and vegetables, they are now exporting them ! They are also exposing the Fraud that is Organic Growing. People don't realise that the extensive use of NPK Fertilisers Stsrted in 1820, and it was closely monitored by very Real Scientists for a very long time? They were actually what drove the Golden Age of Victorian Farming, and there has been no increase today, in the amount of Plant food required to grow specific Plants. I did a ,ot of experimenting on my Smallholding, and became a big fan of Straw Bale Hydroponic Growing as a result. As soon as I know what Boat and where it can be collected from I'll give you all the relevant info. A lot of them in the Caribbean ex Charter, have their Phase Out Work from the Charter Fleet done in Saint Lucia - a place on my Bucket List to Visit, as my late Uncle, a doctor of Tropical Diseases, ran a Clinic there with my Aunt as the Clinic Nurse. They loved the place. From there, they went to Nigeria, where my Cousin was born, and in tribute to the local Tribal Princess, she was named after her. That Cousin is presently living in South Africa, but have lost touch since her parents died. So a visit to South Africa to look up her a d her husband may well be on the cards for a Destination. See how things go I suppose. Best Wishes, Fair Winds, and Safe Travels. Bob. 🤔🌟🌟🌟👍❤️

Obviously you missed the gist of the video 🤣 but, at least you commented! It helps our rating however poor it currently is 😅

The sun is the killer 😉

Really? What's the boat's name? Perhaps you can point them to this video, if they are not under warranty, that is.

Uhm...not what the video is about

It is crazy what boat yards ask! Watch our latest video...

I think that is the right way to do it.

yeah, it is a shlep to rebel the windows every few years :-( thank you for the kind compliment!

@@SailingSisu Yeah, I do not find this a good design. And it looks like you had to spend too much on repairs on your new boat as well. I expected more from Leopard. Or how do you see this?

Glad it was helpful! This is what the video was about :-) to help other people.

Thank you very much! This is what I aimed for when I published the video! To help other people save money :-)

Awesome advice, thank you Bob!

@@SailingSisu hopefully you can get hold of something suitable. Bob. 👍PS. The Monohull I am after has small square deck hatches, and narrow smaller portholes so replacements will be very easily obtained. Apparently, Full Beam Skylights in the Deck are an absolute nightmare to sort out at vast expense, IF you can even get anything suitable to fit. It’s surprising how many really pretty boats have ruled themselves out purely from the choice of Torturously shaped portholes. For example, the tragedy that is many of the Jeanneau Sun Odyssey Deck Saloon models. I’d have liked a 44 DS tbh. Now I wouldn’t touch one.☹️

Silly question :-D we still love our Leopard 45. We've been now around the sea for six years and not once found a boat that we could say, wow! wish we had bought that one! if I had all the money in the world, I would still lean towards the Leopard, but I don't so, I bought a Leopard and still love the boat after six years of sailing more than 36,000nm :-)

That sounds like very good advice! Thank you!

well, we bought the boat for half a million :-) let me tell you something else. the guys in Turkey did a super job to rebel our saloon roof window, but added so much Sikaflex that it did not expand with the window and now that window is cracking... so, I guess there is a fine line where the lines of Sikaflex needs to be able to flex but still have enough area to bond properly.

@@SailingSisu Yes you are correct. I meant use enough so when the plexiglass presses it makes a tight bond and pushes it sideways enough. Also like you mentioned in the video it has to be able to flex with the boat and not be tight against any edge that can move or it will free itself like the edge against the side wall and you added a slight gap which is very smart on your behalf. Buying a used boat you got a great deal. I am saying when they make these boats they do things as cheap as they can and I do not agree with them skimping as almost all of them do that 1 way or another. I prefer glass windows and yes more weight but when sailing you can just have less water in your tanks to make up difference for light wind sailing.

yeah, the market is tuff. I am hearing so many times that the Leopards are too expensive and people are buying one of the other big three cruising cats. I think many people think a boat is a boat and not really thinking about quality. so, if Leopard do go for quality, then there sales will drop, people will loose jobs, shareholders get upset, etc. it is a vicious thing, capitalism

Stem 100%....maar ek is maar nog 'n groentjie wanneer dit by bootwerk kom. Ook, meeste boat yards soos Florida, laat jou nie toe om sukke werk self te doen. Ons moet nou antifoul en ek sukkel om 'n boat yard te kry wat my gaan toelaat om alles self te doen...

And still, after 36,000nm, we will not buy anything else than our Leopard 45.

Boats are build badly or, the sea environment is incredibly aggressive. The sun kills everything on the boat, sails, lines, gelcoat, Sikaflex. The salt spray attacks everything else.

Thanx, Paul! We still Frikken love our boat ;-) The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebid the window, and how to do it a fraction of the cost a boat yard is charging. ALL boats with acrylic windows attached with Sikaflex (no screws or frames), will eventually go through the same process. The sun is a killer for anything exposed to it, sails lines, gelcoat, dinghies, and Sikaflex. I guess people love frameless windows too much! Well, we still love our forward cockpit and the big windows. We just need a way to get the bonding right :-) Thank you for dropping in!

@@SailingSisu Sorry Cap'n! I didn't mean to imply something wrong with the whole build of Leopards. Just that you've had to do this with all of your portlights, due to non-flexible primer, from what I understand from your video. I work with acrylic sheet everyday, and understand the issues with expansion and contraction due to heat, and the need to account for this if you are trying to make a water-tight seal. Again, I think you did a tremendous job to fix this issue, but I think Leopard should have used a flexible primer in the first place, and then you wouldn't have to do this repair at all... BUT I could be wrong, of course! ;)

P.S. Ikigai (2008 build) had plexiglass portlights on the freeboard held in solely with Sikaflex (or similar) and she managed 15 years without them become non-waterproof. Yes, much smaller than your forward windows, but ours were actually submerged often... Not saying one boat is better than the other, but just that there could be a way to install it better than it was initally. It looks like the job you have done will be way better, and last much longer (water tight) than how the boat was delivered. Great job!

Paul, I agree 100% with you! But many of us got the "repair" flyer from Lewmar and Sikaflex requiring us to use that primer... that said, I saw another Sikaflex article where they require a UV protective film in front of the window too. So, I am thinking of that, basically a sticker frame on the outside?

baie dankie, Johnny! thanx for dropping by!

AH, now with this comment I can deal with! a man with experience and solutions other than class action lawsuits :-D thank you for the kind advice, we will for sure take that into consideration on the next round of rebedding. the sun is absolutely a killer for everything. we are now registered charters in British Virgin Islands (BVI) www.sailingsisu.com

⁠@@SailingSisuare you selling cabins on your boat with you skippering the vessel and offering meals or is it full on bareboat charter. Not something I would advise you to do with your boat in Caribbean.

www.sailingsisu.com

you can use pool noodles! thanx for the comment!

@@SailingSisu die tannie gaan al 'n paar kort.

thanx for the visit! yeah the video is why this happen, what we did to fix it, and how we rebed the window. and how to do it for a fraction of the price the boat yard did it. ALL boats with acrylic glass will go through this process eventually. the hull carries a warranty of six years so, there is that. boat owners eventually realize just how aggressive the seawater, everyday sun, shaking and slamming through waves, environment is on everything, lines, gelcoat, sails, stainless steel, as well as Sikaflex bonds exposed to the sun. Yes, we do use UV resistant stuff, but the sun and salt spray beats all human made efforts in a heartbeat :-D

good on you! we've sailed 36,000nm the last six years and we still love our boat, Leopard and Robertson and Caine. We have been through rough seas and high winds, at sea and at anchor. we still love our big windows and forward cockpit. we love the design, the layout, the way Robertson and Caine thought about using hidden spaces, placement of propellors, how the chain plates is attached, the safety measures such as propane or CO alarms, placement of the electrical board and DB board. But, that said, I would not mind to have a boat like yours, which has absolutely no issues the last six years. we looked at custom build boats especially those expensive all composite and carbon fibre boats, and it is honestly an unreachable dream for us. But tell us, no issues the last six years?

Thank you Trev! Thanx for dropping by!

@@SailingSisu you finally got recommended by youtube.. seriously! Reminded me “wow it’s been awhile” hopefully you keep getting recommended..

thank you, Chris for the kind words! you are welcome for a dop and tjop on Sisu, just bring the tjop!

maybe. but then again ALL boats with acrylic glass is going through the same issues eventually. we still love our boat, Leopard, and Robertson and Caine. We will not join the "class action". what is up with this class action anyways? I am no lawyer, but every boat owner knows that at one point he/she needs to maintain the boat and the sun is absolutely brutal on Sikaflex or similar bonding, sails, lines/ropes/gelcoat/well every thing on the boat is attacked by UV, heat, salt spray, vibrations, slamming. I do not know of one boat with acrylic glass who has not rebed their windows within a ten year span. Sisu is 6 years old. Robertson and Caine follows the Lewmar instructions, which Lewmar put together for the windows, hatches, clutches, and winches. And Lewmar is following Sikaflex's advice on how to fix acrylic windows to fiberglass....vicious circle of blaming the other.

@@SailingSisu Ahh, the issues are not restricted to acrylic windows, if only it was. Infusion voids in the hulls are not a minor issue, it goes to the structural integrity and basic seaworthiness of the boat. Rather than type a report here, go look at the work Travel Sketch have had to get done under thier extensive warranty repairs ( 1 year on the hard on a two and a half year old boat so far ). You mention Sisu is 6yo, so prior to covid, i hope you are free from the issues some are having, its my best wish for you. Personaly, i would be getting my boat checked for infusion voids with my fingers and toes crossed that you are free of those particular concerns, Leopard have always had a great reputation but right now, best check.

thank you for your concerns!

well, this video was about the windows and nothing else. again, not going to comment Travel Sketch, it is not my place nor my view.

@@SailingSisu umm.. ok... i guess. Im happy to have expressed my concerns and fully accept your thanks for having done so.

oh, I just read on the side where it says "brushless 48V" :-)

@@SailingSisu it looks like a 18v

:-D

Thank you for the kind words! I should, but then I heard about better and easier ways to hold the window in place :-D will rebed the port side window and put that video out ;-)

thank you David!

:-D we will not be joining that action. The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebed the window at a fraction of the cost the boat yard is charging. We've sailed 6 years and more than 36,000nm and we still love our boat! thank you for watching and visiting! you may want to watch our other videos and see how we love our boat! We have been through rough seas and high winds, at sea and at anchor. we still love our big windows and forward cockpit. we love the design, the layout, the way Robertson and Caine thought about using hidden spaces, placement of propellors, how the chain plates is attached, the safety measures such as propane or CO alarms, placement of the electrical board and DB board. Are there issues? oh yeah! it is how you deal with them. some can deal with issues and others not, but, believe me you will not even buy a toaster without warranty, BECAUSE you expect issues. A boat is in just so much more aggressive environment than a toaster. are there things that irritate us? oh, yeah for sure! but looking at other boats with their irritations, then it just becomes a preference like which car you like best.

tbh, I think the actual issue is far too much UV Light is now getting through Our Solar Emissions damaged Ozone Layer, and we don’t have nearly enough CO2 Content in Our Atmosphere to really boost Photosynthesis, to create the Ozone needed to make the necessary repairs? tbh, this is why in Mast Furling for protecting Sailcloth from rapid UV Damage is now pretty much an indispensable essential for sailing from the Arctic Circle, south as far as the Mediterranean and Caribbean latitudes. Should be the same for the Pacific as well ? 🤔 Something I’ve been waiting on, showed up in the Greek Islands of the Mediterranean in Mid December 2023 - Purple Couloured Algae ! 🤔☹️☹️☹️Bob.☹️☹️

@@SailingSisu Frankly, if sailing Catamarans didn’t seriously do my head and my balance in, Sisu has impressed me so much, that I would actually buy a Leopard, though would specify square moderately sized portholes, with external sunshades. For a Monohull, square moderaly sized deck lights, with rectangular narrow sized hull portholes- like recent Jeanneau and Beneteau Sailboats have shifted to. 🤔 Bob. PS.Full beam deck glazing, are an expensive nightmare just waiting to need replacing. 🤔

really? The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebid the window, and how to do it a fraction of the cost a boat yard is charging. We've sailed 6 years and more than 36,000nm and we still love our boat! thank you for watching and visiting! you may want to watch our other videos and see how we love our boat! We have been through rough seas and high winds, at sea and at anchor. we still love our big windows and forward cockpit. we love the design, the layout, the way Robertson and Caine thought about using hidden spaces, placement of propellors, how the chain plates is attached, the safety measures such as propane or CO alarms, placement of the electrical board and DB board. Are there issues? oh yeah! it is how you deal with them. some can deal with issues and others not, but, believe me you will not even buy a toaster without warranty, BECAUSE you expect issues. A boat is in just so much more aggressive environment than a toaster. are there things that irritate us? oh, yeah for sure! but looking at other boats with their irritations, then it just becomes a preference like which car you like best.

Right on! Well spotted! love your attitude! so much nicer answering your humor!

I think that is why they put the primer, so that no direct UV is getting to the Sikaflex? I was thinking about that AFTER we rebedded the window :-( and you right, glass glass is a UV filter, acrylic not. Leopard did send me the recommendation for bonding from Lewmar and Sikaflex when I did the windows in Turkey. They insisted on that Sika Primer-209 D, which RC is also using. thank you for the info!

@@SailingSisu The latest process I have from R&C for the 45 and 42s is NCS Gelcoat > Primer > Sikaflex 295 UV > Primer > printer ink like Marabu > Perspex brand acrylic sheet. Not including cleaning/prep etc. They have used a printer ink as part of a structural bond on a window presumably for some perceived UV resistance. The process Travelopia use on my hull was Gelcoat > Dow 795 > Perspex or > Dow 795 > Glass. The primer bond isn't UV proof either. Travelopia (who you refer to as Leopard, which is actually a brand owned by R&C) don't screw around like R&C do. They have charter fleets to run and actually attempt resolve issues expediently.

Plus Sailing Utopia! What a shit show, Leopard/R&C are.

absolutely not! I know Travel Sketch's attitude and will not comment on their relationship with Leopard, but we absolutely still love RC, Leopard, and our boat. We've walked 6 years and more than 36,000nm with them and we are still friends and we still love our boat! thank you for watching and visiting! you may want to watch our other videos and see how we love our boat! We have been through rough seas and high winds, at sea and at anchor. we still love our big windows and forward cockpit. we love the design, the layout, the way Robertson and Caine thought about using hidden spaces, placement of propellors, how the chain plates is attached, the safety measures such as propane or CO alarms, placement of the electrical board and DB board. Are there issues? oh yeah! it is how you deal with them. some can deal with issues and others not, but, believe me you will not even buy a toaster without warranty, BECAUSE you expect issues. A boat is in just so much more aggressive environment than a toaster. are there things that irritate us? oh, yeah for sure! but looking at other boats with their irritations, then it just becomes a preference like which car you like best.

@@SailingSisu appreciate the input.

The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebid the window, and how to do it a fraction of the cost a boat yard is charging.

Sketch and Utopia loved their boats too. That’s why they bought them. Did you see the issues they are having with their masts? How do boats in this condition leave the yard? Because they are not built to a quality standard, they are built to a price point. And when something breaks, shift the blame instead of fixing the problem. If you can install a Lewmar window so that it doesn’t leak, why can’t they? Because that would take time and money and expertise…and those values do not align with R&C’s business plan whether you love them or not.

baie danie vir die inloer!

absolutely not. The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebid the window, and how to do it a fraction of the cost a boat yard is charging.

lol, that is what non-boat people do not get :-D ALL boats with acrylic windows do that. the video is more about why it happens and how to fix it. that said, Robertson and Caine follows the instructions, which Lewmar put together for the windows, hatches, clutches, and winches. And Lewmar is following Sikaflex's advice on how to fix acrylic windows to fiberglass....vicious circle of blaming the other. All boats with acrylic windows go through the same pain at some time. so, thank you for the advice on Dowsil! I heard something similar in Turkey about a 3M product? I guess at one point, the sun will destroy any bonding exposed to the sun :-(

Baie dankie, Adrian! danie vir die inloer!

sure, we had serious weather with those windows. if you watch a few videos back where I do the Thorny Path, you will see just how serious, and I did see some water splash through that gap when the waves hit the wind, but it was not serious, I had more serious leaks from repairs done in Florida to worry about. we have done 35,000nm in the last 6 years and we still love our forward cockpit and the big windows :-) that said, Robertson and Caine follows the instructions, which Lewmar put together for the windows, hatches, clutches, and winches. And Lewmar is following Sikaflex's advice on how to fix acrylic windows to fiberglass....vicious circle of blaming the other. All boats with acrylic windows go through the same pain at some time.

exactly! yeah, there is flexing, but I guess since it is bonded to a bulkhead....there should not be boat flexing, only the expansion and contraction of the acrylic?

@@SailingSisu I misunderstood the initial issue, but as far as I know, bulkheads are mostly strong in one direction, they may flex in others. In a monohull like Uma:s, it would mostly be the compression of the roof vertically from the mast under load, but on a catamaran it would rather be twisting due to one hull hitting a wave and the other one not doing so. However Leopards seem to have a better reputation strengthwise, so I suppose that would rather be a potential issue for those unfortunate Lagoons way back. Also, to make it clear, I am really speculating, not knowing.

I hear you! there may definitely be a twist going on.

Thank you for the good advice!

Yeah, I guess all boats with acrylic windows will go through the same process eventually. The video is actually about what the issue is with acrylic windows, how we fixed it, and how to rebid the window, and how to do it a fraction of the cost a boat yard is charging. Sisu is already six years old and went through rough seas in her 35,000nm journey. But, it is currently a Lewmar issue, not the boat manufacturer's issue. Robertson and Caine follows the instructions, which Lewmar put together for the windows, hatches, clutches, and winches. And Lewmar is following Sikaflex's advice on how to fix acrylic windows to fiberglass....vicious circle of blaming the other.

​@@SailingSisu Off course all true, boat is out of warranty. But I think the vicious circle of blaming the other is handled by law very clearly, when still under warranty. You buy not the lose parts, you buy @leopard, so all warranty should be handled by them. How they solve it with supplier should not be the customers problem. Nonetheless, I would have done the same as you did, and safe me the legal hassle, just solve it and perhaps Leopard will refund you the Sikaflex 🙂 (I always ask my wife to solve that, and she is good in that part 🙂) Also for Leopard this video is helpful for owners to show it's doable to re-glue your windows .

@@marcandnadine I must admit,from what I have seen of the Sailing Sisu Leopard 45 Cstamaran, and examples of others in the range, if I could get on ok with Catamarans Motion upwind, I’d buy a Leopard.Probably a 40. But unfortunately my allergy to Catamaran Motion into Waves is pretty extreme, and rules out me ever having one. If the two hulls connect with a wave at different times, I’m basically A Monohull, by default, only has one hull to connect to a wave with thank god. ❤️⛵️Bob.

PS.Sod’s Law when Sailing to a destination, the Wind direction is always coming directly from the destination . Bob.🤔☹️

exactly!

nope, did the clock-wise route again :-)

Certainly are! I am certain all boats with acrylic glass will behave the same and would eventually be rebedded.