What options exist that match a NEEL 43 the closest?

[ScienceSailor]

Hi! Just finished the multihull show and I was blown away by the NEEL 43. It's agile, it's sleek, yet it retains all the live aboard equipment I'm looking for. The cabin layout is totally inappropriate for charter and leisure - GREAT - since I will be soloing or with a friend 100% of the time, I only need ONE toilet. And that engine room - oh my - a geek's paradise.

I was wondering - are there alternatives that maintain that same hull design, interior organization and 'bare' looks (some jokingly call it the floating tupperware). But it happens that's exactly what I'm going for.

So, I was wondering, what other options are on the market. I want to make my broker work for his salary, but I trust this community more

Thank you!

[SailingHarmonie]

In the past you were looking for boats to spend lots of time out in the open ocean. Maybe that has changed, and the Neel is a nice boat, but that is NOT what it is made for.

[Tin Tin]

Rapido 40 which is more a classic trimaran style, then you could get one custom built plenty of plans out there. Personally a bare bones 40-44ft dagger board cat would be a better choice, two engines are one of their big advantages in a practical sense rather than economic sense.

[ScienceSailor]

Originally Posted by SailingHarmonie

In the past you were looking for boats to spend lots of time out in the open ocean. Maybe that has changed, and the Neel is a nice boat, but that is NOT what it is made for.

mmmh... care to elaborate? I spent 4 hours visiting it, filming it, talking to multiple reps, an entire chain of people to refit parts of it, and 4 days on site, and was assured by everyone it was 'perfect' for that purpose. Did I get lied to?

[ScienceSailor]

Originally Posted by Tin Tin

Rapido 40 which is more a classic trimaran style, then you could get one custom built plenty of plans out there. Personally a bare bones 40-44ft dagger board cat would be a better choice, two engines are one of their big advantages in a practical sense rather than economic sense.

Thank you but while the rapido is a beautiful boat, it offers considerably smaller storage/living space than the neel.

[boatman61]

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...-a-164789.html

Post number 6 from the owner..

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uKGZj2Nmea0

[Kinkircating]

Originally Posted by ScienceSailor

mmmh... care to elaborate? I spent 4 hours visiting it, filming it, talking to multiple reps, an entire chain of people to refit parts of it, and 4 days on site, and was assured by everyone it was 'perfect' for that purpose. Did I get lied to?

The NEEL is a great coastal cruiser, it is not what most would consider a blue water boat. It is a charter boat level quality that is very heavy and made of polyester/balsa that sails slightly better than an average Lagoon or Leopard, but it has the disadvantage of the draft of monohull.

If you are island hopping in the Bahamas or Caribbean, then go for it. If you are crossing oceans, I'd keep looking.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by ScienceSailor

Thank you but while the rapido is a beautiful boat, it offers considerably smaller storage/living space than the neel.

Which is why the Rapid is a vastly superior sailing boat

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Factor

Which is why the Rapid is a vastly superior sailing boat

that’s a good question for the OP. How much weight, exactly, are you adding to the boats? Exactly how much does the equipment weigh? And then we can use standard figures for everything else.

and OP, of course all of the sales people told you that the boat is perfect for you. Lol they saw you coming a kilometer away.

[rabbi]

Originally Posted by ScienceSailor

Did I get lied to?

What do you think is the job of a sales rep at shows, especially with an economic downturn on the horizon and rough times ahead?

[Yihang]

Originally Posted by Kinkircating

The NEEL is a great coastal cruiser, it is not what most would consider a blue water boat. It is a charter boat level quality that is very heavy and made of polyester/balsa that sails slightly better than an average Lagoon or Leopard, but it has the disadvantage of the draft of monohull.

If you are island hopping in the Bahamas or Caribbean, then go for it. If you are crossing oceans, I'd keep looking.

Sorry to revive an old thread but some of the misinformation in this reply should be addressed.

I grant you the quality of the Neel is debatable But to say it is 'very heavy and made of polyester/balsa that sails slightly better than an average Lagoon or Leopard' is just nonsense. The displacement for reference is about on par with an HH44, so not heavy by modern standards. A lagoon 42 is 3 tons heavier.

It's also very clear that Neel has never used balsa in any of it's boats and the 43 is no different.

As far as speed. It's not as fast as the Rapido or a performance cat like the Marsudon ORC But by all accounts it gets to 10knots quite easily with genoa and main. It came third in the recent ARC while the neel 45 and 47 have won previous ARCs. For the mass market the NEEL is a performance oriented boat.

Not a NEEL fanboy. The new Seawind 1170 is at a similar price point So I would recommend that as an alternative.

[Kinkircating]

Originally Posted by Yihang

Sorry to revive an old thread but some of the misinformation in this reply should be addressed.

I grant you the quality of the Neel is debatable But to say it is 'very heavy and made of polyester/balsa that sails slightly better than an average Lagoon or Leopard' is just nonsense. The displacement for reference is about on par with an HH44, so not heavy by modern standards. A lagoon 42 is 3 tons heavier.

It's also very clear that Neel has never used balsa in any of it's boats and the 43 is no different.

As far as speed. It's not as fast as the Rapido or a performance cat like the Marsudon ORC But by all accounts it gets to 10knots quite easily with genoa and main. It came third in the recent ARC while the neel 45 and 47 have won previous ARCs. For the mass market the NEEL is a performance oriented boat.

Not a NEEL fanboy. The new Seawind 1170 is at a similar price point So I would recommend that as an alternative.

If you ask any knowledge sailing professional what their opinion is of the ARC results and the accuracy as to using this data to judge a catamaran’s performances capabilities, hey will universally tell you it’s a complete joke and to ignore anything you read. It’s a rally not a race where motoring is allowed and “occasionally” self reported. There also is no upwind component to the race. Any consumer using the ARC data to make a purchasing decision is being misled. Is there any other race data available for these boats competing in an actual competition? Nope, they’d be demolished and the nice story would fall apart.

That being said, I did go check and you are correct and I was wrong, Neel uses Polyester and foam core, not Polyester and balsa. As for the overall quality, we each get to make our own judgement, I’d simply encourage potential customers to do their due diligence, the information is out there.