Weird but Wonderful: Outcut 29.5

This modular 30ft catamaran is very simple to configure and customise.
… the Outcut is all about making the freedom of boating easier to enjoy.
… the Outcut 29.5 is tailor-made for the kinds of coastal shallows that conventional 30ft cruisers can’t access.

Weird but Wonderful: Outcut 29.5

Alex Smith takes a look at a new Italian catamaran that is aiming to make leisure boating just that bit more enjoyable.

At the point of going to press, the bizarrely named Outcut was due to make its world debut at ElectroSea 2017. It’s an annual conference on electric marine mobility, held near Portofino in the north of Italy – and given the unusual design parameters of the new boat, not to mention the fact that it’s Italian and eco-friendly, it’s fair to suggest that the Outcut 29.5 will meet with a very enthusiastic reception.

What’s the Outcut all about?

This 29.5ft catamaran, the first from Outcut, is designed to enable you to reduce the distance between its hulls from 3.5 to 2.5 metres in just 90 seconds. Not only does that make this boat towable, but it also reduces the demands on your marina berthing space, and it does so without compromising the scale of your internal accommodation.

How does it do that? Well, the accommodation itself is not positioned inside the hulls in conventional powercat fashion, but in a single pod, built into the central platform. On this model, that module is fitted with a primary cabin in the bow, featuring a super-king-sized bed, plus a bathroom with shower to starboard and a dinette with a table for six further aft. That dining station can be converted into a second double bed and further equipped with a sink and a two-burner hob; and the modular construction of the deck pod itself means that the internal areas are also remarkably bright, with large windows forward, to the sides and overhead.

Efficiency considerations

The slender hulls, each of which encompasses watertight compartments for extra security, have been specifically designed for efficiency. With just a pair of 20hp outboard engines, the Outcut is expected to hit a top end of 17 knots and a cruising speed of 14 knots with a fuel flow in the region of 10 litres per hour. You can up that to twin 30 or 40 hp units, for performance of up to 24 knots, but with the twin 20hp motors, there is no need for a European licence, there are no registration requirements and, because it is towable, it is free from port duties.

Running efficiency of this order also brings various electric propulsion systems into play – and interestingly, you can further enhance its eco-credentials with an optional mast and sail. In that guise, the Outcut 29.5 must surely be the greenest convertible hybrid powercat on the market – but of more interest to most users will be the fact that, with a weight of just 1400kg, a draught of only 30cm and the benefit of fully trimmable outboard engines, the Outcut 29.5 is tailor-made for the kinds of coastal shallows that conventional 30ft cruisers can’t access.

As Pietro Carrieri, founder of the project, explains, the Outcut is all about making the freedom of boating easier to enjoy: ‘I dedicated my time to the Outcut 29.5 project with the vision of a new nautical concept that extends beyond the boundaries and stereotypes of traditional pleasure boats. I love the thought of awaking on the Côte d’Azur and dining in Croatia with my family, without a crew, without a nautical licence and without port obligations. This is my image of freedom.’

And Rocco Carrieri, the boat’s designer, is even more excited about his work: ‘We have miniaturised a 14m cruiser, maximising efficiency without foregoing performance and comfort. We have freed users from all boundaries. They will now be the ones to develop new and unique user scenarios.’

Summary

This modular 30ft catamaran is very simple to configure and customise. It can carry 10 people, sleep four, run on sail or power, operate inland or at sea, use a closed or open module, be towed behind a car and be berthed at relatively minimal cost. If the price is accessible, the build quality is good and the handling is up to scratch, it will be a powercat that even mainstream boaters will find easy to love.

Specifications