hh catamarans oc50

Yachting World

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Best bluewater multihulls: HH OC50

• Toby Hodges
• November 16, 2021

HH Catamarans are known for their lightweight flyers, but the new OC50 is designed for bluewater cruising couples, Toby Hodges and François Tregouet report

The Xiamen-built HH range of catamarans found popularity for its high-performance, all-carbon, hull-flying designs such as the HH66 and HH55 . But the HH OC50 is designed as a more affordable cruising alternative, and one that targets ocean sailing. Hence it earns its place in our bluewater multihull listing .

The Morelli and Melvin-designed HH OC50 is still stiffened and strengthened by carbon, but built in vinylester composites with a gelcoat finish. This adds an additional 300kg or so over a full carbon HH50, but cost savings are in the region of $400,000.

Solid glassfibre fixed keels with winglets are used instead of daggerboards, which are independent of the hulls and are designed to take the weight of the boat.

HH describe the new Ocean Series as designed with cruising couples firmly in mind. The OC50 comes with a self-tacking staysail and genoa for ease of sail handling. Sail controls are led to a single raised helm station, which has a fixed bimini and canopies for full enclosure.

Practical features for bluewater cruising include plentiful deck stowage, generous tankage, removable transom washboards and tech spaces in the forward cabins.

There is a generous forward-facing navstation and a U-shaped galley with deep drawer fridges and freezers. 

HH Catamarans has also recently unveiled a new OC44 model.

OC50 prices

Ex-VAT US$1.3m

See our full list of the best bluewater mutlihulls

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Description

E-Glass and Fixed Keels The main difference is in how she is built. HH use e-glass on this boat with carbon reinforcements in high load areas. The daggerboards have been switched for winged fixed keels and instead of a carbon composite mast, boom and rigging, she has alloy (there is an option to go carbon). The hull shape is the same, with an ample interior, and luxurious fittings.

This keeps the cost down and makes her more robust: she’s been designed with circumnavigating couples in mind who are looking for a boat that is simpler to sail short-handed and will take a knock or two. Instead of the twin helms on the HH50, the OC50 has a single helm station with all of the lines running back. This boat sits between the Kinetic KC54 and 50 foot cruising catamarans like the FP Saba 50

Many thanks to Multicats International, the European Agents for HH, and of course the owners of Seabbatical for showing us around the #1 hull and taking us out on a test sail.

A Performance Boat We have included this catamaran in our Performance Catamarans section, but bear in mind that HH also make a more highly tuned version. But this is still a fast boat with a powerful sail plan and a high end finish. If you dream of owning an HH catamaran but can’t stretch your budget to their 66 footer, now you have an option.

The SA/D ratio doesn´t hit the levels of a Looping 50 , (another fixed keel performance catamran) but it´s above average.

You can´t really call her a volume production boat. HH will be making around 4 of them a year. In terms of performance, we’d say she sits somewhere between an Outremer and a Nautitech. Read our Outremer 45 review if you are interested in boats in that category, but bear in mind the 51 is closer comparison.

• She’s fast and comfortable. Those Morrelli & Melvin shaped hulls slip cleanly through the water and a lot of work has gone into distributing the weight in the optimum way. You can expect to be just below true wind speeds with the right sails up.
• The price of an OC50 will be pitched around the same level as a Outremer 51 or a Catana 53. For the same money, you´ll get a high performance machine with a far superior level of finish. This is a luxury performance cat
• The OC50 is a semi-custom boat. You can add or take away as much carbon as you like to hit your performance/cost sweet spot
• This is a simpler boat for a couple to sail than the HH50. There are no daggerboards to worry about (just keels with winglets) and a single helm station. I wouldn’t call the OC50 a simple yacht to sail, but she’s been designed for a couple to handle. With a bit of practice.
• The finish of this boat and the attention to details hit a very high level. Examples include davits that are custom built to your tender
• I prefer the profile of the single helm station to the twin helms on the HH50. This is a pretty boat.
• With fixed keels instead of daggerboards, you are going to lose some performance upwind, especially in lighter winds. Having said that, those winglets on the keels help the boat to point upwind pretty well, and when the wind picks up you won´t notice much difference.
• With the use of e-glass to keep the cost down, this boat is heavier than a HH50 and that will affect her performance. I wouldn’t call this a slow boat though. We are talking relative, right?
• I thought the saloon could do with more ventilation for a boat in this price point. The forward starboard window is pretty small, for example. I am guessing you can customise this.
• The huge aft windows in the cabins make for a spectacular view, but I’d want more privacy personally. Having said that, the owners were still waiting for their aft blinds. I´d worry about big waves smacking into all of that glass on an ocean crossing, but there are washboards that fit into the top of the transom steps.
• With that semi-raised helm, the boom is pretty high. That means the centre of effort of the mainsail is higher than other performance cats and it´s more difficult to get to your mainsail. We are not in flybridge boom height territory though.
• You access the helm via the side deck which could leave you exposed in heavy weather. You can nip up from the starboard daybed in really rough weather if you don’t mind a bit of dirt on those fancy leather cushions.

With a few trade offs here and there that have had minimal impact on performance and a decent impact on ease of sailing, they have developed a catamaran that offers good performance and high levels of comfort without sailing to the extremes.

The  E-glass in the hull, deck, superstructure and interior paneling, saves cost compared with carbon. In highly loaded areas such as the cross beams, carbon is used to ensure a tough, rigid boat. The standard mast is aluminium and not carbon (although you can opt for the lighter material, but there is an associated cost of course).

According to the specs, the OC50 is around 1 tonne heavier than the HH50, but this difference can be reduced if you go for more carbon. The owners of Seabbatical assured me that he´d minimised the excess weight to around 500 kg with their carbon options.

Seat Up for Short-Handed Sailing All the reefing lines and sheets come back to two electric winches at the single helm, and your furling lines run back down the port side. You can lead the furling line back to the starboard cockpit winch under the helm station if you like, or just run it onto the cockpit winch to port.

Other sail options include a fractional reacher that is flown off the bowsprit, plus an spinnaker and storm jib (both optional).

The owner of the #1 hull has invested in a parasailor for downwind sailing. I´d love to see this up – this sail can be kept up from 4.5 kts – 20 kts apparent and 70 – 180 AWA. That should push Seabbatical along at a rate of knots!

At 13.2 tonnes lightships, the OC50 gets going quickly and cuts nicely through the water with those axe bows.

Unfortunately during our test sail we had very little wind, but the OC50 will approach true wind speeds in a breeze.

Living Space & Finish

This is where the OC50 puts some clear blue water between herself and the competition. The quality of the furnishings is superior to comparable cats in the same price range – they have tried to match the level of finish that you see in the HH line and in the main they have succeeded. She feels like a very spacious 50 footer with the sliding doors between the aft cockpit and the saloon open.

Forward amidships is another seating area with fridge and freezer drawers to starboard. And to port is a great looking corner navigation station with good visibility.

Happy Guests In the starboard hull, the 2 cabins have been cleverly split with their own steps down from the saloon. Each cabin has their own head and a shared “jack and jill” shower in between. It’s a clever use of the space and it feels big.

Storage Space

The 2 forepeaks in the boat give you lots of storage. These are customisable: on Seabbatical the owner has installed a dive compressor and scuba tank rack in one and left the other for sail storage.

How much does an HH OC50 cost? What’s the list price? This is heavily dependant on the options you go for and how much carbon you want on the boat. These are semi-custom catamarans, but to give you an idea, HH are pitching the OC50 at around the Outremer 51 or Catana 53 price range. So let’s say around €1.3 million would get you a pretty fantastic machine. The cost is considerably lower than an HH50.

Why No Daggerboards? I thought this was a Performance Cat? HH have made the decision to simplify the systems on the OC50 to make it easier for a couple to sail the boat over long distances. Fixed keels are less complex than boards and arguably safer on long cruises (in the event of a grounding for example). The winglets on the keels help the OC50 to point respectably into the wind. Studies have shown that the performance difference drops away when the wind picks up in any case: you will notice the biggest difference going upwind in light airs. But we would still call the OC50 a performance boat based on her Sail Area to Displacement ratios.

The HH50 is a clever design and I would think that the traditional performance cruising catamaran manufacturers are looking over their shoulder at this one. The single helm station works well for short handed sailors and arguably she looks sleeker than the HH50 from some angles.

She has all the looks of a Morrelli and Melvin speed cat, with the kind of finish you would expect from HH at a comparable price to the competition: a sturdy, blue-water, luxury semi-custom cruiser with a lower cost and build time.

Next up for HH? The OC56 – a bigger boat with a flybridge.

Technical Specification

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HH OC50 Ocean Cruising Catamaran

Drawing inspiration from the original HH Catamaran line, The Ocean Cruising delivers safe, blue-water capable, luxury cruising catamarans at a fraction of the cost and build time. The shared pedigree is evident: Morrelli & Melvin design and engineering, state-of-the-art boat building processes, and a careful eye for aesthetics and finish quality endure. Combining the strengths of the HH brand with new production efficiencies and lower-cost materials, the Ocean Series makes the dream of sailing the world’s oceans on a fast, beautiful cruising catamaran more attainable than ever.

The Ocean Series is designed to be ocean ready, strong yet graceful, and prepared to take you to the remote corners of the globe in comfort and ease.

The first of the series, the OC50, was designed with the cruising couple in mind. A safe, stable platform with easy-to-manage sail handling and straightforward systems. Don’t be fooled however, the OC50 is anything but ordinary. The Ocean Series was created to emphasize the pure joy of sailing – a yacht capable of cruising around the world in style through exceptional design, intuitive systems, envy-inducing aesthetics, spacious and comfortable living spaces, and safe, responsive sailing characteristics.

How does The Ocean Series differ from the original HH Catamarans? The biggest difference is in the construction materials. By using e-glass we have shifted the design focus towards comfortable and safe blue-water cruising and away from  pure speed, and in the process, brought the cost down considerably. The daggerboards have been exchanged for winged fixed keels in the hulls and the carbon composite mast, boom and rigging has been replaced with alloy.

The hull design remains the same, with generous interior spaces, ultra-durable finish, and a level of luxury found only aboard an HH Catamaran. Every line, curve and surface has been carefully considered and meticulously reworked to achieve the level of beauty and perfection that has become the hallmark of HH.

Just Catamarans is an exclusive   HH Catamarans   dealer.  Contact Just Catamarans for pricing and the newest slot dates.

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HH50-OC (Ocean Cruiser) Catamaran

What sets the Ocean Series apart

Far from ordinary, the ocean series was created to emphasise the pure joy of sailing on a yacht capable of cruising around the world in style. Exceptional design, intuitive systems, envy inducing aesthetics, spacious and comfortable living spaces and safe, responsive sailing characteristics set the OC50 apart.

Carbon Backbone

Hull design remain the same, as do the generous interior spaces, ultra durable finish and a level of luxury found only aboard an HH Catamaran. The carbon skeleton is complimented by e-glass and expoxy construction, a single helm and mini-keels with winglets round out the distinct features of the OC50. The single helm station on the OC50 has been designed for easy single handed sailing.

Saloon and Cockpit

Gelcoat and infused vinylester e-glass construction. All the parts are built in the same high quality tooling is our HH50 giving a perfect finish right out of the mold, that requires no fairing. Extra durable materials are used throughout that are designed to sustain heavy use and maintain a high quality finish.

• LOA 51.80ft/15.79m
• Draft 1.56m
• Displacement 13187kg
• Mast Length 21.88m
• Fuel 2 x 300L
• Engines 2 x Yanmar 3JH40

Boat Description

Exceptional design, intuitive systems, envy inducing aesthetics, spacious and comfortable living spaces and safe, responsive sailing characteristics set the OC50 apart.

OC50 Layout

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Catamaran sailing yacht oc50 ocean cruising expedition 3-cabin.

Characteristics

15.79 m (51'09" )

7.44 m (24'04" )

1.56 m (5'01" )

13.15 t, 17 t (14.5 us ton, 18.74 us ton)

80 ch (80 hp)

Description

Meet this supplier at the following exhibition(s):

3-07 Apr 2024 La Grande Motte (France) Hall Vide - Stand Vide

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