Design and Construction
At just over 32 feet overall, the Comanche has a 28-foot-9-inch waterline, a 13-foot-10-inch beam, and a displacement of around 5,500 pounds. She’s narrow by modern catamaran standards, with very raked bows, a faceted coachroof, and a low, sleek profile. The result is a silhouette that now looks dated, although the structure itself was judged every bit as robust as that of the Iroquois from which she developed.
The hulls are solid fiberglass, with lead ballast and a multihull keel arrangement. Sailcraft supplied fixed keels—described by the builder as stub keels—as standard, freeing up living space inside the hulls. A few boats left the mold with centreboards, while the options list included daggerboards that gave 6 feet of draft when lowered.
Strong skegs protect the rudders and allow an owner to take the boat ashore without anxiety. Four watertight compartments provide passive safety; Multihulls World linked this feature directly to the boat’s seaworthiness for her length.
Rig, Performance, and Handling
The Comanche carries 445 square feet of sail on a masthead-sloop rig. The arrangement is essentially monohull-like, with a wide coachroof and the mast stepped well aft; the main distinction is an anti-capsize addition at the masthead.
She carries a reasonable amount of sail for her length and feels lively at the helm, particularly with the wind freed. The standard stub keels draw only 3 feet 2 inches, and the rudders sit behind protective skegs. Together, those features make her undemanding in close quarters and easy to beach. Despite her modest overall length, she’s well suited to long-distance cruising and considered pretty seaworthy for her size.
Accommodations
The interior was laid out for a single-hander or couple spending extended periods aboard. Each hull contains a single cabin and a nominally double cabin aft, with 6-foot-6-inch headroom in the hull cabins. A large heads occupies the starboard hull, while the galley is in the port hull.
The bridgedeck contains a spacious saloon and large chart table, forming the boat’s social and navigational center. Headroom here drops to 5 feet 10 inches. Sailcraft expressly chose the fixed keels to increase interior volume.
A motor-sailer variant took the accommodation further, adding a raised deck, an interior helm station, and twin 15-horsepower diesel engines.
Propulsion and Used-Boat Variations
Boats on the used market reflect two principal propulsion arrangements: a standard single outboard or twin inboard engines. There’s also the rare motor-sailer, with twin diesels and inside steering.
Underwater configurations vary as well. Most boats have the standard fixed stub keels, but a few were built with centreboards, and daggerboards were offered as an option. Buyers should therefore confirm the configuration of each hull rather than assuming that all Comanche 32s are alike.
The boat’s dated appearance is cosmetic rather than functional. Its robust hull and watertight subdivisions suggest a design that tolerates ownership well.
The Verdict
The Comanche 32 is a thoughtfully developed cruising catamaran that exchanged the Iroquois’s minimalism for genuine load capacity and livable interior volume without giving up the older boat’s toughness. She’s a sailor’s cat: lively with the wind freed, safe by subdivision, and easy to beach. She’s best suited to a couple or single-hander who values seaworthiness and simplicity more than modern styling.
Pros
- Robust, solid-fiberglass construction
- Four watertight compartments provide passive safety
- Shoal draft and skeg-protected rudders make beaching and close-quarters handling stress-free
- Spacious bridgedeck saloon and full headroom in the hull cabins suit long-term living aboard
- Lively performance with the wind freed
- Familiar, monohull-style rig
Cons
- Dated silhouette, with a faceted coachroof and heavily raked bows
- Narrow beam by modern catamaran standards limits bridgedeck living width
- Keel, centreboard, and daggerboard configurations vary among hulls, complicating comparison shopping
