Design and Construction
The Comanche 32 is a solid-fiberglass catamaran with lead ballast and a multihull keel arrangement, delivered as standard with fixed keels — described by Sailcraft as stub keels — to free up living space inside the hulls, though a few examples left the mold with centreboards and the option book also listed daggerboards giving 6 feet of draft when lowered. Her rudders ride behind strong skegs that let an owner take her ashore without anxiety anchor. Four watertight compartments underpin the hull's passive safety, a feature Multihulls World tied directly to her seaworthiness for a boat of her length. Visually she reads as a product of her time: a faceted coachroof, very raked bows, and a low, sleek profile with a narrow beam by modern cat standards give her a dated silhouette, yet the structure itself was judged just as robust as the Iroquois she grew from.
Rig and Handling
The rig is essentially monohull-like, with a wide coachroof and an aft-set mast, distinguished only by an anti-capsize addition at the masthead. She carries a reasonable amount of sail for her length and feels lively on the helm, particularly with the wind freed. That liveliness, paired with the shoal 3-foot-2-inch draft of the standard keels and the skeg-protected rudders, makes her an undemanding boat to handle in close quarters and an easy one to beach. Despite her short overall length she is well suited to long-distance cruising and is pretty seaworthy for her size.
Accommodations
Below, the Comanche 32 was laid out for the single-hander or a couple spending long stretches aboard. Each hull holds a single cabin plus a nominally double cabin aft, with 6-foot-6-inch headroom in the hull cabins. The starboard hull carries a large heads, the port hull a galley. Across the bridgedeck — where headroom drops to 5-foot-10-inch — sits a spacious saloon and a large chart table, the social and navigational heart of the boat. The fixed keels' purpose was expressly to gain that interior volume, and the motor-sailer variant pushed accommodation further with a raised deck, an interior helm station, and twin 15-horsepower diesels.
Refits and Ownership
Owners shopping the used fleet will encounter two propulsion philosophies: standard single outboard or twin inboard engines, plus the rare motor-sailer with twin diesels and inside steering. The daggerboard option and the few centreboard builds mean keel configuration varies hull to hull, a point worth confirming before purchase. The dated silhouette is cosmetic rather than functional, and the robust hull and watertight subdivisions suggest a boat that tolerates ownership well.
The Verdict
The Comanche 32 is a thoughtfully evolved cruising cat that traded the Iroquois' minimalism for real load capacity and livable volume without losing the older boat's toughness. She is a sailor's cat — lively off the wind, safe by subdivision, and easy to beach — best matched to a couple or single-hander who value seaworthiness and simplicity over gloss.
Pros
- Robust solid-fiberglass construction with four watertight compartments for passive safety
- Shoal draft and skeg-protected rudders make beaching and close-quarters handling stress-free
- Spacious bridgedeck saloon and full headroom in hull cabins suit long-term liveaboard use
- Lively performance with the wind free on a familiar monohull-style rig
Cons
- Dated silhouette with faceted coachroof and heavily raked bows
- Narrow beam by modern catamaran standards limits bridgedeck living width
- Keel/centreboard/daggerboard configuration varies by hull, complicating comparison shopping
