Balance 580

With Deep Daggerboards, this Cat is Playing the Performance Card

In St. Francis, South Africa, we got the chance to check out the brand new Balance 580. With her relatively short nacelle and inverted, “broken” angle bows, this model incorporates all the brand’s visual codes but with, of course, much more comfort on deck and inside compared to the 502.

Balance 580

Published 24/03/2025

By Gwen Dorning

Issue: 200

Published: mar. / may 2025

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Construction is in a silica and carbon fiber combo in the areas subject to heavy loads. The lamination is done by hand and under vacuum with a foam core and epoxy resin. The shipyard offers a full carbon version called the Carbon XP. With daggerboards that dive to a lowered depth of over 10 feet below the surface, the 580 guarantees great performance: under certain conditions, the polars promise she will sail faster than the wind - and even maintain a constant speed of 19 knots in optimal conditions.

The Balance 580 is available in 3, 4 or 5 cabin versions.

Length overall: 58’4” (17.78 m)
Waterline length: 58’4” (17.78 m)
Beam: 28’3” (8.6 m)
Draft: 5’5”/11’ (1.65/3.35 m)
Air draft: 90’ (27.43 m)e
Light displacement: 36,750 lbs (16.67 t)
Mainsail: 1,507 sq ft (140.90 m²)
Self-tacking jib: 855 sq ft (79.5 m²)
Gennaker: 1,353 sq ft (125.7 m²)
Motors: 2 x 57 HP
Fuel: 264 US gal (1,000 l)
Water: 158 US gal (600 l)

www.balancecatamarans.com

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