Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina 270 by Alan Weiland

Year built	1994
Location of boat	Sandusky, Ohio
The boat is sailed on	The Great Lakes
How the boat is used	Day sailing
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	1995
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	Yes, it has given my family alot of memmories. Dependible and safe, it rises to the challenge.
Gear that's been added	Martech feathering prop, Spinacker system, Mylar sails, 2 clutches port and starboard, line organizers, Bottom Siders cushions, Ratheon wind gage, Life line cushions, quick nut at wheel w/ holder on rail, rail mounted propane grill, Screen haych cover, stainless plate at anchor rollers, VC 17 bottom paint, Lazy jack system, ceiling grab bar over galley w/ bottle and towel holders, permanent snack table at compression post, Stero disc w/ cock pit speakers, VHF, 12 volt plugs, Safety sling, Anchor shade, canvas anchor cover, quick release pins at stairs to ease engine maintenance, back stay adjuster, and TLC.
Structural or complex improvements	I purchased Blink new and the furler foil was to long pushing the mast aft some 5". It may still be back to far but how does one know? The rudder stock and keel mounting is impressive no blisters, cracks or chipping. The bottom is very sound. May change the cutlass bearing this year, about 350 hours on it. I think the feathering prop work the cutlass bearing harder than the fixed prop. The fixed prop seemed to run smoother.
The boat's best features	Easy to handle the helm and rigging not only because of her size but because she is well ballanced especially in heavy air. Easy maintenance exterior, interior, engine powerful quiet and trouble free, bottom problem free. Looks good for a small boat it has that larger boat look w/ double spreaders and life lines. These two features add alot to safety and strength. Free walk arround deck area w/the shrouds on the coach roof. And last but not least the walk thru transom, this make anchoring alot of fun and also allows water to escape the cockpit quickly. Blink also sleeps a couple comfortably w/all the ammenities.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Port and starboard port hole windows leak, changed gaskets but they still drip. Speed gage on/off scince new, now off all the time. Gel coat voids still showing up, Frank Butler sent me a color match repair kit and - no problems.Prop walk cured w/ feathering prop plus reverses much better.
Sailing characterisitcs	I purchased BLINK at Atwood Lake Boats in Delroy, Ohio. Small inland lake/pond. 4 years of tacking there and I moved to Lake Erie. Sandusky Harbor has been our port for the past 4 years. I was scheptical of the 270 on Erie to be truthful. It sails the bay beautifully 6.5 - 7.0 Knotts. Good weather helm she rounds into the wind when you day dream. Lock in the helm and stear w/the gib , let it out bring it in. On a beam it sails smooth. Points well up wind, Blinks a wing. A fin probably sails much closer but w/ 3.6 depth I would'nt switch. Two handed and a beautiful day on the bay. A couple of rum drinks and my cousin a novice. We got blind sided by a 60 mph wind shear followed by rain, hail and constant lightening. Blink leaned over and water rolled into the cock pit I let the boom out released the main halyard rolled in the head sail and Blink rounded into the winds and stablized. We started the engine tied the sails down, secured ourselves w/safety gear grabbed a beer and road it out for an hour. Sun came out and it left us wondering if that really happened.At Sandusky Bay 2 years later got blind sided by wind shear, again, anchored in 4.5' of water. Bring in the anchor and get off the shore. A fire drill for securing sails. The waves rose to 6' instantly the wind, rain & hail was blinding. Motoring full throttle nose to the wind and inching for deeper water. We went up and down the choppy waves so hard my wife was air born in sole and I thought we hit bottom. Sun came out and left us thanking God for our lives. Those were some tuff tests but I am more confident about the 270 than ever. Its a tuff boat and looks good too. Oh yeah I had her all shiney anchored at Put in Bay one week end the next week her picture was on the stores posters announcing that week ends events.
Motoring characterisitcs	More power than You need. Engine is smooth and pretty quiet. Fuel efficiency seems good. Never has let me down not even any problems w/ the stuffing box. I think some people over tighten the stuffing box and then blame it on the stuffing box. Prop walk was my only real concern but the feathering prop took care of that.
Liveability	Two people great for 3-4 days. Not smelly, stays dry. Cockpit give plenty of room to relax in and serve our guests. We like to sit in the cockpit with our friends, drink rum drinks and watch Captain Ron w/the TV on the companion way cover.Whoo doggy Jed Clampit doesnt get much better than that.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	Very good. I've had Frank Butler himself answer the phone and my questions. Sent me my matching gel coat no charge on time. Excellent! If you will allow me to change my mind. And that is about all the probems I've had. Oh yeah, at pull out one year the yard man left my batteries on the teak sole and the acid burnded thru them. Catalina had them in stock and they fit. Thank you very much!
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	Good.
Other comments	I have sailed the Catalina 22, 27, 270, 28, 30, 320 and 42. I havent met a Catalina yet that I didnt like. I crewed a 320 in some of the Lake Erie regattas and it gained respect in short ammount of time. The 320 is on my mind for BLINK,s replacement. Shhhhh dont let her hear us. But I have to try the 34 Mark 111 first. One last thing THANK YOU Frank Butler for making this possible. From the first day I went out on my friends 22 I've been a sailor.

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