Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina 30 by Al Lewis

Year built	1980
Location of boat	United States
The boat is sailed on	Bays, sounds, or protected salt water
How the boat is used	Multi-week coastal cruising
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	1980
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	Definitely. In the early 80's before all the mylar, kevlar arrived, it was also a decent racer. It is very comfortable, takes the winds well, is a great boat
Gear that's been added	You name it, we added it. Changed the Atomic 4 gas to a Universal Diesel MPX 25; added roller furling; fully-battened main; Cruising spinnaker, re-did all electrical (Catalinas are know for these problems); new radar; gps; changed out the alcohol stove to a stainless propane stove with oven; cocktail table; teak steps on the stern ladder; full cockpit enclosure (open at transom), etc, etc, etc.
Structural or complex improvements	No.
The boat's best features	Size, comfort, dependability.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Electrical--which we replaced.
Sailing characterisitcs	Great sailing.
Motoring characterisitcs	Moves along well. No problem.
Liveability	Very comfortable.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	No problem. Very cooperative. Told me which engine to replace our Atomic 4 with,.
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	All fine.
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