Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina Capri-18 by Sean McCutchan

Year built	1986
Location of boat	New Haven, CT
The boat is sailed on	Bays, sounds, or protected salt water
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	priv
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	Yes - This boat has brought me, my wife, and many friends and family great times on Long Island Sound. Used to trailer sail her, but now a mooring makes day sailing or even 2hr sailing much more enjoyable. Very few complaints.
Gear that's been added	Home rigged boom vang. Not much else other than handheld GPS / VHF.
Structural or complex improvements	No.
The boat's best features	This boat has great stability and cockpit roominess for such a small boat. I have the shoal draft keel (no wing). She is light at the helm, and seems to point well.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Some minor gel coat cracking in the cockpit...but you'd have to look close to see it. Don't know if it was the bleech I used to clean her (not recommended by Catalina).
Sailing characterisitcs	As others have mentioned, she could use some device to pull down on the boom and keep the leech straighter. Seems to spill some wind from the main, especially in light winds. She doesn't have a traveler on the main-sheet...I rigged a boom vang myself and it seems to help a bit. Still, this is a small boat and learning to sail on her was great. Now that I'm comfortable at the helm, I've started looking to trim the sails better to eeck out a few tenths of a knot. She seems to be designed for the heavier winds of the California coast.
Motoring characterisitcs	I have the 5hp honda 4 stroke. Its extremely quite and starts every time. Plenty of power to reach hull speed in a head wind. The motor is positioned perfectly and cants forward completely out of the water...so I don't experience the drag that others complain about.
Liveability	Actually haven't slept a single night on her. I full planned on it. I plan on it THIS SUMMER even if my wife says she won't try it. The porta-porti is used often and functions well.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	None.
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any
Other comments	A fabulous starter boat. Easy to sail by myself..once the sails are up anyway. Great for taking friends and family out for the day. 7ft cockpit is never too small. The bow is a great place to nap under sail. Other sailors of bigger boats often look upon her with envy (low cost and nearly the same functionality I guess). My eyes are on the bigger boats that seem to move more effortlessly in light winds...also looking forward to something with a roller furler. But, I'm hard pressed to find another bigger boat that is in as good of condition and selling for a reasonable price.

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