Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina Capri-16 by Martin Wallace

Year built	1992
Location of boat	Lake Almanor, California
The boat is sailed on	Lakes
How the boat is used	Weekends and longer
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	2004
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	YES! Here's the background and overall story: I recently decided to get back into sailing after a long absence, and my wife had enthusiastically agreed to give it a try. In college I had owned a wonderful little AMF Puffer, a Hobie 14, and I had spent more time windsurfing than attending class (I have the transcripts to prove it); I also had the good fortune to spend some time on a friend's Cal 24 and a few other boats in the 30-40' range. However, I hadn't been on a sailboat in about 15 years.We have teachers' salaries - and thus substantial budgetary restrictions - and we're at least a 4 hour drive from the ocean, so trailersailing was our only reasonable option. Another limitation was the 2000 pound towing capacity of our Subaru Outback, since we weren't in a position to buy a larger vehicle for towing. We also wanted a "real" sailboat - something with a rudimentary cabin, a weighted keel, and room for 3-4 adults to daysail. These parameters were very restrictive, but we found the perfect boat for us: a 1992 Catalina Capri 16 (now produced as the "Catalina 16"). Only about 200 of these boats have been made since their introduction in 1987, but for us this is a perfectly wonderful little sailboat! With the (Trail-rite) trailer and a minimum of gear on board, we're towing about 1900-2000 pounds. The cabin doesn't offer much headroom, but we can comfortably sleep in the quarter berths and store a weekend's worth of food, clothing, and supplies in the front of the cabin. The cabin is well thought out, with locations for a porta-potti and ice chest designed in. The cockpit is over 7 feet long, so daysailing with another couple is very comfortable. The 400 pound keel and nearly 7 foot beam makes her feel very solid, and she's surprisingly fast for her size. We were able to buy the boat (in nearly-new condition), trailer, plus an outboard engine, register the boat and trailer (including taxes), and upgrade a few items for about $5,500. There are, of course, items that we'd like to add (additional sails, roller furling, some instruments, etc.), but we're very happy with our first "real" sailboat as is, and we didn't stray too much from our initial budget of about $5,000.
Gear that's been added	upgraded outboard engine from 2-cycle with NO neutral or reverse to "real" 4-stroke outboard
Structural or complex improvements	(none)
The boat's best features	With the (Trail-rite) trailer and a minimum of gear on board, we're towing about 1900-2000 pounds. The cabin doesn't offer much headroom, but we can comfortably sleep in the quarter berths and store a weekend's worth of food, clothing, and supplies in the front of the cabin. The cabin is well thought out, with locations for a porta-potti and ice chest designed in. The cockpit is over 7 feet long, so daysailing with another couple is very comfortable. The 400 pound keel and nearly 7 foot beam makes her feel very solid, and she's surprisingly fast for her size. We were able to buy the boat (in nearly-new condition), trailer, plus an outboard engine, register the boat and trailer (including taxes), and upgrade a few items for about $5,500. There are, of course, items that we'd like to add (additional sails, roller furling, some instruments, etc.), but we're very happy with our first "real" sailboat as is, and we didn't stray too much from our initial budget of about $5,000.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	water tends to pool up in the cockpit storage locker
Sailing characterisitcs	Wonderful! I don't notice the substantial weather helm sometimes mentioned, and she's quite quick for her size. With a reefed main she handles 20 knot winds very well.
Motoring characterisitcs	fine as long as you don't send someone heavy up to take down the jib (with only one, lighter person in the cockpit)
Liveability	The cabin doesn't offer much headroom, but we can comfortably sleep in the quarter berths and store a weekend's worth of food, clothing, and supplies in the front of the cabin. The cabin is well thought out, with locations for a porta-potti and ice chest designed in. The cockpit is over 7 feet long, so daysailing with another couple is very comfortable.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	Good.
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any
Other comments	I'm sure you're going to hear from 100s (1,000s?) of boat owners suggesting trailerable sailboats that you SHOULD have listed in the August 2004 issue, but I'll weigh in with my vote nonetheless.I recently decided to get back into sailing after a long absence, and my wife had enthusiastically agreed to give it a try. In college I had owned a wonderful little AMF Puffer, a Hobie 14, and I had spent more time windsurfing than attending class (I have the transcripts to prove it); I also had the good fortune to spend some time on a friend's Cal 24 and a few other boats in the 30-40' range. However, I hadn't been on a sailboat in about 15 years.We have teachers' salaries - and thus substantial budgetary restrictions - and we're at least a 4 hour drive from the ocean, so trailersailing was our only reasonable option. Another limitation was the 2000 pound towing capacity of our Subaru Outback, since we weren't in a position to buy a larger vehicle for towing. We also wanted a "real" sailboat - something with a rudimentary cabin, a weighted keel, and room for 3-4 adults to daysail. These parameters were very restrictive, but we found the perfect boat for us: a 1992 Catalina Capri 16 (now produced as the "Catalina 16"). Only about 200 of these boats have been made since their introduction in 1987, but for us this is a perfectly wonderful little sailboat! With the (Trail-rite) trailer and a minimum of gear on board, we're towing about 1900-2000 pounds. The cabin doesn't offer much headroom, but we can comfortably sleep in the quarter berths and store a weekend's worth of food, clothing, and supplies in the front of the cabin. The cabin is well thought out, with locations for a porta-potti and ice chest designed in. The cockpit is over 7 feet long, so daysailing with another couple is very comfortable. The 400 pound keel and nearly 7 foot beam makes her feel very solid, and she's surprisingly fast for her size. We were able to buy the boat (in nearly-new condition), trailer, plus an outboard engine, register the boat and trailer (including taxes), and upgrade a few items for about $5,500. There are, of course, items that we'd like to add (additional sails, roller furling, some instruments, etc.), but we're very happy with our first "real" sailboat as is, and we didn't stray too much from our initial budget of about $5,000.

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