Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina 27 by Patty Johnson

Year built	1974
Location of boat	Fairhope, Alabama
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	solo
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	1998
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	YES! I love my sailboat!
Gear that's been added	.
Structural or complex improvements
The boat's best features	It's not too big for me to sail solo. I also like having an inboard engine.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Knot meter is broken. Head has been fixed to not work due to regulations. Need a holding tank.
Sailing characterisitcs	Smooth sailing, even in big gusts.
Motoring characterisitcs	I have an inboard, so, I discovered early on, that if you don't tend the tiller carefully, you can do a 360 in a matter of seconds! Otherwise, it's great.
Liveability	Not much V-Berth room. I'm a small woman, but I have to sleep in the salon and it's not that comfortable. I'm thinking about extending the salon to make a bigger berth between the port and starboard. Love my alcohol stove. Wish my ice box was larger for extended trips. Also would like windows that open. It gets really hot in the summer, especially if it's raining and you can't leave the companionway open.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any
Other comments