Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina 400 by Sam

Year built	1998
Location of boat	Kentucky Lake, Ky.
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	1998
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	yes
Gear that's been added	Lewmar 40st for furling unit. TV/Vcr, Stereo,inverter,
Structural or complex improvements	Extra soundproofing for engine compartment, extra insulation for cockpit ice box.
The boat's best features	cockpit, interior design, no exterior teak, inmast furling, large winches, wide sidedecks
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	We had a bad batch of varnish on the interior. But Frank Butler had the entire interior refinished to better than new.
Sailing characterisitcs	Easily single hands. Balances wonderfully. Faster than I expected. With the inmast furling and large winches no problem for my 125 lb. wife to single hand the boat.
Motoring characterisitcs	Smooth. Heavy on the wheel durring sharp turns. Easy on the fuel. 5.1kts at 2000 rpm.
Liveability	Owners stateroom is wonderful. Separate shower stall keeps the mess down. Guests love the v-berth suite. Headroom is great. Very bright and airy salon. Storage is great. We haven't used half of it yet.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	Dealer was very poor, but Catalina stepped in and got the work done.
Other comments	We like it better each time we take it out. We love this boat. I couldn't be happier with the design, performance, quality, and most of all, factory support. We have found our dream boat.

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