Catalina Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Catalina 25 by John Hancock

Year built	1989
Location of boat	Kerr Lake, NC
The boat is sailed on	Lakes
How the boat is used	Weekends and longer
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	1989
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	You better believe it. Would buy it all over again.
Gear that's been added	Autohelm; Stereo sound system; VHF with remote speakers; ventilation (solar powered); Depth sounder (2- one thru-hull, one in-hull); new rudder; roller furling; adjustable jib sheet cars; hiking stick.
Structural or complex improvements	installed new style rudder. major structural fiberglass repairs after hurricane.
The boat's best features	Ease of singlehandling. It's a real pleasure to sail alone. With proper sail trim there is no weather or lee helm problems. Like the pop-top, but don't use it since I have plenty of headroom in main cabin area.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Origional rudder split at the seam when about one year old. Catalina wanted me to ship old rudder from VA to California so they could see it - GOOD LUCK - $40.00 in shipping charges. Bought bootleg copy from fiberglass shop in FL for 1/2 what factory wanted (it even had the offset like the Catalina one)and have had no forther problem.
Sailing characterisitcs	Excellent handling under sail for a singlehander. No weather or lee helm - almost neutral tiller. Tacks thru 90 degrees easily and accelerates rapidly out of the tack. Tracks well even with a wing keel, and I can outpoint any other 25 on the lake. Best of all is the downwind performance with no accidental jibes in 11 years of every-weekend sailing.
Motoring characterisitcs	Any sailboat under power can only be described as "noisy, smelly and slow". But the boat is as good under power as it is under sail.
Liveability	Would not hesitate for one moment to liveaboard (single), and I will be setting out to travel from VA to FL on the Intercoastal next Spring. Will be living aboard for six months or so.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	Terrible !!! Forget dealing with Frank Butler. Once he sells a boat he is done with it.
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	My dealer made the purchase experience a real pleasure. Best commissioning job that I have ever experienced. Boat was delivered, prepped, rigged and in my slip with sails bent and fuel and water in the tanks.
Other comments	One of the best values for the dollar. It's a Chevy (or Ford) of the sailing world, but with a little imagination and hard work it will become a personalized Caddy.

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