# Catalina 22 vs. Macgregor 22 (or similar sized boat)



## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

Hello, 
I've been sailing an old Lido 14 (#201!) for many years, and feel that I want to move up to the next level to a larger boat that I can use for overnight trips and sail around in Puget Sound with rather than smaller lakes. 
I've been researching this on the internet and looking at used boat sites and pretty much narrowed my search something around 22 feet (but not bigger) like a Macgregor 22 or Catalina 22. 
I've looked at a Macgregor 24, but felt it was just a bit bigger than I wanted, and I've recently looked at a Catalina 22 which I really liked - photos here: Catalina 22

The size looks about right for what I want, and it has a trailer and motor with it also as well as the swing keel for easier launching. I plan on parking it in my backyard since I don't want to pay moorage fees. I've been in contact with the owner of a 21 foot Mac which looks very nice too, but the cabin is just a bit smaller than what I want.

Ok, this leads to my big concern. I have a 98 Ford Ranger with a 3.0 liter V6 Automatic and 2WD. Would there be much problem towing a Catalina 22 with this rig? I live only 2.2 miles from the boat launch, so it will be a short distance to tow. I'll be meeting the owner in a couple weeks to try pulling it out of the water with my truck to see how that works out. I do have a class II hitch that I installed (the bumper hitch is just too wimpy), so I'm hoping this might work out. Any advice, ideas, comments, or should I stand here and just let everyone point and laugh in my direction? 

Tom


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## SailinJay (Dec 6, 2002)

Figure out how what your maximum towing capacity is. Your owner's manual should indicate this. The Catalina 22 with a swing keel weighs in around 2,500 pounds. With outboard and other gear you could be approaching 3,000 pounds. I've towed this boat with a '94 4Runner, 3.0L, V6, five-speed manual, 4WD, without much problem.


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## julied (Jun 7, 2000)

I pulled my Catalina 22 with an old Tacoma with the small engine. I had no problems


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## BarryL (Aug 21, 2003)

Trailer Sailing,

Hello,

As I wrote on Sailboatowners.com, I had a Catalina 22 in 2003-2004.

The first year I trailer sailed it - trailering, rigging, launching, sailing, recovering, unrigging, and trailering home. To be honest, that was a real pain in the you know what, and took a lot of the fun out of sailing. It took about 1 hour from the time we arrived at the marina until the boat was ready to motor away from the dock. And it took another hour from the time we arrived at the dock until we were leaving the marine.

It is possible to trailer sail a 22' boat, but I don't want to do it. The next year I got a mooring ($110 / year from the town for the permit) and that was MUCH better. Then it took me 5 minutes to row to the boat and another 5 minutes to get underway.

Good luck,
Barry


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## sailaway21 (Sep 4, 2006)

I haul the same size boat with a F150 with same drivetrain as your Ranger-no problem. I did make up a trailer hitch extension which allows me to keep my drives on the hard. Kick the overdrive out and you won't lug or have the tranny hunting.
All things being equal, i wouldn't waste time on the Mac. (do me a favor and don't bring the topic up-just research some past threads with the 'M' word in them-you'll get the idea)





(please, I'm begging you-don't mention the 'M' thing again. just read the threads. I mean, I'll send you money-just don't....)


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## sidiag (Jul 5, 2003)

tomg847 said:


> I have a 98 Ford Ranger with a 3.0 liter V6 Automatic and 2WD. Would there be much problem towing a Catalina 22 with this rig?


I have a 23' AMI 7.0 that I towed 300 miles with a 96 Ranger w/ class IV hitch
- no problems. It would probably be slightly heaver than the 22' CB.
(the AMI 7.0 is for sale if you would be interested - PM me for more info)


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## ambianceack (Aug 27, 2006)

We had a similar situation towing our Catalina 22 on relatively level ground a few miles from the boat ramp using a Ford Ranger 4WD with reese hitch. For us it worked out fine.


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## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

*Towing advice*

Thanks for the comments guys! 
Again it seems that about 8/10 trailer sailors say that a Ranger should do ok with a 22 footer. I think I may be researching this to death, but I just want to make sure I'm doing the right thing. I've been studying this boat upgrade for about 3 months now and trying to find something that would work without being too large, small, heavy or too much of a pain.
Comparing the Catalina and the...uh...one that starts with "M" I'm seeing now that the Cat is a much better boat. I got an email from another guy that told me that the "M" was the sailing equivalent of a Ford Pinto. Hmmm...more to think about.
Basically, this is what I've narrowed my search down to (Uh....please excuse the "M" word in the title, I think I've been learning sine I wrote this up!)
craigslist

I'll search this forum for more comments on the boats that I'm looking at.

Tom


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## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

*4wd*



ambianceack said:


> We had a similar situation towing our Catalina 22 on relatively level ground a few miles from the boat ramp using a Ford Ranger 4WD with reese hitch. For us it worked out fine.


Did you have to use the 4WD to pluck the boat out of the water?

T.


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## T34C (Sep 14, 2006)

I just to have a 22ft trailor sailor a number of years ago that was roughly the same size & weight as the Catalina. I pulled it with a Jeep Wrangler with the smaller 4 cyl. engine. I had pleanty of power to pull though wouldn't recommend long towing. Did use 4wd when coming out of water mostly due to short wheel base. I think you'll be fine.


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## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

Good to know T32C, 
I'll hopefully meet the owner again the week after next and try a "test pull" with my Ranger so I can see how it pulls out of the water (to make sure it will) and so I can see the trailer and the bottom of the boat. I like the top half, but need to see the hull, trailer, and keel before I decide what happens next. 

Another weight question that confuses me about the Catalina 22: 
Looking around the internet and books, I see it listed as 1800 lbs and some other places list it as 2,400 lbs. This boat is a 1971 model and one of the first 1,000 made (serial #880). Are the older ones slightly lighter or is there just a lot of estimates about weight?


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## orthomartin (Oct 21, 2006)

I owned at Catalina 22 and loved it Sailed all over the Great Lakes. I now have a Catalina 387. Do not buy the Macgregor, the Catalina is far better built


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## tommyt (Sep 21, 2002)

T32,

You can call Catalina Yachts at 1-818-884-7700 and they can tell you most anything about the boat when it was built. Date of birth, weight, whatever. Most of the Catalina's also have assocications of owners for them that are also a wealth of information. Just google Catalina 22 and you will find them.

Great boat. Have fun.


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## T34C (Sep 14, 2006)

I'm no Catalina expert, but I think it may have come with a swing keel and a fixed keel option. If so that may explain the variation in the weigts you're seeing.


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## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

*Keel*



T34C said:


> I'm no Catalina expert, but I think it may have come with a swing keel and a fixed keel option. If so that may explain the variation in the weigts you're seeing.


That does make sense. I've only been looking at a swing keel. I don't want a fixed keel since they are heavier, and launching will be more of a pain.
I wonder if the keel types are just sometimes getting crossed when I read the specifications from different sources?


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## tomg847 (Jan 10, 2007)

tommyt said:


> T32,
> 
> You can call Catalina Yachts at 1-818-884-7700 and they can tell you most anything about the boat when it was built. Date of birth, weight, whatever. Most of the Catalina's also have assocications of owners for them that are also a wealth of information. Just google Catalina 22 and you will find them.
> 
> Great boat. Have fun.


Thanks! I've learned a lot more about these things since I found this forum just the other day. I also like the boats with a good following. There are a lot of other boats out there that I can hardly even find a photo of. Those are kind of scary.

Tom


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## CaptKermie (Nov 24, 2006)

tomg847
This is not the place/board to mention the M word as there is much bias against it. For what it is worth they are very popular, very marketable, very versatile, very affordable, very resellable, etc. etc. You shouldn't be too quick to discount them over attitudes here. That said a class two hitch/vehicle is good up to 3500#. I also live and sail the PNW and find that securing a slip for the 4 months sailing season really pays off and provides many more sailing days in a season, something to consider. 
As for 4WD on a pick-up, yes you will need it. I have seen pick-ups spinning their back wheels with an empty trailer let alone a loaded one. When the ramp gets cluttered from high tide & seaweed and then retreats half way down you may find yourself launching through all that mess and that is when things get slippery and 4WD is used. Been there, Seen it many times, I have 4WD and use it.


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

A FWD Mac. Novel.


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## hivuhomes (Oct 22, 2016)

I'm glad I decided to check out this thread. I found three M-word boats that I was interested in but I didn't really like the way they looked & the fact that they didn't have much size or weight at the keel. I finally found a Starwind 223 that I like the looks of & was wondering if this is a good quality boat. Someone on the internet thought it was one of the best out there in this size. Does anyone else have any input on this boat? Thanks.


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## chuck53 (Oct 13, 2009)

Suggestion, this thread is almost 10 years old and doesn't even mention the boat you are interested in. Why not start a new thread asking for opinions on the Starwind 223.


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