# Catalina 30



## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

My wife and I are looking at a 1988 Catalina 30 and I was wondering how satisfied or dissatisfied current or previous owners have been. We will mainly use it for weekends in Eastern NC. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.


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## camaraderie (May 22, 2002)

Excellent family cruising boat for the Pamlico. Probably the most popular 30' boat ever and with good reason. Post '86 boats do not have the plywood in the bilge beneath the keel boats problem that pre-86 boats do. Most of the pre-86 have probably been fixed now, but it is worth knowing if you loo at one. Good luck!


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## wchevron (Oct 19, 2007)

rd
this is my first season with my '78 cat 30. the family loves it. this year mostly day sails with a few overnights. plenty of room for a family of four overnight. it's my first boat so i don't have anything to compare it to but it has everything i wanted. i would recommend it. there is a great cat 30 forum at Catalina30 : Catalina 30 Owners Online List. you can post questions there.


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## tommyt (Sep 21, 2002)

Never owned a 30 but have sailed on lots of them. Great family boat and perfect for a couple. They made over 10,000 of them so there must be something good there.


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

There's plenty good there. I've been on a couple and raced against several. Apart from my conviction that they get a little squirrelly past 25 knots and in certain downwind situations, they are a great daysailer/short-haul coastal cruiser that will perform pretty well in light-air conditions.

The only design point I dislike is the HUGE companionway...I keep thinking of pooping waves going below via that gap, but if you are having pooping waves in a Catalina 30, you probably should head in.


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## djodenda (Mar 4, 2006)

I've owned my 1984 Catalina 30 for almost three years now.

She's a great boat, and perfect for what I use her for, which is daysails, and cruising with my family of four.

Since you are looking at a 1988, you'll have the T-shaped cockpit, which accommodates the wheel better.

I've never seen a 30 foot boat with as much space inside. She sails well. Not a demon to windward, but still good performance.

There's a lot of teasing on this site about Catalinas in general, but it's mostly just good-natured ribbing.

Catalinas weren't designed to sail around the world, but are great for local cruising and daysails.

I'm very glad I bought mine.

There's a good reason that there were over 6000 of them made.

David


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## speciald (Mar 27, 2007)

I had one for three years in the late 80's. Large boat for its length but not the fastest boat in the sea. I hated the curtain track in the front cabin as it was just the wrong height to take the skin off my bald head as I went into the cabin. Some early models had trouble with the cabin top flexing about the base of the mast. This was later fixed by reinforcing the cabin top. We had Gauhauer blocks; every sheave deteriorated in the sun and all the blocks were replaced. The boat is still sailing in Florida 20 years later.


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## Gryzio (Dec 13, 2007)

*Pretty Boats*

I not sure the "American Sailboat Hall of Fame" really means much. But, for what it worth, the Catalina 30 is in it.
sailboathalloffame.com
Click "Inductees" up top!! The lower link did not work for me. Then click "Catalina 30".
Everyone has their opinion, but, I have always liked Catalina Sailboats. They are pretty and for a first time boat and just having fun, most are a good deal for the money because, as mentioned, they are everywhere and still being made (in a round about way)! This link looks wierd, not sure why, but, it goto Catalina Yachts.
Loading...
I am looking at Catalina 22 for a play/experimental boat on a river. Which is a long story for here. So, I not go there.


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## primerate84 (Jun 14, 2006)

I bought mine three years ago and really enjoy it. I sail on Lake Erie and have been out in some pretty bad seas and it has performed well. Mine is a 1983, but was well taken care of. Relatively easy to maintain also.


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## robfinora (Apr 25, 2001)

Catalina 30 is a great boat - tremendous value for the money. I would recommend joining the C-30 group on Yahoo and connect with owners of the same year / model if you want to learn specifics around what to look out for or negotiate on your purchase. I have a '78 Catalina and its a great all-round boat!


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## NOLAsailing (Sep 10, 2006)

I like them. One thing to look for is the oil pan. The motor sits low right on top of a shallow bilge and a lot of boats have an issue with corrosion on the motors (particularly the oil pan).


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

Thanks for all the info.


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## cabron99 (Jul 29, 2007)

RD... Bought mine 3 months ago. An '87. Couldn't be happier if I tried. Have not been in serious conditions yet, but judging from what I've seen, she will do alright. Pat O


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## denby (Feb 21, 2007)

The 3o' Catalina is a fine boat. A few of my friends have 30' Catalinas from the 1980's and are very good boats.


Just don't tell CD that I said that.  
I'll deny it in a court of law.


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

Thanks to everyone for all your input. We've reached a price and are getting the boat surveyed in the next week or so. Hopefully it'll all be done by the end of October. I'll post more info and pics after everything is done.


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

It's finally done. The survey went well and the boat is now ours.  Thanks for all the input.


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## djodenda (Mar 4, 2006)

Congratulations!

It is now your responsibility to post pictures of your new boat.

David


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Congrats... when do we get to see photos???


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## PalmettoSailor (Mar 7, 2006)

Congratulations and welcome to the Catalina Family. If you haven't already taken a look, you should probably think about joining the C30 Owners Association. The C36 group has proven to be a great resource for our recently purchased Catalina and I expect the C30 association is just as active.

They also have a quarterly print newsletter for all the Catalina fleets.

Bill
s/v Palmetto Moon
'91 Catalina 36
1128


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

The long awaited photo's are now ready...


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## PalmettoSailor (Mar 7, 2006)

Really nice looking boat. Congratulations again.

I know most of the ribbing we Catalina owners get here is good natured, but take a look a this boat and tell me what's so wrong with a Catalina? Thats a great looking 20 year old boat, built for the kind of sailing most of us do at a price an average family can afford. Her previous owners were obviously proud of her and RDS can be proud of her too. You couldn't ask for much more from a production boat in my estimation.

Bill 
s/v Palmetto Moon
1991 C36


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

There's nothing wrong with Catalinas, and there's reasons why they are popular with the club racing, weekender and coastal hopping crowd (the vast majority of recreational sailors).

The only problem is when people try to take them offshore or into heavy weather, and discover that the qualities that make them so pleasant and easy to sail in enclosed, mainly fair-weather conditions can make for very uncomfortable or even dangerous sailing offshore.

They meet a need, and they meet it well. They are popular for the same reason there are 100 Dodge Caravans sold for every Land Rover: only 1 in a 100 need a Land Rover, and Land Rovers aren't great choices for soccer moms or driving to the mall.

I will _never_ criticise the decision for a weekend/evening sailor to pick a Catalina for fun sailing and short-haul cruising. But as can be seen from the remarkably rare agreement in the "Should I race my Catalina 30 in the Newport/Bermuda race?" thread, part of seamanship is knowing the limits of your vessel. One recalls the Catalina 36 of a few years ago going from California to Hawaii that had loosened bulkheads and a broken rudder within a couple of days in the real blue water, and which had to be abandoned.


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## davidpm (Oct 22, 2007)

If you happened to mention how much you paid and what was included it would be of interest.
Of course I would never think of asking such a personal question.


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## djodenda (Mar 4, 2006)

Cool!

Very nice...

Is that forced air heat and controls in the aft part of the galley or A/C?

David


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Probably AC, given his location... more need for cold than heat in NC. 


djodenda said:


> Cool!
> 
> Very nice...
> 
> ...


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## djodenda (Mar 4, 2006)

Dunno about that... Was pretty cold in Charlotte last week. Ice on the windshield, even....


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## camaraderie (May 22, 2002)

Congrats...she looks to be in good shape. Happy sails!


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

sailingdog said:


> Probably AC, given his location... more need for cold than heat in NC.


It's heat and air. So far we've needed more heat than air. It's about 35 degrees in eastern NC right now.

Thanks for all the kind comments.


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## josrulz (Oct 15, 2006)

Congrats, rdstanley! Glad you found the right boat for you. Best wishes for fair winds...
-J


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

davidpm said:


> If you happened to mention how much you paid and what was included it would be of interest.
> Of course I would never think of asking such a personal question.


I don't mind giving some details. Purchase price was less than $20,000. The boat has 2 sets of sails, both in good condition. The motor is the Universal M25XB and seems to run fine.(The maiden voyage was about 60 miles with no wind. She ran without any issues.) The stock 2 water and 1 holding tank. Reverse cycle heat and air.  The compressor is mounted in the port side lazarette. The propane locker is in the aft cockpit locker. The galley has a propane 2 burner stove/oven. It passed the survey with flying colors. I think we were really fortunate to find her.


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## djodenda (Mar 4, 2006)

Yes, I think you did real well on the boat. Again, the Mark II is a nicer setup with the Tee-shaped cockpit.

The air and heat is a great plus.

Welcome, fellow C30 owner.

David


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## 7tiger7 (May 30, 2006)

Wow, LESS than $20k for a Mark II? Most of the Mk IIs around Boston are asking at least $30k and up! And from the pics your boat looks pristine!
Mind if I ask how much the owner was asking originally? I get the feeling what boats are listed for is very far from what they may be selling for...


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## r.furborough (May 28, 2006)

Good buy, I remembered looking at 'Pugin Along' in Oriental when I was looking for a boat. Looked to be a pretty good boat at the time but was not for me. Wow, did you get a deal. Enjoy......


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

r.furborough said:


> Good buy, I remembered looking at 'Pugin Along' in Oriental when I was looking for a boat. Looked to be a pretty good boat at the time but was not for me. Wow, did you get a deal. Enjoy......


Thanks, so far so good.


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

7tiger7 said:


> Wow, LESS than $20k for a Mark II? Most of the Mk IIs around Boston are asking at least $30k and up! And from the pics your boat looks pristine!
> Mind if I ask how much the owner was asking originally? I get the feeling what boats are listed for is very far from what they may be selling for...


Original asking price was $25k. I've got a couple friends who are brokers and you're absolutely right. There are lots of motivated sellers right now.


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## Hillster (Nov 19, 2008)

Nice find. I see lots of those Cat 30s around and they seem to age real well. many 20 year old ones look under 10 years old.

Congratulations


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## rayncyn51 (Aug 8, 2008)

Glad to hear that things are going well with the new boat. I remember talking to you and the Admiral on the dock as you left oriental. We bought the other Cat 30, Lady Kel-e. She was also a good buy, and, so far, has been a great boat for us. Good luck with yours!!


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## rdstanley (Sep 23, 2006)

rayncyn51 said:


> Glad to hear that things are going well with the new boat. I remember talking to you and the Admiral on the dock as you left oriental. We bought the other Cat 30, Lady Kel-e. She was also a good buy, and, so far, has been a great boat for us. Good luck with yours!!


Thanks and best of luck. Lady Kel-e is a pretty boat. I had intentions of looking at her when I looked at Pugin Along. Hope you had a good sail home.


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