On Sep 6, 11:08 am, Bob wrote:
On Sep 6, 8:21 am, "
wrote:

On Sep 5, 9:49 pm, Bob wrote:

On Sep 4, 8:24 am, "
wrote:
Thanks. Do tell me more about the Cascade 27 and how it compares
with a Catalina 27. Is this the boat you bought in PT?

Richard

Hi Richard:

The boat I bought in PT is a Gannon built and finished 1979 Freya 39.
A bit more robust that a Cascade 27 but better suited for what I do. I
have sat on and yacked with several ownners of Cascades over the
years. They vary suprisingly in finsih and configuation realy can not
comment other than the 1970s hulls are bulit proof in that you gots
lots of hand layed glass. ALl the owners I talked to said they were
stable predictable boats. Not fast by Wilburs standards but good
boats.

....And I assume heavy with a full-keel. In other words, what we call
here in the Pac NW an "offshore-capable" boat.

"Offshore" is a mystical word here. Because we have a HUGE breakwater
known as Vancouver Island, most boaters never go "offshore". So,
there's a mystique around it. "Did you hear about Bob on 'Endless
Love'? He went offshore..." So there's a romantic appeal to an
"offshore" boat.

OTOH, I call them GTE: Get There Eventually. There are virtually NO
conditions "inside" that require a full keel, and since most of the
time the winds are light (and Murphy says they're also blowing from
your destination!), you need a boat that will sail well upwind in
light air, or you'll be motoring wherever you go.

So, if you want a "good solid boat" like a Cascade (or Columbia,
Grampian, Alberg...) be prepared to either wallow in the swells a lot,
or motor. If you want to sail, you need a lighter-weight, fin-keel
boat. (Yes, Columbias and Grampians are both fin-keel, but perform
terribly in light air!). That's not to say you can't get a well-built
boat, though. The Cal/Crown line is VERY well-built, but sail quite
well in any conditions you find "inside" (and not bad "outside", like
the WCVI, but probably not Oregon Coast). Islanders seem well-built as
well. Ericsons are great, although the 27 is another GTE.

Where does Catalina fit into all this? They're EXCELLENT in terms of a
well-sailing boat with lots of room. Their "fit and finish" are not
that great, so the older boats tend to have lots of little things
wrong with them. I wouldn't take a Cat 27 "offshore" (although many
have), but they're actually better suited for the Pac NW than a
Cascade.

Just my opinion...
druid
http://www.bcboatnet.org