The shelf above the sink that was intended to store plates, mugs, and such, was totally inadequate for our needs (worthless). We wanted a “china cabinet” (or in our case a plastic cabinet). The plan was to build a cabinet using the existing shelf as a base and make some kind of a cabinet which had a shelf in the middle. We considered building the cabinet out of wood, but it seemed that this would not only block the light from the large port window, but it would not fit the open styling of the interior. We decided to make the cabinet out of a clear material. The cabinet was made using an acrylic material purchased at the Home Depot called high impact “Lucite Tuf”, it is 3/16 thick. We also purchased some 1 ½ inch diameter oak ½
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Being a sailboat owner, I truly dislike having to run the engine during good sailing conditions. Bringing our boat home to Portland, OR from our summer cruising grounds in Washington’s San Juan Islands and the Canadian Gul f Islands usually offers such conditions, once we round Cape Flattery and head out into the Pacific and down the Washington coast. It’s a 30-hour broad reach in 17-knot northwesterlies followed by two days of spinnaker run up the Columbia River. We do it short handed – the autopilot is very necessary. Unfortunately, at about 65% of battery charge with the stock Exide 4D marine house battery bank (wired in parallel), the autopilot starts complaining like a series wound DC motor will when it’s getting more of its power from current than from voltage. With the refrigeration cycling at about 33% and the autopilot
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Aft Cabin Mirror
Bob Bierly
11/21/2001
Hull #: 255
I removed and reinstalled the aft cabin mirror on a cleat mounted on the underside of the steps and through the head wall. I now store screens, trays, between the back of the mirror and the bulkhead. I cut a 10” inspection port into the seat on the port side of the bed. The storage area inside is amazing. I installed a board between the storage area and the manufacturer-installed drawers at the foot of the bed to keep errant stored items from finding their way into the vicinity of the prop shaft coupling and stuffing box. That was the only thing I had to do to make this a very sizable long-term storage area.
The side toward the fridge port side is left open. The storage is formed between the bulkhead, the head wall on the starboard end and the
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
I have added the following items to the anchor locker:
(1) A West Marine (SJPRO#960012 @ $26.95) line holder. I have also mounted one in the port lazarette holes line up exactly with ones in place for the seat latch no drilling.
(2) I have mounted a reel of Ankoralina line for deploying a lunch hook. Very handy and does not take much space. The reel has about 185 of polyester strap that has approximately the same strength and stretch as ½ nylon three-strand line. The Ankoralina does dual duty as a jackline.
I have mounted a 25# Danforth High Tensile on a piece of teak using the bracket that is typically used to hang a Danforth style anchor on a stanchion (West Marine #488353 @ $34.99). At the bottom of the teak board (that runs the full depth of the
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Flatware and Utensil Storage
Bob Bierly
11/1/2001
Hull #: 255
Flatware storage: I bought a standard wooden flatware storage box from a popular regional kitchenware store; I mounted it with hinges under the hanging shelf, with the hinges toward the settee and the opening toward the galley. I use a bayonet catch to hold the box up against the bottom of the shelf when its closed and use a short length of lifeline cable to hold the box when open at about thirty degrees. This gives my wife an accessible flatware storage, which seems to have been omitted in this Catalina. My wife misses the drawers from the Catalina 34 galley.
Utensil storage: Many chefs like to store cooking utensils in a crock or like item immediately adjacent to the stove. I mounted an open topped wooden box about 3x3x5” box in the open space behind the stove to serve
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Our 380-390’s come with eight seacocks [aka: thru-hulls]; these are, of course, critical to the operation and safety of our boats. Mishandling or severe damage to any thru-hull could allow flooding which our bilge pump may not be able to handle – not a happy situation! While we could add more pump capacity [see Scott’s write-up in the previous issue], “an ounce of prevention….”. So this is an important topic; it is also very relevant, as at least two captains have had a “problem”, me being one of them! But I’ll get into that later.
The Forespar seacocks are made of Marelon, a particularly tough plastic which, in normal use, will probably outlast much of our equipment. Many of you are probably aware of the controversy over seacock material: bronze vs. plastic. I’m sure this discussion will go on well past my
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
I simply placed a plastic storage box (milk carton with relatively few holes) and hang it from the edges of the lazarette using four antenna holders (West SFANT#4142SS @$7.99). The hooks are bolted to the milk carton. I had to cut and bend the back ones to support the back end. This works best in the starboard lazarette due to the presence of the bilge pump in the port lazarette. We use the removable box for our inflatable life vests, safety harnesses, emergency horn, spotlight, etc.
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Most folks have discovered the storage in the closed bilge’s just forward of the mast. Although some water could find its way into that space, it can easily be used for storage of canned goods, beer, wine etc. as it is.
The other two bilge compartments can also be used for this kind of storage by placing a set of floorboards in each. [Older hull #’s have only two accessible bilge compartments-Ed]. The existing grid, which strengthens the boat, makes it possible to cut three boards each 6 ¾ by 16 ½ for the aft compartment, which will rest on the turn of the bilge and be held in place by the grid and each other. The storage area, which results, is above the float switch and yields an area 21” by 16″ by 15” high. The larger bilge compartment
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Recently, I built shelves at the navigation station to store my laptop computer, my inkjet printer, a 13” TV, a CD player and some incidental storage for CD’s etc. All of this is in the open space between the built in “radio” cabinet and the bulkhead forming the forward side of the nav station desk. The entire shelf system, really three interconnected shelves, rest on cleats screwed to the two bulkheads forming the space. By placing fiddles across the front edges of the shelves, the contents are secure in a seaway.
It is amazing how much room there is in this area. BTW I also solved the problem several folks have reported of how to get the cover off the factory-installed radio space. I merely cut it in two pieces horizontally and covered the cut with a wood strip.
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
Within the shower there is a hanging locker, ostensibly for hanging slickers and such. We concluded we needed a linen closet a lot more than a place to allow slickers to get moldy (no air circulation in that locker.) Consequently, I built two shelves into that locker giving us three levels of storage for towels, linens etc. The shelves are secured to cleats on each end and have finished wooden fiddles along the edge at the opening. Really gives us some storage space.
You need to be logged in to see the rest of this content. Catalina380-IA members, please login.
To join please fill out a membership application (Association->Membership Application) and send a check to the address on the form.
