Morning all,
Yesterday we viewed a 1986 Hatteras aft
cabin and a 1986 Chris-craft
Catalina 426 aft
cabin. Would appreciate some ideas on stairs.
The Hatteras was ruled out within just a few minutes because there was
oil under the port
engine in the
bilge, there was considerable evidence of
water intrusion around the windows, the
galley was a bit tight for two people to be in at the same time, and there was no dinette area at all.
The
Catalina was a fine
boat. The owner has taken great care of it, upgraded too many things to list here, and it's truly turnkey ready. My concern is about the
dogs and my mother-in-law when we
anchor out or
dock at a floating
dock. The
boat is otherwise perfect for us and only needs to
interior redecorating.
The owner of the Catalina has a cocker spaniel that he just puts over his shoulder and carries down the ladder to the swim platform. That won't
work with our 95 pound labradors (yeah, they're a bit chunky) or my mother-in-law (not so chunky).
The Catalina's dingy
storage is the type that clamps onto the swim platform and leans up against the stern. If the dingy
storage was a
winch to a
cradle on the hard top or forward
deck, to problem. We could put the
dogs in the dingy before lowering it over the side. Unfortunately, that's not an option on the boat, as is, and we don't want to pop the $16,000 for a
winch and
cradle.
Here is a
photo of an example of the model:
Would it be possible to shift the eisenglass and
panels so the transom door was on the port side of the stern, remove the existing ladder, and have someone custom build
stainless steel railings and
teak steps from the transom door to the middle of the swim platform? That would make entry much easier for everyone. Has anyone done this? Would it look stupid... or ruin the Catalina lines? Input appreciated.
Thanks.
John