Catalina 38 Explained

Catalina 38
Designer:Sparkman & Stephens
Location:United States
Year:1978
No Built:365
Builder:Catalina Yachts
Role:Racer-Cruiser
Draft:6.8feet
Displacement:159000NaN0
Hull Type:Monohull
Construction:Fiberglass
Loa:39.08feet
Lwl:30.25feet
Beam:11.83feet
Engine:Universal Atomic 4 250NaN0 gasoline engine
Keel Type:fin keel
Ballast:68500NaN0
Rudder Type:internally-mounted spade-type rudder
Rig Type:Bermuda rig
I:49.8feet
J:15.5feet
P:44feet
E:11.5feet
Sailplan:Masthead sloop
Sailarea Main:253square feet
Sailarea Headsail:385.95square feet
Sailarea Total:638.95square feet
Phrf:116

The Catalina 38 is an American sailboat that was designed by Sparkman & Stephens as a racer-cruiser and first built in 1978.[1] [2] [3]

The Catalina 38 is a development of the Yankee 38.[1] [4]

Production

The design was built by Catalina Yachts in the United States. The company built 365 examples between 1978 and 1990, but it is now out of production.[3] [5]

Design

The boat was originally designed as Sparkman & Stephens design #2094-C2 for Yankee Yachts and produced as the Yankee 38, but that company only produced 30 examples between 1972 and 1975, before going out of business. Frank V. Butler purchased the molds and modified the design for production by his company, Catalina Yachts. The changes Butler incorporated included a new deck and cabin roof design, a taller rig and a balanced spade rudder, replacing the original skeg-mounted rudder.[1] [6]

The Catalina 38 is a recreational keelboat, built predominantly of fiberglass, with wood trim. It has a masthead sloop rig with aluminum spars, a raked stem, a raised counter reverse transom, an internally mounted spade-type rudder controlled by a wheel and a fixed fin standard draft or shoal draft keel. It displaces 159000NaN0 and carries 68500NaN0 of ballast.[1] [3]

The boat has a draft of 6.8feet with the standard keel and 4.9feet with the optional shoal draft keel.[1]

The boat is fitted with a Universal Atomic 4 250NaN0 gasoline engine for docking and maneuvering. The fuel tank holds and the fresh water tank has a capacity of .[1]

The design has sleeping accommodation for five or six people. There is a bow cabin with a "V"-berth, two settee berths in the main cabin, including a U-shaped dinette settee and an optional quarter berth aft on the starboard side. The galley is U-shaped and is on the port side, at the foot of the companionway steps. It includes a two-burner stove, an icebox and a double sink, with a pressurized water supply. The navigation station is to starboard, opposite the galley. The head is forward on the port side and features a shower, with a teak grating. The cabin features oiled teak trim.[3]

Ventilation is provided by a main cabin skylight and a bow cabin hatch.[3]

There is an anchor locker in the forepeak. The halyards are hoisted by two winches on the cabin roof. There is a mainsheet traveler also mounted on the cabin roof. The genoa has sheet tracks on the bulwarks and primary winches in the cockpit.[3]

The design has a PHRF Portsmouth Yardstick racing average handicap of 116.[3]

Operational history

In a 1994 review Richard Sherwood wrote, "the Catalina [38] is available with either a standard or a shoal-draft keel. Entry is fine and rig tall, which should assist in going to weather. Maximum beam is amidships."[3]

Michael Robertson, writing for Cruising World, in a 2014 review noted, "with its pedigree, it's no surprise that owners report the Catalina 38 sails to windward like it's on rails and also sails beautifully in light air. That superior upwind performance comes with a draft that approaches 7 feet, a limiting factor for some cruising sailors."[7]

See also

Related development

Similar sailboats

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Catalina 38 sailboat . 15 March 2020. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190630235701/https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/catalina-38. 30 June 2019. live.
  2. Web site: Sparkman & Stephens. 15 March 2020. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190331193635/https://sailboatdata.com/designer/sparkman-stephens. 31 March 2019. live.
  3. Sherwood, Richard M.: A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition, pages 322-323. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994.
  4. Web site: Yankee 38 sailboat . 15 March 2020. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20181018215931/https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/yankee-38. 18 October 2018. live.
  5. Web site: Catalina Yachts. 15 March 2020. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190603221305/https://sailboatdata.com/builder/catalina-yachts. 3 June 2019. live.
  6. Web site: Frank V. Butler. 15 March 2020. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190630235528/https://sailboatdata.com/designer/butler-frank-v. 30 June 2019. live.
  7. Web site: Classic Plastic: Catalina 38. 15 March 2020. Robertson. Michael . Cruising World. 16 March 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20170710023054/https://www.cruisingworld.com/sailboats/catalina-38-fine-lines-and-long-legs/. 10 July 2017. live.