2000 Catalina 36

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tomfoolery
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2000 Catalina 36

We just sold our 83 Catalina 30 and we are looking at a 2000 cat 36. The boat has been maintained and lightly used but everything on it is 13 years old. The ray marine electronics including a plotter and radar and st5000 autopilot are original equipment I know with electronics it isimpossible to guess what a life span may be but I would appreciate any feedback about whether it is likely or not that I will have to replace some or all of this in the next few years. I spent two hours on this boat yesterday going through that checklist Stu Jackson posted and it confirmed that while there are no obvious major issues there have been no upgrades or replacements of equipment since 2000 , so it is original everything .

Tom Irwin
North Saanich, BC, Canada
1983 Catalina 30 - #3134
Until June 10, 2013
Future Catalina 36 MK II owner

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dejavu
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Posts: 433

Congratulations and welcome. You will really enjoy the move up to a C36 from a C30, I did. :D As for the electronics, I can only say that the wind/speed/depth instruments and 4000 wheel pilot which were already on my boat when I bought it in 1999 are still running fine. If your boat has been lightly used, that should bode well for the 5000 auto pilot as well.

Mike

Deja Vu
1991 MK I # 1106
Marina del Rey, CA

diggerlarue
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Posts: 13

I agree with Mike, most should be fine although you may find the chartplotter to be a tad out of date as far as capability and resolution goes. We have a 2001 with a similar vintage of electronics and the radar, depth, wind, speed and auto are fine, but the plotter is handily beaten by an iphone running Navionics. That is not an ideal permanent replacement, but just an illustration of how far things have changed in 13 years. Sailing though Howe Sound our vintage plotter doesn't even show half of the smaller islands there.

I hope you enjoy your 36, maybe we'll see you out in the Georgia Straight!

Stephen Cameron
2001 Catalina 36 MKII hull#2012
Tall Rig Fin Keel
Vancouver, BC

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Capt. Sam
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Posts: 322

I bought my 1994 two years ago. I assume the electronics were on there originally and it all works great, Ray Marine chart plotter is fine, ST6000 autopilot is great. VHF is superior. Depth and speed are fine. (except speed wheel seems to foul often and is unreliable) I don't have wind instrument nor radar. The only thing I've had fail was the AB fridge. Tore it out and put in a new Sea Frost system.
Had to replace running and deck light fixture. Be careful if you survey takes place in day time that no one checks the lights aloft. If you have a rigger check the stays aloft, ask him to check the lights as well.
Good luck and welcome to the club.

Capt. Sam Murphy
1994 Catalina 36, Hull 1327
Shoal draft, two cabin model.
Panama City, Florida

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stu jackson c34
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Posts: 1270

Who needs electronics?

We have 26 year old speed, depth and wind indicators and a handheld GPS.

Oh no, I'm gonna die..............

Stu Jackson, C34IA Secretary, C34 #224, 1986, SR/FK, M25 engine, Rocna 10 (22#)

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plaineolde
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Posts: 753

My depth and knot meters came with my '97; not quite as old as Stu's, but... they display depth and speed; can't quite see any reason to spend hundreds on new ones that will.... display depth and speed..!!!:confused: I think they're both ST4000 series.?? My only complaint is that the SeaTalk connectors are the old round type and Raymarine no longer sells the round to flat adapters. They nicely told me I can make my own by connecting like colored wires from the old to the new. I would like to have speed info sent to my wind display (recent) but haven't gotten to it yet. ST4000 autopilot was replaced years ago by an S1 also no longer made. Would much prefer a below decks pilot; one of these days.

Gary and Cathy Price
1997 C36 Mk II Tall Rig/Wing Keel Imagine...
Hull # 1617
Worton Creek, Md.
Northern Chesapeake Bay

Wally-1840
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Joined: 11/9/09
Posts: 117

Ours is 1840, delivered new to us on Lake Champlain in September, 1999. It is a model year 2000.

The stuff that has been replaced:
1. original battery charger, (Charles)
2. potable water pump, (rebuild every few years, carry a spare)
3. batteries, (replaced twice so far)
4. engine water pump
5. potable water valve manifold
6. original sails
7. original canvas

We've done many, many upgrades. If you want a list, ( those I can remember), let me know.

It's a really great boat, (a reliable "Chevy"), sails quite well, (maybe not a rocket in real light air, but OK), and is not a maintenance nightmare. Most everything I've fixed and/or installed is pretty straight forward. Catalina seems to have made sure all the stuff that went in can be removed through the companionway.

Best of luck,

W

Wally
"Onanne"
2000 MKII, deep keel, tall rig
​Lake Champlain
 

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HowLin
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Posts: 355

I moved up from a 1983 Newport 30 (very similar to the Catalina 30) and I know that you will be surprised and amazed at the comfort level, especially when crossing Georgia Strait in 20+ kts !!
Don't worry too much about electronics; as long as what you have works well and the overall price you can negotiate is fair. I had original and everything worked well - added a new HDS8 plotter and over the winter will replace the Raytheon radar with the matching Lowrance Broadband to allow chart overlay... my point is you can upgrade at your leisure.
Let us know if you make the purchase. We looked at a few in BC last year before our purchase - maybe even the one you're interested in!

---- Howard & Linda Matwick ----

--- S/V "Silhouette" - Nanaimo, BC ----

--- 1999  C36 MkII  #1776 M35BC ---

jmcelwee
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Joined: 7/16/12
Posts: 102

Great boat, great vintage (as you can see, I'm likely biased).

I'll agree with all the comments on here regarding the plotter...way out of date, and really pretty useless compared to any decent plotter you can get nowadays. I'm going to be switching over to Navionics on an iPad in the not-too-distant future, and also keep a handheld Garmin as a backup. I'd love a nice touchscreen plotter at the helm, but the replacement costs are pretty absurd, considering the do-it-yourself competition that's out there now (ie, Navionics, iNavX, OpenCPN).

I'd say as long as the standard electronics are working (ie, wind, depth, speed, autopilot), it should be good to go for many years to come.

Josh McElwee
Sailing from East Greenwich, RI
2000 C36 MKII, M35B, "Chinook", Hull#1900

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LCBrandt
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Posts: 1282

[QUOTE]Who needs electronics? We have 26 year old speed, depth and wind indicators and a handheld GPS. Oh no, I'm gonna die..............[/QUOTE]

Stu, I recall that you've stated before you don't have radar either. Hey, that's not a problem on a clear day or night. But I have heard that SFO Bay can occasionally get foggy. If that's so, then having radar would certainly help make your vessel part of the solution instead of being part of the problem.

I don't think that YOU are going to die, but the passengers (and the dimwit crew with get-home-itis) on that Bayliner that T-bones you might not be so lucky.

Larry Brandt
S/V High Flight #2109
Pacific Northwest, PDX-based
2002 C-36 mkII SR/FK M35B
 

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stu jackson c34
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Posts: 1270

There is a common misconception about SF fog. We get a lot of it, usually in three day intervals during the summer: three days on, three days off.

However, it is usually very high, about 1,500 feet up, rarely down on the deck and only then in the middle of the bay when there is also an exceptionally high high pressure system moving in. Even when the fog obscures the Golden Gate Bridge it's high enough for water level visibility. How do I know? That's where I anchor a lot! :) In winter, there can be one or two days when Tule Fog (driven from the east Central valley into the Bay) shows up - this is the ground obscuring fog and is also rare.

My father-in-law lives up on Vancouver Island in BC and I know the kind of ground/water level fog you are used to.

I am not part of the problem looking for a solution. Ground level fog, while rare here, means I stay put. And I anchor out quite a lot, so it's not a "stay in your slip" kinda deal. I cannot, in 27 years here, remember water level fog at my slip, which is at least 6 miles from the central bay.

Different definitions of fog, I guess.

If I had yours, I'd have radar.

Stu Jackson, C34IA Secretary, C34 #224, 1986, SR/FK, M25 engine, Rocna 10 (22#)

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HowLin
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Posts: 355

The tablet/phone plotters work well for course following, but here on the inside passage, where tide and current effects are significant; the ability to link to the autopilot can be quite important. Following a magnetic course will not adjust for set and drift like navigating to a waypoint will.

---- Howard & Linda Matwick ----

--- S/V "Silhouette" - Nanaimo, BC ----

--- 1999  C36 MkII  #1776 M35BC ---

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drdanj
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Posts: 62

A spin-off topic: Channel Islands Harbor just had a boat show. Had a C36 Mk II, and at first I was jealous of the open transom and extra aft width vs my 1983 original. But then I went down inside and couldn't stand up straight. I'm 6'3" and have a bit of headroom in my good old boat. What did they do different, and I wonder why? My good old boat ain't so bad after all.

S/V Tao
Catalina 36
1983, Hull #114

greigwill
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Joined: 3/28/10
Posts: 174

Yep drdanj..i found the same thing..in 95 they dropped the companionway slider to make the deck "flush" thus eliminating headroom forward of the galley for those of us 6'2"..bad idea,so i am happy with my 1990 1.5 that has an open transom and headroom..i spend more than 90 days/year aboard so this is very important to me

"Sailing Still" 1990 C36 M25 wing
 Sail Canada/Transport Canada training
Gibsons Harbour BC
www.landsendbc.ca

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Phil L
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Posts: 104

[QUOTE=drdanj;18400]A spin-off topic: Channel Islands Harbor just had a boat show. Had a C36 Mk II, and at first I was jealous of the open transom and extra aft width vs my 1983 original. But then I went down inside and couldn't stand up straight. I'm 6'3" and have a bit of headroom in my good old boat. What did they do different, and I wonder why? My good old boat ain't so bad after all.[/QUOTE]

I was there last weekend as well (my boat is slipped one dock over closer to the Emporium). Drooled at a lot of the new boats. Liked the 385 a lot and the 445 as well. But there was a slightly used C42 that reminded me that the 42 3-cabin is my dream. That boat is just about perfect (for a competitively priced production boat). The PO from whom I bought my '85 C36 moved up to a '89 C42 and due to some unforeseen transmission problems, almost had to cancel a weeklong trip to Catalina I had planned about 6 years ago (boat was packed and I was headed t the breakwater). He was gracious enough to let me take his for the week. Sailed like a dream, and now that my kids are getting a little bigger, the additional accommodations make it ideal. Certainly not complaining, but I still think the 42 is a superior design to some of the newer ones.

Phil L 
Southern Cross
Channel Islands, CA
C36MKI #400

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