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diySailor
1st Mate

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USA
39 Posts

Initially Posted - 05/03/2012 : 16:24:26

Hi, we're new Catalina Assoc members and are refurbishing a Catalina 25 to sail in New England this summer. We have the traditional interior and would like to know what the pros and cons are versus the dinette arrangement and what is generally preferred. I would think in a seaway the traditional layout with lee cloths would be an advantage...but???

Lots of great information here. My biggest task is fixing the keel bolts (SRFK). Any references for the RI area would be great.
Thanks, Rog-n-Barb

Rog&Barb
1983 Catalina 25 SR/FK
HYC Hull, MA

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 16:43:02

Your traditional vs dinette question is really moot since you now have the traditional interior. I had one until very recently, and preferred it because the cabin feels much bigger without the dinette intruding half way across the space. However, it does seem easier to create a cross-wise queen bed setup with the dinette arrangement. Since you have a fixed keel, you don't have the problem of the swing keel box coming out from the bulkhead, so building a bridge across the cabin for a large bunk should actually be easy, or you could build a flip-up platform for each side to hold the seatback cushions for sleeping.
What year is your boat? You can add that to your 'signature' as well as a picture.
The dropdown table is heavy. Some guys have shortened it and left it down. Another guy built a shelf box out of 1x4's to go behind the dropdown table, providing space for wine/liquor bottles and books, etc.
Your options are nearly endless.

Edited by - dmpilc on 05/03/2012 16:44:41

krobsten
1st Mate

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46 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 16:53:24

Welcome, Rog and Barb!

Edited by - on

awetmore
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1144 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 17:28:25

I have the dinette and think I'd prefer to have the original, but it doesn't matter because you can't easily change it. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but ultimately I think dinettes are best left to big boats like a Catalina 34.

Sorry, I can't help with the keel bolts or RI recommendations. We're in WA and have the lead keel with stainless bolts. Is your boat an older one with an iron keel and mild steel bolts?

Edited by - on

diySailor
1st Mate

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USA
39 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 17:57:42

Thanks David, I updated the signature. I am remaking the table (lighter) as it fell off the wall in the Hurricane last year.
I didn't want to change the interior layout but was just interested how others liked a more permanent dinette vs
having to set up the table frequently. I agree with Alex that the dinette's probably better on a bigger boat.

Edited by - on

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5348 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 18:02:28

Good luck on your new-to-you C25. You'll learn to love your cabin layout. Passage has the dinette layout - it is great because you can fit a queen-sized air mattress in the space, so it's comfortable for sleeping for my wife and I.
That said, for daytime use, the dinette is confining and in the way.
In that case, I'd prefer the port settee style. Nonetheless, it is what it is and I don't plan to change it.

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 19:08:45

I have a dinette model and quite honestly, the table has been in the lowered, stored position for a good number of years now, maybe seven. This is mainly due to my kids always using the area as a comfortable lounge/hangout spot and I got tired of lowering the table every time they came aboard.

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9074 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 20:18:34

As P.O. of Bruce's Passage, I appreciated the dinette as an always-available chart/snack table, although when cruising I sometimes left the table down as a large storage area for a big cooler and other stuff. I could imagine the table being great for kids in the up or down position. I was planning an athwart-ship double berth using it, and even sized a cushion for the aisle section by shortening the quarterberth cushion that went under the cockpit sole, but I never actually rigged the "bridge." (It might not even be necessary with a good inflatable bed.)

All things considered, I might have (slightly) preferred the "traditional" (two settees) interior, for general spaciousness. Catalina gravitated toward that, and I believe it was the only layout in the last "generation" ('89+).

Anyway, you'll like your boat!

Edited by - Stinkpotter on 05/03/2012 20:22:06

Stu Jackson C34
Admiral

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844 Posts

Response Posted - 05/03/2012 : 21:09:54

We started with a C22, with ONLY a dinette interior.

We lucked into a C25 with a traditional layout. I'd really yearned fore the L interior, having seen one, and thought it was a great compromise between the either/or of the traditional or dinette models.

Boy, was I glad about the model we got.

As mentioned, the area down below when the table is up is TREMENDOUS.

Even with the L layout, the table would have gotten in the way.

I recall many times sailing with the autopilot on and popping down below to use the head or check charts or get some coffee, and feeling blessed with that room. I'm sure that I could have learned to find the advantages of the dinette layout had I needed to, but boy, with it was so easy.

That said, sleeping arrangements and mods to get good ones, aren't quite so simple. We slept: one in the V berth, one in the quarterberth, and one on the cabin sole. I always "fought" for the quarterberth, but lost out to my daughter all the time, since she was faster and smarter!

You should be feeling a LOT better by now, right?

Edited by - Stu Jackson C34 on 05/03/2012 21:11:32

Davy J
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1511 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 06:37:40

We have traditional layout. When we sleep on the boat I use a full size air mattress and a couple of boards to create a bed in the cabin.

In eight years I have never used the table in the cabin. We have a folding table that we use to eat dinner in the cockpit.

Edited by - on

JimGo
Admiral

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USA
962 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 07:19:21

Welcome Rog & Barb! I have a traditional model with a keel box (swing keel), and aside from the keel box, I really like the layout. We're a family of four, and even though two of us are under age 7, I think the dinette would have been tight. This layout gives us a lot more room, and my kids like the "big" table to spread out their coloring books and other "stuff". I still have to figure out how to get my salon to look like Davy's - that's becoming higher on my ajenda as my boys keep asking about sleeping on the boat.

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 07:27:16

The lounge...

Edited by - on

PCP777
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1225 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 07:40:57

I love the L shape. Mine stays down as well, and we stay over night on the boat pretty much weekly.

Edited by - on

Davy J
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1511 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 07:47:43

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">I still have to figure out how to get my salon to look like Davy's -<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Step 1) Place PVC standing on end:

Step 2) place first board across cabin:

Step 3) Place second board across cabin:

Step 4) Air mattress across boards:

Step 5) Make bed:

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 07:54:47

Outstanding, wish I had thought of that.

Edited by - on

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 08:27:36

Davy,

Can you post the measurements/specs of the boards and PVC pipes please? That's my next mod.

I have the traditional layout and I've only used the dining table a few times. I don't even keep it against the bulkhead....I keep it back in the quarterberth, to the right behind the ladder and under the cockpit sole. That smaller cushion and the space under the cockpit sole is my main storage area. I try to keep the main part of the quarterberth free as it's easier to get back there and access stuff I've stored.

Oh, and welcome aboard Rog & Barb! Post up some pics....we love pics!

Edited by - on

Davy J
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1511 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 08:57:32

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Davy, can you post the measurements/specs of the boards and PVC pipes please? That's my next mod<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I can get the measurements later this evening. I've slightly modified the rig since those photos were taken. We use three pipes now instead of two. And I would make the boards slightly wider if I were to do another.

Sorry for the thread hijack, Rog-n-Barb.....

Edited by - on

Sam001
Vice Commodore

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USA
441 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 16:24:50

I have a dinette. I did cut/shorten the table back 4" and it makes a big differnce in room but still have plenty of room for "stuff" I do like having the table down all the time, and there is still plentoy of space to get forward.

Edited by - on

BCG-Woodbury
Mainsheet Editor

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USA
396 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 16:56:30

Hey Rog & Barb - Welcome to the forum. Everyone here has been quite helpful by sharing their experiences and years of Catalina 25 knowledge. How much work does your boat need? What waters will you be sailing? I hope to take ours to Nantucket and The Vineyard someday. For the next few seasons we plan to cruise our small lake to get familiar with our new-to-us boat.

Edited by - on

diySailor
1st Mate

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USA
39 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 18:38:14

Thanks for all the replies and your welcome aboard. I’ll start with the easiest question: how much work does the boat need? Just about everything! I’ve got most of the interior in my basement. Just about ready to put it back in and the teak back on deck. I’ve got to rewire some and rebed the windows, stanchions and some chocks (can’t stand leaks). I had to re-gelcoat the rudder which was a good learning experience to do some repair work on the hull that had scratches from storms last fall while tied up waiting for haul-out. I’ll be keeping Catalina Direct pretty busy this year. Trying to get it back in the water before the end of June.

Brian and JoAnne; we plan to sail with our club this year to the Cape and the north shore in MA (we sail out of Hull in Boston Harbor). Nantucket is open ocean sailing so offshore equipment is highly recommended. It’s on our list as well. Don’t pass up Narragansett Bay- great sailing with quaint friendly harbors.

Everyone’s comments on the interior arrangement of the C25 were really appreciated. Great ideas and creative solutions. We are thinking of making a back support with fold up legs on the port side settee that can be removed and then attached to the base seat and extend outward toward the middle of the salon for a full size bed where we can still access the head and V-Berth. We like the V-berth also (big for a 25 footer).

Davy j: an air mattress on top of a waterbed-interesting

Edited by - on

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 05/04/2012 : 18:44:00

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Davy J is one of the more creative people here - and shares his ideas too!

Edited by - on

krobsten
1st Mate

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46 Posts

Response Posted - 05/05/2012 : 08:26:27

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Davy J

Step 1) Place PVC standing on end:
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Davy, thank you so much for posting this! I was wondering how people did this. Two questions: where do you stow those boards when not sleeping, and don't the PVC pipes just tip over if you move around on the bed? Are they secured at all?

Also, I assume the case of Bud Light is also helping keep the bed up? I'll get several cases tonight just to be sure ;)

Edited by - on

Davy J
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1511 Posts

Response Posted - 05/05/2012 : 10:33:18

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Two questions: where do you stow those boards when not sleeping, and don't the PVC pipes just tip over if you move around on the bed? Are they secured at all?<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I stow the boards on the forward side of the bulkhead next to the head. A simple eye screw on the compression post and bungee cord led over to the teak on the shelf behind the toilet keep them in place.

As far as the PVC pipes, they are 3" PVC, once there is weight on the boards they cannot move. As I said, we are now using three pipes, one in the middle, one on forward side in the companionway, one on the rear side of the bed. They are really there to prevent the boards from shifting when you enter or exit the bed.

And yes, beer makes everything work better.....

Edited by - on

GaryB
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4300 Posts

Response Posted - 05/05/2012 : 19:57:12

My bed looks just like Davy's when made up except it comes all the way back the bulkhead for the stove (I use a queen air matress).

Instead of using the boards though I cut 2 x 4 slats to fit from one side to the other. I have a total of six "slats". They vary in length because of the curvature of the hull. I also cut smaller pieces approx 24" long to use under the ends of the slats so they don't rest on the trim pieces that hold the cushions in place.

Since I single-hand 99% of the time I keep my cushions at home so when I want to store my bed slats I simply lay them fore and aft on top of the fiberglass settees. Lay a throw-able cushion or two on top of them and I have a comfortable seat.

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3436 Posts

Response Posted - 05/05/2012 : 20:39:07

I have two mods regarding the traditional setup. I put the extended bunk on the short bunk side. It turns out to be an excellent arrangement since feet go past the stove area and while the extended bunk can easily be taken down, I leave it up all the time since it does not interfere with the access-way thru the cabin to the VBerth area. The leg supports are held in place by carriage bolts that are simply dropped down thru the bunk rail and into the leg support. So, checking the bilge is not a big deal. I just pull out the carriage bolts with my fingers and temporarily remove the leg supports - That allows access to the bilge.
The second mod was to replace the large table with one slightly smaller that allows it to be hinged to the bulkhead. The table is also suspended from above for half or full size opened. This arrangment eliminates the need for a leg support which would have interfered with my extended bunk arrangement. More photos and details of the installations are on my website.

Edited by - OLarryR on 05/05/2012 20:44:09

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9074 Posts

Response Posted - 05/05/2012 : 20:49:02

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by diySailor
 ...I would think in a seaway the traditional layout with lee cloths would be an advantage...<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">So you're planning a trans-Atlantic passage in your C-25?

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