Introducing Ourselves and our new-to-us Catalina 22'

Mar 20, 2015
3,094
C&C 30 Mk1 Winnipeg
Amazing boat. Looks like it just came off the showroom floor !
Congrats on the deal. It's funny how things sometime just come together perfectly.

Our boat didn't have the stove diffusers, nor did the stove manual mention them. I wonder if they were an option like the pot holders ?
 
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Siren

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Apr 2, 2018
52
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
Thanks, @Leeward Rail. We are so grateful and humbled how this whole thing came together. :pray: We just love love love our boat! :D:D:D

Today is the day we are going to step our mast, and launch her for the first time to see if she floats. Luckily, the boat launch is 50' from our boat slip. Once she's docked, we are going to do the traditional denaming and renaming/christening ceremonies. Her first shake down sail will be in a few days, after @ScubaGuy2 gets the rudder repaired and re-gelcoated. :thumbup:
 
May 23, 2016
1,024
Catalina 22 #12502 BSC
Siren...if you haven't, chk out Stingy's mast stepping vids on youtube...may be of some help...certainly helped my first attempt...fwiw...

Cheers!
Ron
 
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Siren

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Apr 2, 2018
52
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
@rpludwig - oh yes! We have watched his videos several times! Douglas is fashioning a wooden A-frame to assist in our mast stepping. Thanks for looking out for us! :clap:
 
Mar 20, 2015
3,094
C&C 30 Mk1 Winnipeg
You should also check out the Catalina 22 National Association. You can get a Tech Manual from them, that distills decades worth of C22 knowledge.
There a bunch of ways to step the C22 mast, from multiple sources/videos/blog/threads here.
A frame, gin pole, use the boom as gin pole, just block and lines, trailer winch with pole, just push the mast up by hand/shoulder, etc.
The trick is finding what works for you. I was obsessed with finding the perfect minimalist method, hehe.... but the reality for us right now is, we won't be trailering it all over the place and raising/lowering all the time.

Good luck and post photos.
 
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Sep 11, 2013
242
Catalina 25 6106 Lake Erie Metro Park
You'll love your Cat 22, sounds like you got a great boat. We've just made the move from the Cat 22 to a Cat 25 and even though we love the new (to us) boat, I miss the Rose more than I thought I ever would. This website and particularly this form is has wealth of information on the Cat 22, and on sailboats / sailing in general.
As you can see, I keep coming back here, if only just to see what's going on....

Tom G
 
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Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
@rpludwig - oh yes! We have watched his videos several times! Douglas is fashioning a wooden A-frame to assist in our mast stepping. Thanks for looking out for us! :clap:
A-frames are my first choice. I've done it other ways, but A-frames are the most stable & trouble free method that I have found, unless you access to a tall crane or other lift point that is taller than the mast.
 
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Siren

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Apr 2, 2018
52
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
Stepping the mast has always been the *one* thing we were a little apprehensive about doing alone for the 1st time. As luck would have it, on Friday evening, we were going through a few things in the sailboat (which was still on the trailer hooked up to the truck), and a fisherman walks by and comments on our boat. He says his friend that's camping with them is going to become our best friend, because he loves sailboats and has owned them for 35 years. Low and behold, this sailor friend, was camping 2 sites away from us, and not only offered to help us "put up the stick," but he was excited and energetic to help us!! :pray:

Saturday was the day! @ScubaGuy2 built the A-frame and carpeted the base as well as the "V" that would support the mast. We secured it in place.
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Scott (camping sailor friend 2 sites away) came over and walked us through the whole thing. He was an invaluable part of the process; lending a hand where he could and being polite enough to not want to overstep his boundaries. No amount of YouTube videos can take the place of an experienced sailor nearby. He gave some great pointers (like the shrouds are supposed to hang on the outside of the A-frame), and was a real class act. :thumbup::thumbup:
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We were thrilled to see the mast up for the 1st time; the ad on Boat Trader for this boat didn't have one picture of the mast, so it was a real treat to see her now actually look like a sailboat.
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Another fun accomplishment of the day was placing our new Michigan Registration stickers on the boat. The previous owner was kind enough to renew the registration through March 2020 prior to listing the boat for sale. :thumbup:
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Today's cast of characters include: Paul (the fisherman), Me (Siren), Douglas (ScubaGuy2), and Steve (Paul's camping sailor friend 2 sites away)
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May 23, 2016
1,024
Catalina 22 #12502 BSC
once again Congrats!
Great you guys "studied up" plus got an assist from an experienced sailor neighbor....first time is always most concerning, but as you likely found, not a big deal going forward. As you know, many trailer sailors do this daily, without a second thought....now I wanna see this sister ship in the slip, and out on the water with sails up!!! Good work!

Cheers!!!
 
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Siren

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Apr 2, 2018
52
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
Saturday evening: Being that we are in northern Michigan where the sun doesn't set until almost 10pm, we decided to use the Adrenalin rush we experienced after raising the mast for the 1st time and launch our sailboat. :dancing:

It was a quick drive (500') down to the boat launch.
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We got her backed her in, @ScubaGuy2 climbed on board, and I released the winch. Backed up a little bit further till she started floating!!! This is the first picture of her on the water!!! SHE REALLY DOES FLOAT!!! :D
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Douglas navigated her a painstakingly treacherous :p 50' on motor only - no rudder - and put her in the boat slip like champ!! :clap:
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I then got to tie my 1st cleat.
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Here she is:
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Enjoying our 1st sunset from the cockpit of our Catalina 22'...
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Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
That is a different style of A frame than I have used before. It looks like your results were good. Congratulations on your accomplishment.
 
Mar 23, 2018
63
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
That is a different style of A frame than I have used before. It looks like your results were good. Congratulations on your accomplishment.
Yes, that probably isn't the best design. Although as long as we worked as a team it worked fine. A roller at the top would have been much easier. But I had access to 2x3s, bolts and carpet. So I used 2x3s bolts and carpet. Something much better (read professionally built) is in our future.
 
Sep 30, 2013
3,538
1988 Catalina 22 North Florida
Just do a search for "mast crutch". You can whip one up pretty easy. I have pics/measurements I can post if you want to see them.
 
Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
The way that I build my A frames, 2 x 3s would work fine. I find two pivot points that are either in line with the tabernacle or just forward of it. I attach one end of each board to those two points in a way that can rotate forward & pin the two boards together at the top. Where the boards are connected I wrap a line around a few times while they are standing up straight or just aft of straight, with one end of the line going to the mast & the other end going through a block at the bow & then to a winch. In other words, I basically build an A-shaped gin pole that can't flop over to the side.
 
Mar 20, 2015
3,094
C&C 30 Mk1 Winnipeg
@Siren You can crew on our boat any time, with that level of "cleatness" :D

Congrats guys... Just in time for an awesome Michigan summer.
 
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Sep 15, 2016
790
Catalina 22 Minnesota
Siren, you got the concept, now you can work on this technique

Funny my self and some other dock monkies on Catalina used to do this for fun (and tips). I got to the point I could do it both left and right handed. Always made a great show for the tourists when they would toss you a line and you could stand midship and clear both bow and stern befor asking "how can I help you". Three strand works best and can be cleated from well over 10 feet from the cleat.
 
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Siren

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Apr 2, 2018
52
Catalina 22 12491 Lake Charlevoix
I was hoping to post one more time with a picture from our maiden voyage, and figured that would round out our "Introduction" thread nicely. But since we have had a few other things we have been tackling this week, i.e. the rudder and the rigging, the maiden voyage will likely be this weekend. In the meantime, I will share a funny story and post a few pictures that are sure to make you laugh. :laugh:

So last Saturday evening, we launched the sailboat. Sunday lunch was to be our first meal eaten aboard, and we were so excited. I went to pick up lunch, and as I walked onto the dock, I handed the food over to @ScubaGuy2 . I began boarding the boat, at the same time I was putting my car keys into my purse, and PLOP!!!! :eek: Right in between the 6" space between the dock and the boat straight into the water. :doh: Big Oops!!! :banghead: The boat hasn't been in the water for 18 hours, and I was already losing my keys overboard!!! :badbad: The look of shock and astonishment was permanently etched on my face. :yikes: It was a very quiet lunch. :oops: LUCKILY, we are SCUBA DIVERS, and we have all the necessary equipment in our motorhome!! Douglas was my HERO and left the boat to go gear up and find the keys. :pray: His "dive" began with perfectly crystal clear visibility underneath the dock, but quickly escalated to negative visibility and mud flying everywhere. After about 4 minutes, HE SURFACED VICTORIOUSLY!!! :D:yeah::p And the key fob still works perfectly!!! :dancing: Thank you, Douglas!!!!! I'm one lucky first mate!

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