Sorry Phil...
Sorry Phil but this quote is flat out dangerous and very misleading. "A Catalina 32 is capable in the right hands." Sorry Peter Blake, Dodge Morgan et al. could not sail an un-modified, structurally, Catalina 320 through the roaring forties or across the pond, without dramatic issues, unless the weather was freakishly calm. I have owned three Catalina's and can tell you they are NOT well suited to 50 knots & 30 foot seas! While they are perfectly fine coastal cruisers they are not designed or built heartily enough to handle adverse conditions for days on end. The rudder tube design alone would be enough to dissuade a "smart and capable captain" from taking a C-320 across the pond. Your quote actually contradicts its self! Someone with the skill and knowledge would never do as you say because they would be smart enough not to. Having sailed on many, many blue water capable boats such as Hinckley's, Swan's, Pacific Seacraft's and Passports I can assure you there is nothing a capable captain can do short of re-designing the hull, rudder tube, rig, chain plates, hatches, bulkheads, ports and a plethora of other items to make a Catalina ready for 40+ knots and 30+ foot seas which is what you must expect if heading out into the true blue. When I was a kid in the I was on board a Hinckley B-40 crossing from the Cape to Halifax NS when we encountered a relatively mild Nor Easter. It blew for 14 hours at well over 40 knots building the seas to 25+ feet and I can assure you there is NO Catalina that would have handled that weather like the B-40 did capable captain or not! Trust me things like actually tabbing the bulkheads in DOES matter. Upgrading water, electrical radar etc. all do NOTHING if your hull, rig or steering can't handle the seas. Have you actually seen how Catalina water tanks are secured to the hull or the fuel tank? I can tell you it's down right scary of you ewere to even think about hitting 15 foot seas let alone 30+! Have you seen how this is done on a Morris, Swan, Hinckley, Shannon etc.??? Phil until you have REALLY spent time in ROUGH conditions, hundreds if not thousands of miles from land, please don't mislead folks and have them think they can hop in their 320 and head for the Azores if they have tweaked th electrical, H20 and added radar & feel they are "capable". Sailing in 40 knots on the BAY is NOT the same as a thousand miles of fetch with 40+ knots building seas to well over 25 feet with very short wave periods and nearly vertical faces you literally fall off of. How do you think that 320 would handle falling down the face of a 25 foot breaker and hitting the cement like bottom only to have thousands of gallons of green water wash away your HUGE hatch boards and fill your cabin because of your HUGE hatch board opening???
