Serious Catalina 30 Oil Canning on Factory Cradle

[Project_Mayhem]

I discovered a buckled crack in the floor liner of my 94 C30 next to the nav station. Upon further investigation I found broken tabbing under the forward section of the after berth, more cracks in the liner in the same general area and some serious oil canning on the starboard aft cradle pad. I believe this is the original C30 cradle. I see a small amount of oil canning on the port side pad as well. I initially suspected that the keel didn't have enough blocking on the aft side.

I talked to the yard and they stated that it's not uncommon to see this with the Catalinas. He said that the factory cradles are too short (not sure how a longer one with the same number of pads would help) and that next year I should request stands instead. There's literally no bracing or a bulkhead where the pad touches. Just a little bit of tabbing to the floor liner. The yard said they would add four stands to the stern, pull the pin on the cradle pad and let the hull relax for a while. Their interim solution seems reasonable but I still suspect that the blocking could have been better.

Oil canning looks worse in person than in the photos. Does anyone have any thoughts on the current situation and future prevention?

 

[jssailem]

First, as a new to you boat owner of a mature boat, I have been there and have winced at the discovery of similar issues. For some boats it is the way they have been sailed hard in heavy weather that the conditions found the weak points of a boat build and exposed them. In your neck of the woods, the boats are exposed to stresses that were not anticipated in design when they are removed and stored on the hard each year for the past 30 years.

I do not believe these discoveries will sink your boat.

It is wise to address the cosmetic and underlying tab structures to provide your boat with its best long life. It is wise to identify where the boat strong structure is and place your pads/supports there, rather then between the strong points, while on the hard.

Of note, your boat design utilizes the thinking of the time. To build a fast boat you need a light boat. The Catalina design applies this thinking to the boat build by utilizing an interior pan structure (the framing of the boat) on a thinner hull than other boat builders. Where you find failed/failing tab attachments, repairing the tabbing pan/hull connection will strengthen your boat.

If you were considering crossing the Atlantic then adding braces between the tab points might be beneficial. If you plan to race your new to you boat and will be exposed to the worst conditions the Great Lakes can conjure, then exploring additional interior bracing to help maintain the hull form would be a worthwhile effort.

If these extreme sailing plans are not in your future, then doing the cosmetic repairs, reattachment of loose tabbing, and care in how the boat is stored during winter will give you many pleasurable sailing seasons.

You made a wise choice. I hope you enjoy the 2025 season on the water.

 

[Project_Mayhem]

I agree that this isn't detrimental to the boat's structure or the 2025 sailing season. I believe the fiberglass work is best done on the water after the hull has had a chance to relax. Thankfully the tabbing is fast and easy. I'll have to learn to match gelcoat for the cosmetics but that's a topic for another thread.

The interior pan, in my opinion, is not up to the task at hand. There's clearly a few thousand pounds of weight on that pad. Either some heavier reinforcement or bracing is needed or the boat needs to be stored differently in the future. The question become which method(s) and how to go about it/them