Spirit of 76

[Joanne]

I'm presently restoring a 1976 Catalina 22. The boat has a red hull, white & blue deck and an emblum "Spirit of 76" on the sides. Question: Was this a bicentinial model from the factory or just a owners mods?

 

[Gill]

Restoration !?

I have been restoring and sailing my '22 for some time now. So I am excited about anyone else doing the same. Maybe we can trade info. Such as, I am not sure about your red white and blue scheme but mine was originally yellow ( now blue ) and that might be a sign of the times which might indicate that your was a special edition. A few questions: were your orinal chain plates wood. Does your crack for the swing keel have a threaded crank; if so what keeps it from unthreading, and coming off. Is your foredeck getting weak, I guess, from the UV's and deflecting underfoot?

 

[LaDonna Bubak - Planet Catalina]

Doubtful

For some reason, I doubt the factory promoted a model such as you described. I know Catalina (as most builders do) makes modifications to their standard, so someone probably special ordered it that way. Sounds pretty groovy!LaDonna

 

[Tom]

Spirit of the first owner?

I would think it was done by the previous owner or ordered that way. There is one sure way to find out, call Catalina. I don't have the factory number handy but I think there web site is list here under "links". You will find them very helpful.Gus.... my winch handle also unscrews. This allows you to remove it when not sailing. It unthreads in the "down direction" for the keel and does not present a problem. I would check your forward deck, it could be a rot problem. The deck has a core of plywood to help strengthen it. If water has leaked into this wood core it may have started to rot. This is not an uncommon problem. There is a post on this forum concerning this subject.  gus....

 

[Tom]

Opps

Sorry, right web site wrong forum. There is a post in "Ask an Owner" about deck problems. Sounds like you guys might be able to help each other!