Now that boating season is just around the corner I thought instead of being so technical I would say a good word about my friends at Buck Bay Shelfish Farm on Orcas Island in Olga. Mark and Toni have a first class operation for Crabs, Salmon, and assorted Shellfish. Here is proof about how much they make me smile.
Mike
Thank you to all my customers who contacted us this year. It was a robust year in sales especially in customized requests for Companionway Doors, Boarding Ladders,and Interior Tables. Companionway Doors were the top selling items and Teak Companionway Doors were equal to the Starboard Doors as many of you sought the high strength and weight savings in teak. Boarding Ladders were dominated by orders for special ladders that accommodated special needs. Interior Tables this year mostly included inlays to make them artistic and personal. We look forward to continuing our excellence in offering specialty items for the new year.
Happy New Year
Mike
If you are thinking of giving a gift from us and fear that we can not make it in time and ship it, most often we will take the order and supply a picture to show what is on order to place in a holiday gift card. Also it allows for the person receiving the gift to participate in the design and production of the gift. So please gives a call if we can help for producing any cockpit tables, interior tables, companionway doors, and boarding ladders.
Sincerely,
Mike
ust a reminder that orders placed early help deliveries by Xmas for cockpit tables, companionway doors, and retrofit windows.
Thanks,
Mike
As pointed out to me on the older Cruising Concepts site, screws for the retrofit windows kits are still shown. They are no longer used and have been updated with a newer sealant used by Catalina Yachts. I know some of you still like the idea of the screws but eliminating them gets rid of one more problem. The problem was stress point contact of the plastic hole against the thread of the screw which caused stress cracks to propagate to the periphery of the window some times. We are in the process of up dating our sites. Please see us at CatalinaOnly.com.
While keyed and combination cam locks for entry ways with rotating arms for Companionway doors are popular none under a $100 wholesale cost are made of all stainless steel. In spite of claims otherwise the internal lock mechanism is made out of steel and zinc. It turns out that only the trim ring outside maybe stainless steel. Usually the stainless steel is nonmagnetic for the 300 series metal. So put a magnet to the rotating arm to prove it. The only keyed entry way made from stainless steel is a hasp from Seadog provided by CruisingConcepts.com on their companionway doors.
Don’t get me wrong I will sell you what you want but honestly that little rotating arm’s bending moment requires so little effort that I am ashamed to try to make any claim of robustness. My door construction is the the best and very stout. To complement it with a lock that is a little bit better is so easy and it takes
a key all from Seadog Line.
Mike
With more Retrofit Hatches in production I would like to share the reasons for buying them. The most often cited reason by customers is for letting in light just like the more modern boats after 1986 with respect to Catalina. Just like the more modern Lewmar and Bomar hatches you do not step on them even though my hatches are 1/2 inch thick both for safety and scratching. The tendency is to still step on that area because you always have had. With a new boat some how we are very aware not to step on the aluminum cased hatches.
The hatches are formed on an investment casting and come out very close to each other. Like every boat they are just a little different. If you are ordering one I have you, as depicted in the Retrofit Hatch video by Joe Cicero on Youtube, measure the arc on the side of the hinges so that we may deliver one to you that matches closely. The rest of the fit is dependent on the lock down and the resilience of the gasket. A new gasket may need to be acquired from Catalina if yours is torn, flattened, and no longer able to compress and bounce back. Hope this helps.
Mike
Companionway Doors
One of the features that we really liked on my folks Catalina 36, were the teak companionway doors that they had made. While at the Seattle boat show this winter, we ran into the same gentleman who made those doors and asked him to make some for Legacy.
He has a website at Cruising Concepts and does nice work in teak for all kinds of projects. He isn’t cheap, and he isn’t fast, but I like everything that I’ve seen him do.
The Catalina 400 comes with the typical teak companionway boards. While these are a great for using when out in heavy seas, they aren’t the most convenient for coastal cruising. Catalina provides a handy shelf in the cabin for the boards, but that is space that we would like to use for other things. So the answer was to install some hinged companionway doors that could be left in place, or removed if you like.
My woodworking skills are not that good. Well, most of my skills aren’t that good. So while the installation is not that difficult, it did take me a few hours, which was a couple hours longer than it should have. During the installation, you do have to use a sanding block to adjust the fit of the doors for your own boat. If I can do it, anyone can.
I was pleased with the way they turned out. We opted for teak doors with screens and removable plexiglass windows. Rather than varnish, I elected to just oil the doors.
From outside, doors closed. Notice how you can’t see into the cabin, but just see reflections on the windows.
Outside, doors open.
Inside cabin, doors closed. Notice how well you can see through the dark plexiglass.
Posted by David Hays
Hi Mike!
It’s Cheryl from Mid-Life Cruising!. I visited your site and was pleased to see our boat (Nirvana) on your Catalina page … cool! I just wish our teak still looked that good! I haven’t spoken with you in a while, but I thought I’d let you know that Ken and I are really happy with our retrofit ports! We installed them in October, 2011 and no leaks! We also love the sleek, new look
… inside and out.
I’ve been meaning to send you a link that I wrote on our blog when we installed the ports … better late than never! I’ve had over 1025 page views on this one particular post, so I hope it sends some business your way. The link is New Catalina Retrofit Windows
Hope you’re doing well and feel free to add this post to your site if you’d like!
Companionway Doors
One of the features that we really liked on my folks Catalina 36, were the teak companionway doors that they had made. While at the Seattle boat show this winter, we ran into the same gentleman who made those doors and asked him to make some for Legacy.
He has a website at Cruising Concepts and does nice work in teak for all kinds of projects. He isn’t cheap, and he isn’t fast, but I like everything that I’ve seen him do.
The Catalina 400 comes with the typical teak companionway boards. While these are a great for using when out in heavy seas, they aren’t the most convenient for coastal cruising. Catalina provides a handy shelf in the cabin for the boards, but that is space that we would like to use for other things. So the answer was to install some hinged companionway doors that could be left in place, or removed if you like.
My woodworking skills are not that good. Well, most of my skills aren’t that good. So while the installation is not that difficult, it did take me a few hours, which was a couple hours longer than it should have. During the installation, you do have to use a sanding block to adjust the fit of the doors for your own boat. If I can do it, anyone can.
I was pleased with the way they turned out. We opted for teak doors with screens and removable plexiglass windows. Rather than varnish, I elected to just oil the doors.
From outside, doors closed. Notice how you can’t see into the cabin, but just see reflections on the windows.
Outside, doors open.
Inside cabin, doors closed. Notice how well you can see through the dark plexiglass.
Posted by David Hays
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