[C320-list] Questions for Gerry Douglas

[Annie Bennett]

Rod, I would be interested in whether Gerry Douglas has any comments on the
report from NSW Maritime in Australia that 

"we inspected your boat to confirm that it was built to the plans submitted.
Unfortunately, the inspection showed that it was not. In particular, some
bulkheads were not as shown in the plans and much of the structure was not
bonded to the hull. These are major issues".

Should anyone be worried, was my boat built differently to the others or has
Australia become more demanding than the rest of the world?  In fairness to
our local dealer, if the boat hadn't had to have all the remedial work done
to satisfy survey, it might not look so messy.  I don't know when the chips
and cracks occurred but it's possible that they occurred when things like
the oven were removed from the boat and then replaced to enable the work to
be done.

The head shipwright at our marina made the rather unflattering comment at
the weekend that our new boat was the worst finished production boat he has
ever seen and that it represented a downgrade from old Topcat #812 and not
an upgrade.  A mark on the side which looked to me like a badly iced cake
with a dark line, he said looked like damage which had been repaired but not
completed properly.  The white framework to the floor hatches has cracks and
chips as well as messy paint.  The marina has provided a quote for remedial
work.  They think about 3 days to fix the floor and make the chart table fit
and make the door to the forward cabin fit.  At present, not only can you
not close this door - you can peek at anyone getting dressed through the gap
between the hinges and the door.  I think the hinges need recessing to take
care of the privacy issue.  Then the door may not need shaving back so much
to make it close.  The door to the cupboard under the basin in the head
seems slightly warped - looking down you can see air.  The marina thought I
was being a bit fussy here and should live with this in a production boat.
It wasn't warped in old Topcat.  Do these doors close snugly in most C32s?

Advice from less than happy new C32 owner - think very hard before
"upgrading" if you are generally happy with your existing boat.  Went out
for a test sail on a new X yacht 350 yesterday on the Wednesday afternoon
race with a friend who is interested.  Its finish put my boat to shame - but
X Yachts are a lot more expensive than Catalinas. On the other hand, the C32
at the Sydney Boatshow looked great.  I couldn't fault it - and I was very
impressed with the new 309.

Annie Bennett
#1073


-----Original Message-----
From: c320-list-bounces at catalina320.com
[mailto:c320-list-bounces at catalina320.com] On Behalf Of Rod Boer
Sent: Thursday, August 17, 2006 11:05 AM
To: C320-List
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Questions for Gerry Douglas


I will add these to the list.  Thanks.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <jonvez at comcast.net>
To: "C320-List" <c320-list at catalina320.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 7:52 AM
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Questions for Gerry Douglas


> Rod,
>
> A couple of questions that come to mind:
>
> 1) Does Mr. Douglas see any major modifications coming up in the near 
> future for the 320
>
> 2)Was there a production run of boats that experienced the lack of curing 
> to the interior coatings? I know this topic has been brought up before on 
> this list and I'm not sure how widespread it is, but I certainly have the 
> problem and would be interested in understanding what my options are for 
> resolving.
>
>
> -------------- Original message -------------- 
> From: "Rod Boer" <rod.boer1 at verizon.net>
>
>> All,
>>
>> It is August 15th and I only have 2 or 3 questions for Gerry. Gerry is 
>> not
>> going to have a whole lot to talk about.
>>
>> Allan Fields or anyone else for that matter - Are there any questions 
>> from the
>> last question and answer session that we did not record the answers? If 
>> so we
>> can ask them again. Please send any questions directly to me as soon as
>> possible so that I have time to categorize and provide them to Gerry in 
>> advance.
>> Thanks.
>>
>> Note that any technical articles for the November issue of the Mainsheet 
>> will be
>> needed within the next week because I will be leaving a week early for 
>> the
>> rendezvous in San Diego and after the rendezvous will be too late. 
>> Thanks.
>>
>> Rod Boer
>> C320 IA Editor