1987 MK 1 Catalina 34 Hanging Locker Storage

By Jon Windt; Della Jean

NOTE - Before doing any projects, I highly recommend that you first go through the “Critical Upgrades” list and verify that your boat has all of the applicable items addressed. There is a link on the Message Board (copied here) entitled “CRITICAL UPGRADES – DO THESE OR ELSE!!!” that will take you to them. It is a good way to both learn your boat and make sure it is safe. Don’t put it off.

Hanging Locker Storage

I purchased my 1987 MK 1 Catalina 34, hull #493 in April 2015. There aren’t many places to put food and drinks on the 1987 MK1 boat, and the ones that do exist require removing cushions or covers. Since I don’t use the hanging/wet locker just aft of the Navigation Station as either, I decided it was a good candidate to use for additional storage. I don’t use it as a hanging/wet locker because there isn’t a drain for the water that would accumulate in the bottom to get to the bilge. Instead I added a couple ring nuts to the winch bolts in the head as the hanging/wet locker as shown in photo (1).

(1)

I decided this is a good choice because there is a lot of space inside, but without shelves or drawers it isn’t very useful as storage. Piling stuff up and closing the door isn’t very effective storage, especially when you want to get something out of there. The purpose of this project is to add sliding drawers plus a top shelf in the hanging/wet locker to provide for more storage that is convenient to use.

The Design Goals

Add drawers in the hanging locker for food and drinks, screws, shackles, chargers, batteries, spare winch handles, etc.. 2. Drawers to visually match the rest of the cabinetry inside of the boat as best as possible. 3. All drawers to be easily removable for access inside the locker, and to be able to return it back to an empty locker if needed/desired in the future.