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Thanks all for your VERY informative replies and for sharing your real world experiences. Will take a tape measure to what's left of my current Genoa.  At the moment thinking on the lines of a 140 with luff pad for better reefing on the furling.  Hoping this will give me heavier wind handleability in the spring and fall while remaining entertaining during the lighter summer months here on Lake St Clair, Michigan.

Was planning on going with a heavier 7+ Dacron for durability (don't want to be repurchasing in 3-4 years), but I see there are a number of other materials and Dacron hybrids to investigate.  Assuming the range in cost/value is also considerable.  Also starting to read about different cuts, flat or radial, as well as high vs regular vs low that can impact both the performance and the visibility.  Definitely staying away from the deck sweepers I am used to from my racing days....too many calls to "skirt" over the rails.

Anyway, maybe I am overthinking this (I tend to do that), but again any feedback appreciated. I do like the idea of a high cut for visibility from the cockpit.  Assuming a radial cut genoa will improve downwind performance but plan on purchasing an Asym. too, so maybe not necessary??

As always thankyou in advance for your assistance here.  The education never ends!

First season for me with a 1986 Catalina 34 MI tall rig, fin keel.  Foresail is in shreds due to age.  Literally coming apart at the seams.  Maybe the original sail?  Looking for advice to replace.  Planning to cruise NOT race on Lake St Clair, Lake Erie, Lake Huron and maybe further afield.

Pretty sure the current sail is a 130.  Have many years of sailing (racing) on other boats, first year of ownership and will most likely be light on crew.  Boat seems to move quite well in 15 knots, given the condition of the sails.  Will a 150/155 be overkill, particularly for the tall rig?  Assuming I can easily reduce size with the roller furling, but don't want to regret my purchase so reaching out for experiences from others.  Should I reduce my workout and go 130 again?

Any advice as well as resources on retailers/sources of new sails appreciated.

[1986 Catalina 34 tall rig, with roller furling foresail(genoa?)]

1986 Catalina 34 tall rig, with roller furling foresail(genoa?)

Boat is finally back in the water after the winter break.  This will be my first sailing season as the owner.  Previously I had been racing, working foredeck and love flying spinnaker. (Yes, must admit to being a spinnaker addict). Now plan to go cruising, NOT racing, with family and friends throughout the Great Lakes, but really want to add an asym. to fly as opportunities arise.

Trying to work out how best to rig/modify the top of the mast to handle the asymmetrical spinnaker halyard. I have added a block to the big bail (D ring) attached to the top/front of the mast.  The mast has two sheaves inside at the same level at the front, presumably for two foresail halyards.  The halyards exit from the sheaves several inches below the top of the mast.  The halyards run down from the sheaves to smaller bails, then run free in a downward direction.  Was planning to continue using the starboard sheave for the roller furling genoa, and utilize the existing port sheave for the spin halyard (abandoning the small bail) but looks like the forestay and other stuff may interfere as the spin halyard exits the mast and travels to the large spin block on the D bail.

Not sure if the mast is the original, or modified by a previous owner(s), but the layout seems different, as least as to how the parts are spaced/scaled relative to the diagram provided in the owners manual.  I am confident the new block on the large bail will clear the roller furling, (it's well above), just struggling where/how the halyard should exit the mast (unobstructed) as it travels to my new block on the large (D) fore-mast bail.

As mentioned, mast is mounted and boat is in the water.   After several hours dangling from the mast top (installing wind transducer too) getting a little exasperated.

Any advice, recommendations and if possible photos would be greatly appreciated.  Hopefully my description above is not too confusing.

Thanks all, in advance.


     

Thanks guys.  No wonder!    So I wasn't going blind/crazy.  Onward and upwards.

Revisiting this series of posts as the originator.  Thought I would provide an update.  I have now received a new complete autopilot system, the Raymarine Ev-100 Evolution Wheel(T10752) to replace my old inoperative system.  Seems like more work to fix/upgrade the old system, after much reading.  I will also benefit from the latest guidance/compass technology incorporated in the new system.

Let the fun and games begin....So visited the boat yesterday, as temperature was above 50 degrees where the boat is parked on the hard.  Began deconstructing the old components/wiring.  The new NMEA SeaTalk NG wiring is entirely different so probably won't be utilizing anything from the original install back in 86, when the boat was built.

Successfully removed the old control unit mounted to the right (starboard) of the wheel, and trying to trace the three sets of wires to understand how the old system was set up.  Ran out of time after dismantling multiple panels in the aft cabin and elsewhere, but try as I may I have been unable to locate the ACU (gray box) or the compass (white puck).  Assume there are two units as with the new system, so can anyone confirm and advise potential locations to minimize the wild goose chase?

Been reading up a lot on the criticality of the locations, as well as planning ahead for the wiring.  (Dave Spencer, big thank you for sharing the detailed diagram of the install in a previous post above - very helpful). 

Hoping I don't need the ITC-5 converter to operate the compass.  If I understand correctly this should share info. directly through the SeaTalk NG backbone once connected. 

Will get back to the boat this weekend, so will share progress as available.  Must say the new components look like quality gear.  Exciting times!!
 

Initially thought I would bypass this issue by going wireless, but have been dissuaded by many advising that a wired solution is much more reliable and robust.  Boat is on the hard, mast remains in place at the moment.  I believe the 1986 vintage first year of production was the only year Catalina 34s had the desk stepped mast, so there are probably very few around.  Hoping a member with knowledge/experience may be able to help.

Considering buying a Raymarine DST800 wind transducer that will run to a converter (ITC-5) and then to a NMEA backbone for the autopilot and instruments.  Currently no wind transducer is in place.  Hoping to run the cable with the mast up to avoid significant charges to pull the mast and resituate. No other reason to drop the mast at the moment as everything was checked recently by the previous owner.  Current status is there is a very roughly cut window at the base of the mast (deck level) on the Starboard side. Two sets of wires with connections come out of the mast and lay on the deck. Not at all elegant and definitely vulnerable to the elements.  One is the antenna connection, the second the mast light cables.  There is also a loop of wire, not sure where this runs, purpose undetermined.

The small window does not allow my hand entry or easy viewing/tracing, but I have read within the base of the mast the wires pass through a hole in the deck possibly through some 90 degree protective conduit, and then travel through the mast support post below deck inside the cabin.  Can anyone confirm this or advise challenges of running the wires from deck level to below?  Reasonably confident I can run the wires through the mast from the top using gravity and a bike chain/para chord (recommended) as I have undertaken this successfully on other boats.  Also read that there may be conduit inside the mast for all cabling to be run with the purpose of avoiding noise created by slapping.  This information pertains to other sailboats boats but NOT a Catalina 34.

Thank you.

 

Newbie to diesel engines, but thinking about flushing the heat exchanger/freshwater cooling side of my Universal 25, Catalina 34, 1986 vintage.  Boat is on the hard for the winter.  Has only sailed in fresh water (Great Lakes).

When winterizing i ran the engine with antifreeze to displace the water. Hopefully all good for the spring.  My question is before I return the boat to the water I could apply a similar process, but run Zep/Lime Away/other liquid(??) instead of antifreeze, leave for an hour with the engine off, and then run again with fresh water to flush.   Not looking to inadvertently create problems as temp. settles nicely at 180 degrees F once warm.  Just thinking, given the age of the boat may be a good idea to clean the heat exchanger.  No idea when it was previously cleaned if at all. 

Think you misread my message.  No worries I do it all the time.  It is Raymarine that may not support Navionics.  You are correct in that Garmin is in partnership with Navionics.  All over their chart plotter and other product packaging in the store.

As the originator of this message, wanted to reiterate my thanks for the great input on this somewhat complex question.  Here is where I am....

Seems I can't go wrong by starting with the purchase of an EV-100 autopilot kit.  Top of my Christmas list    Only down side I see is that some of my legacy components could still be utilized if working, but given their age and the good feedback I have received on this system, thinking it makes sense to proceed.  I am also finding there are considerable savings in buying a bundled package vs. piecemealing the components together.  For the next stage may wait until the boat returns to the water as no doubt other things will come up as a priority once the 2024 sailing season is underway.  Also have had hints from others that an ipad/navionics may be coming my way so at least I will know where I am when off shore!! 

My next thought is to address the wind monitoring solution.  Going back and forth on wired/wireless, but leaning towards a wireless solution as this seems to make sense in terms of connectivity, both with a wireless wind transducer on the mast, and to connect the ipad Navionics with the autopilot (still unresolved).  Found a cost effective kit that includes three items, the Raymarine wireless gateway, the wireless wind transducer for the masthead, and a portable dongle that will provide any data available on the network, in this case wind (only) as my speedo and depth gauge are legacy gear and may not connect until I network them (how TBD??).

As you can see I am being cautious, taking this in stages as I learn more about available solutions.  Objective is that whatever I implement is extendable and can be integrated into my ultimate system. Interestingly, Raymarine stressed a limit of 50 feet for the height of the mast to be sure of a robust connection.  I believe my tall rig is 47 feet, so should be OK.  To be safe they suggested buying a Tack Tic (another new item not familiar with)  installed on the mast to address reliability of the wireless signal, should I have problems.  This would also better serve the mobile data dongle as I move around the boat.

With sailing short/single handed, very much hope to have a solution to keep the boat into the wind while am raising the sails, so continuing to explore and learn.  Please feel free to comment on my path of action, particularly if you have experience in any of these components.

For info. in my travels and in the interest of sharing useful info with others I learned that Raymarine will no longer support Navionics since they have partnered with competitor Garman.  Not sure if this presents an immediate or future problem, but thought I would share anyway.

Thanks again.  And apologies for the long post!

BIG THANKYOU everyone, for providing some great feedback.  Have read and reread your solutions to my similar challenge.  Very informative.  Seems I am on the right track - sort of!!

I have an ST4000+ autopilot.  To be honest, I have not played with it yet, but on the advice of the previous owner had assumed it was inoperative as he had suggested.  Lots to investigate further, but keeping an eye on the ultimate goal, and taking a modest approach here is where I am.,,,

1. Replace autopilot with EV-100 kit, wheel version.  From my understanding to get the most from this, I will need some sort of wind instruments to talk with the autopilot.  Also nice to have!  Trying to determine best solution here, as unclear if the EV-100 supplied MFD will read/display the wind data (speed and direction) or if I need another display. Seems I would be purchasing redundancy if I purchase the entire dedicated wind setup (mast head instrument plus display) but uncertain.  Want to be sure it works hand-in-hand with the autopilot to allow the sail-to-wind setting on the autopilot to be used.
2. So question is what would be the appropriate wind instrument set up.  I can run cable in the mast as necessary, but understand a WiFi set up easy easier.  However as I don't have wifi on the boat it seems like another rabbit hole??
3.  Question - is it worth getting wifi installed now or maybe later?  The answer maybe in my plan to use an ipad/Navionics software, but I appreciate it's another can of worms to integrate navigation with the autopilot, either immediately or down the road.   (Interesting that the Raymarine Chart Plotters (more costly) uses Navionics.

And final question, as the legacy depth gauge and speedo still work(?) will these also be duplicates of the data provided with the autopilot display.  (Maybe I'm confusing the included autopilot display capabilities with the MFD (i70) that seems to do everything???

Thoughts?  Again, as you can I'm see somewhat confused.  As I have just purchased the boat funds are a bit limited, so want to be sure the route taken isn't inadvertently introducing redundancies or unnecessary expenses.   I did visit and talk with a Raymarine local dealer who seemed unable or uncertain to answer some of the basic questions and was also not offering any deals at the time, so not hugely confident. 

Thanks again for you feedback and assistance on this journey.

I am the new to me owner of a 1986 Catalina 34 Tall Rig.  Presently reading up as much as I can to learn what I will need when Spring 2024 arrives.  (Boat is on the hard in it's winter cradle right now).

Even though I have sailed for many years on other peoples boats, I have not really familiarized myself with the nav and instruments available, as I am usually racing
- foredeck or at the mast.  I now plan to undertake more leisurely cruising on the Great Lakes and anticipate a small crew or possibly single handing once the boat is correctly outfitted and I am able to build some degree of confidence.

At the moment the original wheel auto pilot does not work, the speed indicator is not believable, and I have no wind instruments or navigation of any type.  About the only thing that does work is the depth gauge; good thing given the 5ft 7" draft!

Please assume I don't know what I don't know. I was first considering a Raymarine EV-100 replacement system for the auto pilot, plus an ipad with accompanying navigation software, but can't find any info on how these would integrate to allow for chart plotting a course, setting way points etc.  More I look into it, the more complex it quickly becomes with systems and terms I am not familiar with, as well as some big holes in what I ultimately I hope to accomplish in terms of an affordable but (somewhat if not completely integrated) system, or at least a system where the components talk to each other.  Thought I would tap into the collective knowledge and experience of this forum for advice and recommendations, plus perhaps some reliable reading resources to get me back on track.

Thank you in advance for your good input and time.

   

Thanks everyone for the great input and feedback.  Completed the first few steps yesterday.  Ran the engine and flushed antifreeze through, displacing the water. Hardest part was removing the hose.  Fresh water tank now has pink. Determined I only have one fresh water tank on the starboard side. Ran pump and opened taps.  Hot and cold now runs pink in the kitchen basin, but nothing in the bathroom basin/shower.  Stop cock must be closed(?).  Have to do a stop cock hunt for all drain points on next visit.

Somewhat worrisome, I had about 1 1/2" of clear water in the bilge.  Pumped it out and completely dried with a towel.  Will see if water accumulates again, but I recognize the boat is NOT shrink wrapped yet.

Also added distilled water to the two marine batteries.  They are now on a solar charger that seems to be doing its job.  Will see if full voltage returns after the cold start on the hard for the engine flush.

Thanks again everyone.  No doubt I will have other questions for later.

Just acquired a 1986 Catalina 34 Mk 1 tall rig.  Apart from the maiden voyage to bring her home, my first task is to winterize.  Somewhat daunting given the importance of doing it right.  I have read the very good winterizing guide on this forum plus reviewing multiple posts and videos on line from others but inevitably few basic questions remain....

Some background, the boat is located is SE Michigan and I am used to working on cars, so hope to climb the steep leaning curve quickly.

My engine is the M25 3-cylinder diesel (21 hp).  Runs great so far.  I understand it has an open and closed cooling system.  In which system is the thermostat located?  Reason I ask is I plan on flushing the open system with pink antifreeze and want to be sure to clear all remaining water.  Assume their is no thermostat to block the flow.  I have NOT found reference to running the engine to a warmed (t.stat open) state.  My conclusion is that the T. stat is in the closed loop where the green engine coolant resides.  Please confirm/advise.

Correct engine oil - recommendations.  This is very important on a modern car so I tend to overthink it.  Was thinking Rotella (Shell) T6 full synthetic 5W-40.

Just read on this forum that the trans oil should also be addressed - type, weight, how?

Think I am clear on the fuel additives and and to make every effort to displace any water from all pipes, drains and tanks (aside from fuel tank) by adding pink antifreeze to each the three systems--sanitary, potable.  I believe there are two (fresh water?) tanks - aft  and to port. (Sanitary is on the starboard side.)  Do they both hold/carry fresh water, or is one topped up with lake/sea water?

Thank you in advance for your advice and time.