Catalina 34 MkI Fin keel

Sailboat specifications

The Catalina 34 MkI is a 34’6” (10.52m) cruising sailboat designed by Frank Butler (United States). She was built between 1985 and 1996 by Catalina Yachts (United States). The Fin keel version displays a deeper fin allowing a lower center of gravity and extra performance especially upwind.

The Catalina 34 MkI is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Wing keel and Tall rig version (see all the versions compared).

Catalina 34 MkI's main features

Model: Catalina 34 MkI
Version: Fin keel
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruising sailboat
Sailboat builder: Catalina Yachts
Sailboat designer: Frank Butler
Country: United States
Construction: Hull and deck: GRP (glass reinforced polyester)
Number of hulls built: About 1400
First built hull: 1985
Last built hull: 1996
Appendages: Keel : fin without bulb
Helm: Single helm wheel
Rudder: Single spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

Catalina 34 MkI's main dimensions

Hull length: 34’ 6”10.52 m
Waterline length: 29’ 10”9.09 m
Beam (width): 11’ 8”3.58 m
Draft: 5’ 7”1.7 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 11934 lb5413 kg
Ballast weight: 4993 lb2265 kg
Ballast type: Cast iron

Catalina 34 MkI's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 528 ft²49.05 m²
I iFore triangle height (from mast foot to fore stay top attachment): 44’13.41 m
J iFore triangle base (from mast foot to bottom of forestay): 13’ 6”4.11 m
P iMainsail hoist measurement (from tack to head): 38’ 6”11.73 m
E iMainsail foot measurement (from tack to clew): 12’3.66 m
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Keel stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 1
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire

Catalina 34 MkI's performances

Upwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size. Upwind: under 18 the ratio indicates a cruise oriented sailboat with limited performances especially in light wind, while over 25 it indicates a fast sailboat.: 171 ft²/T15.91 m²/T
Displacement-length ratio (DLR) iThe Displacement Length Ratio (DLR) is a figure that points out the boat's weight compared to its waterline length. The DLR is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement in tons by the cube of one one-hundredth of the waterline length (in feet). The DLR can be used to compare the relative mass of different sailboats no matter what their length: a DLR less than 180 is indicative of a really light sailboat (race boat made for planning), while a DLR greater than 300 is indicative of a heavy cruising sailboat.: 204
Ballast ratio iThe Ballast ratio is an indicator of stability; it is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement by the mass of the ballast. Since the stability depends also of the hull shapes and the position of the center of gravity, only the boats with similar ballast arrangements and hull shapes should be compared. The higher the ballast ratio is, the greater is the stability.: 42 %
Critical hull speed iAs a ship moves in the water, it creates standing waves that oppose its movement. This effect increases dramatically the resistance when the boat reaches a speed-length ratio (speed-length ratio is the ratio between the speed in knots and the square root of the waterline length in feet) of about 1.2 (corresponding to a Froude Number of 0.35) . This very sharp rise in resistance, between speed-length ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, is insurmountable for heavy sailboats and so becomes an apparent barrier. This leads to the concept of "hull speed". The hull speed is obtained by multiplying the square root of the waterline length (in feet) by 1.34.: 7.32 knots