Hello All,
I just purchased a 2004 Sun Cat last week and I am very new to Catboats so look forward to picking up knowledge from CPYOA and returning my boat to sailing condition.
I just sold my West Wight Potter 19 in January. It was a great boat and very clean, but 45 minutes to rig and de-rig at the boat ramp made sailing a little bit of fun sandwiched between too much work and stress. I have a Sea Pearl 21 (actually 2 of them) and am waiting on new sails to be delivered but Sea Pearl is a very tender boat, and when I saw the Sun Cat for sale, I decided maybe that's the better coastal camper sailboat. I am 6'2" so not sure how long I'll keep this one, but I will fix it up as I go and if I like the sailing, I will keep my eye out for a Horizon Cat, or maybe look into the Chesapeake Light Craft Pocketship.
When I picked up my Sun Cat, both portlights and the front hatch were caulked closed so first thing I did was search for replacements. I live near Com-Pac office in Clearwater and was able to drive over to their office and get two portlights and a front hatch from Matt Hutchens right before they sold the Com-Pac parts inventory to someone who will be the future source for the remaining parts (No, I don't know who)
I have repaired the scupper drains, gaff gooseneck, led running lights and installed a masthead light, and a cabin fan, plus cut and replaced the missing starboard hatch cover in the cabin.
I will be using a Tohatsu 5hp Propane outboard, and am waiting on West Marine to deliver me an aluminum propane tank that will mount where the gas tank normally goes in the cockpit, but I have a Honda 2.3 available as a backup.
Right now I am looking for a source for cabin cushions. I will search the forums but open to any suggests for source in Florida.
Cheers
Jacktar
Years ago I bought a roll of 3" foam from Home Depot and cut them to fit, then sewed up covers for cushions. If you don't sew any boat/awning shop would probably do it for a fee. I also made a platform to go level with the cabin v berths and made cushions to go in between so we could have a larger sleeping area. There are probably some old posts about it.