Catalina 470 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

Below the waterline the 470's hull is solid fiberglass with a vinylester skin coat, while the topsides are balsa-cored using Baltec AL 600 material and the deck is a balsa-cored sandwich of chop, mat, and roving. A collision bulkhead closes the aft end of the anchor locker, and deck hardware lands on pre-tapped 3/8-inch aluminum plates bedded into the structure. The 9,020-pound lead ballast and 27,270-pound displacement give a ballast-displacement ratio around 33 percent, and the limit of positive stability is listed at 126 degrees, supporting her CE Category A Ocean rating anchor. The elliptical keel and rudder, with a 7-foot-10-inch fin or optional shoal winglet keel, complete an underbody meant for bluewater work rather than sheltered-water cruising.

Rig and Sail Handling

The double-spreader rig steps on deck atop a half-inch aluminum plate welded to a 5-1/2-inch compression post. Sail controls and internal halyards lead aft to Harken 44 two-speed winches and Lewmar clutches, while primary winches are Harken 66 self-tailers, and Garhauer supplies most blocks plus a stainless vang. A Schaefer 3100 roller furler and a standard Dutchman flaking system manage the 1,010 square feet of canvas, and the chainplates use a ball-and-socket arrangement through a round deck hole rather than a slot, which the builder claimed simplifies load path and deck sealing anchor. The masthead sloop plan with a 58.25-foot foretriangle and 51.5-foot mainsail luff keeps her sail-area-to-displacement ratio near 17.9, enough to reach her calculated 8.5-knot hull speed in competent hands.

Accommodations

The 14-foot beam opens to 11 feet of room amidships, with 7-foot-4-inch saloon headroom and a centerline length near 11 feet 6 inches. A C-shaped settee seats six to eight around a polished table, and stowage beneath sits in a watertight compartment. Berths carry 7-inch residential-grade mattresses on powder-coated springs, and lockers switch on interior lights as doors open. The galley uses Grancoat counters and a three-burner Princess stove with oven and halogen-lit stainless hood. Ten Lewmar ports including two in the cockpit, plus low-profile Ocean hatches, feed light below, and recessed cabintop handrails and solid-teak wear edges show a finished interior rather than a bare production shell.

Deck and Cockpit

Cockpit seats run 6 feet 2 inches with 11-inch backrests, and a 39-inch table seats four. Twenty-nine-inch stanchions and a companionway with seven steps covering the Yanmar engine speak to a practical offshore cockpit. Three pre-molded recesses under the boom house an eight-person life raft, and the standard Maxwell 1200 windlass anchors the bow. The split three-connector shore-power system and illuminated circuit breakers round out a deck plan built for liveaboard cruising.

Systems and Ownership

The Yanmar 4JHTE diesel makes 76 horsepower on 84 gallons of fuel, with 214 gallons of water and two independent waste systems. A 118-page owner's manual diagrams every mechanical system, and the standard electronics nook includes a chart-sized table, a slide-out TV/VHS and Sony CD changer, and space for navigation gear. Writing in Practical Sailor, the survey found the 470's construction and systems documentation unusually complete for a production boat of her size anchor.

The Verdict

The Catalina 470 is a purpose-built ocean cruiser from Catalina's Gerry Douglas era, pairing a balsa-cored deck and solid-glass bottom with a documented CE Category A rating and a 126-degree stability limit. She is roomy without being bloated, and her led-aft controls and standard sail-handling gear suit short-handed passage-making. The interior finish and systems transparency make her a sensible used-bluewater candidate.

Pros