Association Forum - C250 Reviews?

Assn Members Area · Join

Home.

Association Forum

Ships Store

Cruising

Racing

Technical Tips

Photo Gallery - New

Boat Search - Updated

Manuals & Brochures

Swap Meet

Links

Officer Flag Line & Staff

Bylaws & Constitution

Members Area

Join the Association

Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.

Association Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 250 Specific Forum

C250 Reviews?

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

River Harley
Navigator

Member Avatar

132 Posts

Initially Posted - 11/26/2002 : 22:55:27

Can anyone refer me to a good rerview on the 250 fixed wing-keel model? I am particularly interested in sailing characteristics and desirability as a cruiser.

Edited by - on

Bryan Beamer
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1038 Posts

Response Posted - 11/27/2002 : 09:56:21

I Think the best reviews you will get is from the owners on this site. Read some of the past postings it will give you a good feel. For professional reviews check out Practical Salior. They review all types of boats. I will be happy to answer any questions you might have about the c250 wing.

Bryan Beamer
Daylight Again
C250wk #495

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 11/27/2002 : 11:08:21

That I know of... most cruising info on the C250 will be found in either my stories posted on this site (cruising and stories section) or Herb Paysons narrations of a couple of he and Nancy's trailer cruises (Sail magazine). Sorry, don't have the references.

I have two more stories that are written but not polished and when done will be submitted. One of those is both a cruising story with added technical thought relative to the 250 and cruising.

Unfortunate to your request, both my and Herbs experiences are with the water ballast model.

As to desirability as a cruiser, I'm guessing here and may miss the mark... there may be more cruising done on the water ballast than the wing. That statement may seem odd. My reason for thinking is simply because of the trailerbility. The C250 needs several mods to be suitable for cruising...and I'm thinking those who don't have a trailering issue... may choose boats all ready equipped for cruising and perhaps slightly larger. I'm thinking that 28-30 footers can be bought used for what a new wing cost and not need so many upgrades.

However, I may be missing the point that many wing keel owners will make trailer cruises. Certainly many C25 owners have even though it required a 3/4 ton big block to get there. At any rate, its likely that a 25 ft boat will be used more for cruising when its in conjunction with trailering.

For many of us who are land locked from good cruising waters, a 25 footer capable of trailer cruising as well as local lake sailing fits the bill nicely. For those who slip or moor with access to coastal cruising waters... where cruising is a planned part of their sailing, a little larger boat is usually wanted.

Arlyn C-250 W/B #224

Edited by - on

kirkh
Deckhand

Members Avatar

USA
17 Posts

Response Posted - 11/30/2002 : 21:13:03

River,

I purchased a 2000 WK a couple of months ago. I did quite a bit of research both online and actual sailing on one numerous times. I also spent many hours going thru the posts on this forum and the wonderful articles everyone has submitted. This forum really helped me make the decision on the 250 and I have not yet been disappointed. I have a family with 2 girls (4 and 7) and it has worked out great. They actually give up birthday parties to go sailing!

Online research is limited but here were a couple I remember looking at.

This compares a 250 (fin keel I think) to a Bremer but is very short: http://www.cruisingworld.com/cw_article.php?articleID=1143

This does a great job of discussing the 250 in general but is based on a WB and not a WK. It has excerpts from Practical Sailor previously mentioned: http://www.texassailor.com/psc250.htm

Kirk
C250wk #490

Edited by - on

Rick Evans
1st Mate

Members Avatar

USA
38 Posts

Response Posted - 12/22/2002 : 09:59:57

My suggestion is the 250 Wing Keel. Yes, I'm prejudiced because I have one. But I didn't get it by accident. I checked out both the water ballast and the wing and picked the wing on purpose. There were two primary reasons. First,the wing keel has about 10 inches more headroom inside the cabin. With two sons the shortest of whom is 6'3", we need every inch. Second, the centerboard system for the water ballast is just one more thing that can break and with my luck, I'm sure I'd find a way to do it. The fixed keel on a WK boat is idiot proof and maintenance free. This is not to say the water ballast shouldn't be considered. If you are going to trailer the boat, the WB is the clear winner. Much easier to trail. If you have nice sandy beaches in your area, the WB can be beached and you can hop off your bow onto dry land. If you have very shallow waters you need to explore, the WB obviously takes less draft. However, my lake is deep, the shores are rocky and I don't trail the boat anywhere. I love the big cabin on the WK. The extra space makes the water ballast seem claustrophobic to me but, then again, we're a tall family. Good luck.

Edited by - on

ssteakley
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
467 Posts

Response Posted - 12/22/2002 : 21:38:21

Arlyn,
please define Cruising...
I am out twice a week cruising my 250WK on a landlocked lake. Enjoy every minute. I do race occasionaly but most of the time I think I am Cruising?
Just for fun
Steve Steakley
Moon Chaser #385

Edited by - on

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

USA
5909 Posts

Response Posted - 12/23/2002 : 09:23:45

Steve,

Casual inland lake sailing, such as you and I usually do, is generally referred to as "daysailing." We are "cruising" when we sail our boat from one place to another, stopping for the night at some place other than our home port. When we are cruising, we are just passing through the area, on our way to someplace else.

Steve Milby "Captiva Wind" C-25 T/FK #2554

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 12/23/2002 : 10:33:38

Cruising on a non blue water boat such as the c25/c250 is more correctly called coastal cruising. On a forum such as ours, the coastal is understood, as we recognize our boats are not blue water capable.

Coastal cruising generally includes venturing beyond protected waters during weather windows for a days passage between two protected harbors, marinas or anchorages.

<img src="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/images/helming.jpg" border=0>
Arlyn C-250 W/B #224
R&R N/E Texas and Great Lakes

[url="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/"]Arlyn's C250 Mods n Cruisin Stories[/url]

Edited by - arlyn stewart on 12/23/2002 13:35:12

Edited by - on

River Harley
Navigator

Members Avatar

132 Posts

Response Posted - 12/29/2002 : 11:07:13

Arlyn or Anyone:
What do you mean when you say that the C250 is not blue water capable?

Thanks

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 12/29/2002 : 12:31:24

"Blue Water" capable is a term which refers to a boats capabilities to provide safe passage regardless of most weather variants while a coastal cruiser is restricted to moderate weather and seas and therefore not able to passage beyond the range of an assured weather window.

Examples of non blue water boats are those who don't possess adequate self righting abilities or have inadequate scuppers to handle a pooping sea. Of course, there are many more criteria than these examples.

<img src="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/images/helming.jpg" border=0>
Arlyn C-250 W/B #224
R&R N/E Texas and Great Lakes

[url="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/"]Arlyn's C250 Mods n Cruisin Stories[/url]

Edited by - on

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

USA
5909 Posts

Response Posted - 12/29/2002 : 20:40:25

Along the same lines as what Arlyn said, a bluewater boat is a boat that is designed and built so that it is capable of going to sea and surviving any conditions that the weather and seas can throw at it. A coastal cruiser is a boat that is designed and built with the intention that the owner will generally stay close enough to shore that he will be able to seek shelter from severe conditions of the weather and seas.

C-25's and C-250's are coastal cruisers.

Steve Milby "Captiva Wind" C-25 T/FK #2554

Edited by - Steve Milby on 12/29/2002 20:43:20

Edited by - on

River Harley
Navigator

Members Avatar

132 Posts

Response Posted - 01/02/2003 : 06:54:41

Along the same lines of this discussion, what would be the expected limits, weather wise of the C250, both water-ballast and wing keel models? I've observed one forum member who indicates that he has made some trips in his C250 off-shore. Puget Sound / San Juans will be my "stomping grounds." Will a C250 take about anything these waters can throw at it?

RH

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 01/02/2003 : 09:27:01

RH,

One perspective, and I believe the important one, to your question is a boats ability to make way to weather. With its high freeboard and inability to handle much canvas in a blow.... the c250 suffers considerable leeway. I'm going to hazard a guess from my experience that 30 knots is the limit of her weathering ability on a body of water that offers fetch and seas.

However, the motor well outboard installation is superior to those on a swivel mount. And, speaking for the water ballast model, with an extra long shaft motor, the prop will rarely spin out. And that in conditions which were very severe, 8 ft of very short steep seas, with crest so narrow that power had to be reduced to 1/3 throttle to keep from flying off.

The open transom alleviates cockpit drainage concerns. The lack of side decks allows a high gunnel and the wide flattish hull offers considerable righting characteristics. And, I don't think she would take on water if knocked down momentarily.

But, I think a boats ability is judged basically by her weathering limitiations under canvas.

And, I think there is a significant difference in this ability depending on the seas. I have weathered easily on an inland lake in 25-30 under double reefed main, easily tacking at will. But, find it much more difficult to weather seas.

<img src="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/images/helming.jpg" border=0>
Arlyn C-250 W/B #224
R&R N/E Texas and Great Lakes

[url="http://www.cox-internet.com/arlynstewart/"]Arlyn's C250 Mods n Cruisin Stories[/url]

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 01/02/2003 : 15:28:42

River... All things being relative, another measure of a boat's "blue water capability" is how you will feel if you get caught in nasty conditions with nowhere to hide. The 24' Pacific Seacraft Dana (+3' bowsprit) is 8000 lb.s empty, with 3200 lbs. of ballast in a long keel, an inboard diesel, a keel-mounted rudder with a stainless steel skeleton, and on and on.

The C-25 can probably get through most of what the shorter Dana can get through, but the C-25's crew will be taking much more pounding, pitching, and yawing, and will be worrying a great deal more about what's going to break--starting with the rudder--or what's going to happen to the poor little transom-hung outboard, or how to keep the waves that are coming over the bow from pouring in around the pop-top edges, or how to keep the cockpit from overflowing into the companionway, or how to get the water back out of there........ And with all due respect, the C-250 is lighter in displacement and in rigging than the C-25.

When things get really nasty and there's no place to hide but belowdecks, you feel much better about your situation when you know the boat was designed for it. I have friends who have been out there in blue water boats, and I can barely conceive of how they felt hundreds of miles from anywhere in some of the conditions they've described. In short, I won't be sailing to Bermuda in my C-25, and you shouldn't sail to Hawaii or probably even Alaska on your C-250.

Dave Bristle - 1985 C-25 #5032 SR-FK-Dinette-Honda "Passage" in SW CT

Edited by - dave bristle on 01/02/2003 15:36:21

Edited by - dave bristle on 01/02/2003 15:46:01

Edited by - on

Topic

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Jump To:

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.