2014 Catalina 385

Accommodations  Having avoided the trap of pushing the boat’s beam out to ridiculous proportions to increase interior space, Douglas nevertheless has succeeded in crafting an efficient, yet comfortable accommodations plan. The owner’s stateroom forward is generously sized, with lots of storage and an island double berth that boasts both an inner-spring mattress and an articulated tilting mechanism at the head for sitting up and reading. The single head on the boat is forward to port. Though compact, it is well laid out, with a dedicated stall for showering.

The saloon is straightforward, with the galley and twin captain chairs (which can convert to a single full-length settee) to starboard and a dinette to port. The quad-leaf saloon table takes up little space when folded away, and the nav station at the aft end of the settee is unobtrusive yet functional, with a cleverly designed laptop computer bin in the desk. If desired the boat can also be ordered with a table that folds down from the forward bulkhead.

The galley is particularly impressive and should work well in a seaway. The work area features plenty of usable counter space and is enclosed, so a cook can easily brace in place. Particular attention has been paid to storage here, with spaces carefully crafted to receive commonly used items. Our test boat boasted a front-loading refrigerator, a top-loading fridge/freezer, plus a microwave oven.
All the way aft you’ll find another stateroom for guests. This has an athwartship double berth and is reasonably well lit and ventilated.
Finish quality throughout the interior is good. The teak furniture is all assembled by hand, with solid wood used in the corner posts and doors. Storage is superb, with no fewer than 11 drawers installed, including under the settees.

 Construction  Construction of the 385 is very similar to its predecessors. The hull is solid hand-laid fiberglass, with knitted and unidirectional fabrics set in polyester resin, except in the laminate’s exterior layers, where vinylester resin is used to resist osmotic blistering. A dedicated structural grid designed to carry all rig loads is bonded and tabbed to the hull, and there is a collision bulkhead forward, just abaft the anchor locker. The deck is balsa-cored with a joint set on an internal flange, bonded and bolted on 4 inch centers. The ballast is lead. The rudder stock and the rudder’s internal framing are stainless steel.

SYSTEMS  Systems aboard are thoughtfully laid out, with an emphasis on maintenance and ease of access. Systems installations and construction and finish quality, on the whole, are well above average as compared with her peers.

One critical feature of all the “5” series boats is that, by modern standards, they are not overly beamy. The cockpit on the 385 is thus not quite as capacious as those found on some competitors’ boats, although it is far from cramped. It has a fixed table with fold-down leaves and is large enough for entertaining at anchor. Though you cannot walk straight through to the swim transom, the single centerline wheel on our test boat folded in on itself to make this transition as smooth as possible. One particularly nice feature is the pair of stern seats incorporated into the aft pulpit.

As a working space, the cockpit is very functional and ergonomic. The high coamings provide excellent back support when seated, sightlines from the helm are superb, and workstations around the primary winches and coachroof winches are easy to access and use. The traditional teak grate on the sole, besides being attractive, provides great footing, particularly when things get wet. Moving forward from the cockpit you’ll find nice high lifelines (27in), plus well-placed handholds and aggressive antiskid to help keep you from slipping off the deck.

Notable equipment includes:

Air conditioning

Port and Starboard Boarding Gates

Bow thruster

Electric Mainsail/sheet winch

Electric Anchor Windlass with foot controls

Selden Furlex 300S furling gear

In-Mast Furling 

Stern Rail Seats

Solid Boom vang

Dodger with Bimini Top

Cockpit Table

Fold in Steering Wheel

Cockpit Cushions

Center swing gate off transom with ladder to swim platform

Two Lemar # 48 self tailing winches in cockpit 

Two # 40 self tailing winches on cabin top

6" Ritchie Compass

Raymarine 55 DSC VHF at nav station

Raymarine Auto Pilot

Raymarine Depth Sounder

Raymarine Boat Speed

Raymarine Wind Direction and Speed

Raymarine GPS