[mogul11]

This discussion goes on and on and I have read these threads for sometime and held back from posting but I think it is time I chimmed in. Two summers ago I sold our previous boat and went into the mode of boat search. Over the course of a 3 month period I had accepted offers on a Cat 380 (deal fell through between two independent people (no Brokers) because PO was difficult to work with)and Beneteau 381 failed survey due to delam rudder and PO wouldn''t replace as needed (boat did survey well other than this issue.

After the Beneteau deal fell through we looked at a Hunter 356 and ultimately bought one. Part and parcel of this purchase was a contingency that it pass survey. Boat came in and not only flunked survey it was so bad Hunter took the boat back to Fl and off the dealers hands. There were more voids in the deck than solid areas. I might say Hunter was GREAT about this and supposedly cut it open and determined the problem was due to bad resin. As a result of this experience I opened my search again and looked at a Cat 350, which didn''t impress me mostly due to the layout. The build quality looked fine but my wife and I just didn''t like the boat. While shopping we looked at a Cat 36 MKII which we did like. After trying unsuccesfully to get an acceptable deal on a 36 from our dealer we relucktanly agreed to try another 356 after many assurances from Hunter that my previous experience was not the norm. 356 #2 comes in and although the deck was much better there were still some voids 15-20 mostly deep in the laminate, but their were three or four voids under the surface of the non skid. The dealer agreed to fix them and Hunter agreed to double the warrantee and we were ready to go ahead and I lost my job. As a result the dealer graciously let me out of the deal.

We ultimately bought a used 36 MKII. This long drawn out experience gave me a lot of insight into the big three.

My thoughts:

as for stuctural quality I would rate them Cat/Ben/Hunter. Cast Iron keels played a huge inpact on this rating and the overall design of the boat and rig had a major influence.

Systems design/accessability Hunt/ tie Ben/Cat. I must say this is based on my boat not on the 350 or newer designs, the newer models of the cats seem better and on these boats I would say they equal the Beneteau''s. Hunter was far superior as to the basic systems design, very well thought our and innovative.

Interior finish/workmanship Ben/Cat/Hunter, Hunter has made major inroads in this area in the last few years, But overall still lags behind alittle.

Rigs and Hardware: Cat/Ben/Hunter without a doubt Catalina''s rigs are beefer and the hardware is bigger and better on the cat.

With all this said, you are getting what you paid for, a MASS PRODUCTED PRODUCTION BOAT THAT IS MADE TO A PRICE POINT. Don''t loose sight of this, if you like the B&R rig, arches and creature conforts go Hunter (just get a survey before you close. Imagine how I would have felt down the road when a buyer had the boat surveyed at resale!!!!!) Like mahogony and lots of wine racks and a more European look go Beneteau. If you are more traditional in your taste go Catalina. It all boils down to what you like and want out of your boat. I for one would not want to take any of them out in the ocean alone CE rated or not.

Moral of the story GET ANY BOAT YOU PURCHASE NEW OR USED SURVEYED!!!!!!!! My dealer tells me 1 in a 100 new boat buyer surveys a boat. Boy 99 idiots out there.