At one time LOA and LOD were interchangeable. This is from Ted Brewer’s website:
Different designers and builders have different ways of expressing Length. Length On Deck (LOD) is the true length, omitting rail overhangs, and is the honest way to describe the length of a boat. More usually, you will see it as Length Over All (LOA) which may be the LOD if the builder is honest but often includes rail overhangs, anchor sprits, bowsprits and even boomkins if the builder is trying to sell a “larger” boat.
Over the past 20 years or so, it has become commonplace for LOA to include bowsprits, etc. and for builders to report a separate LOD.
This seems to have happened with regard to the Catalina 320. An early (1998) brochure lists the LOA as 32’6″.
All this said, and in order to avoid further confusion, we have updated the records and have included LOD separately in the Notes section.
Thanks for the heads-up!
