Topics

Hello All,
With some sadness, "Simply Blue" sailed away with her new owners last Thursday
After 20 years of sailing we decided to pursue other interests
Thank you all for the help and insights that made being a C34 owner a great experience
I have encouraged the new owner to become an active member.
Cheers

I need to replace the main halyard. I replaced it a few years ago with line that was too small.
Can i go with 1/2 "? What is recommended?

Andrew

My 1986 model has a factory designed forward hatch that has an oddly shaped hatch. It is curved , not flat on 2 sides
We tried using velcro with screen material but after a while the velcro becomes unglued from the gelcoat
We have an external screen that works but can be inconvenient when you have to crawl out in the middle of the night to remove and have to deal with bugs and rain etc
Has anyone come up with a design of internal screen/ frame that will fit this hatch?

Simple modification

My old sad and forlorn M25 has been languishing in my plant since the summer.
An acquaintance took the engine to a retired diesel tinkerer a couple of weeks ago
Much to my utter surprise he had the old lump running on modified stand and water supply.
I wish I had found this fellow earlier.
It was running like new.
Diagnoses:it was indeed missing on 3rd cylinder but not due to bent rod, it was improper valve clearance
One valve was completely closed under load and temperature. That explains why it ran ok until load and temp increased
I have no idea why the original mechanic nor the marina mechanic checked this.

When we purchased the boat in 2001 it had a fin keel. For any of you familiar with Georgian Bay, a fin keel is not the best scenario.
Fortunately another member of located in Michigan was looking for a fin to replace his shoal keel. Our respective boat yards chopped off keels. I trucked it down to Detroit with a borrowed truck and trailer. It was really interesting crossing customs but that is another story. Along with my new keel came an elliptical rudder which I never installed. From what I have read, this rudder in conjunction with shoal keel will sail better and reduce prop walk. Does anyone have any comments or tips on the rudder replacement project ?

5 weeks, 6 days,a few more hours ?
The Beta 30 has been 'Shoe horned" into the engine compartment.
It is going to take some creative wood working to have companionway steps.
Maybe should have opted for the 25. Would have fit better
It will be fun blasting by all the other C34's under power though !!
Will find out in a day or two.

We are considering taking our boat south to Florida - Bahama's.
Does anyone have any comments regarding the size and seaworthiness of the 34 for extended cruising south ?
Andrew

We had a leak that has since been fixed. The head counter laminate
and the wood base is very warped as a result. it looks like the melamine counter are attached to another  3/4 plywood base
Has any one removed the melamine counter from the plywood base? it looks like it id screwed and glued on.
Andrew
Mark I  Simply Blue

Recently whilst cleaning out the bilge buy filling it with fresh water for a flush, I turned on the electric pump which was pumping well but the level was not going down. All it was doing was recirculating.
A slight tug on the hose assembly revealed the problem as I held the pump and about 6 feet of PVC pipe in my left hand.It seems that the connection between the pipe oand hose is buried under the floor somewhere between the bilge and engine bilge. I ran a new hose directly to the thru hull from the bilge via a check valve but this set up is not working wel as air seems to get in the bilge pump.
Was there some kind of vented loop in the original installation ?
Is there a problem using a check valve?
I don't like having 3 or 4 inches of water in the bilge all of the time.

For some reason my temp gage is no longer working.
It reads ambient temperature,but when i turn on the ignition it drops to below ambient.
I have checked wiring, seems to be OK. A/F level is good. Since it does show ambient temperature i think the sensor is OK. I am worried that that the high temp alarm is on the same circuit/sensor and i will not know if there is a problem. Engine seems to be running quite hot since our vacation.
Any one else had experience with this?

Andrew   

In addition to obnoxious weather every weekend, spring has also brought an unprecedent amount of boat gremlins. The most recent is the loss of light sand wind transducer signal. I suspect that is from when we stepped the mast a few weeks ago that wires/connectors at the mast base were either pulled or crimped. It is a little scary when you hands are under a 500 lb mast attaching connectors and then shoving the mass of wire up into the bottom of the mast. I was probably in a hurry over concern of retaining all 10 digits. After having installed sails, boom rigging etc, I am going to de mast again. There must be a better way to deal with these connectors. Has anyone made an access hole in the mast?
I was thinking of a 4" hole in the side of the mast and making up a cover plate but my concern is for the structural integrity of the mast.
Any other ideas out there?

Andrew

       

I am not sure if this is the right venue, but i am interested in organizing a Catalina rendezvous in Georgian  Bay in the summer of '06.
There are a number of new 34 owners on the Bay. All Catalina's would be welcome.
You should be able to access my email from my profile.

I am looking for an ownwers manual drawing of a wing keel cradle. I swapped keels but the other party did not have a cradle, so am stuck with a cradle that is 16" too high. I am thinking that I might be able to modify this one. Has any one else done this? I know a majority of you lucky people don't even have to haul your boat.
Andrew

I am considering this conversion. Having viewed the tech notes on this subject, it appears that the largest tank insatllation is 11 lbs. Has anyone been able to install a 20 lb tank? What is the experience regarding consumption with the 11 lb for general use with stove, oven and BBQ? Would it last for about 2 weeks of cruising?

As a proud new owner of this significantly larger boat(1986 model) I am somewhat overwhelmed by significantly more systems. While at the boat last weekend there was a power failure in the area. Much to my surprise the DC system was dead. It works fine while on shore power. I have eliminated the obvious, the batteries are connected and charged etc. Here,s the dumb question Is there a "secret switch" to activate the DC system or do I just have some kind of glitch or improper ground in the system? The manual suggests that there is a master switch before the battery selector switch.
Andrew

I am installing a wind speed / direction instrument on the mast head. I need to run the cable down through the conduit while the mast is down. The question is can you remove the mast head ? It appears as though there is only 1 bolt holding it in place.

We are considering adding a windspeed/apparent wind instrument, but don't want to mount on the bulk head. Has any one replaced the 2 "pods" on the pedestal with a more up to date navpod system? Do the existing signet instruments ( depth & speed) fit in a navpod type arrangement? I only want to replace them when it becomes necessary

We just purchased a 1986 #104 C34. We are seriously considering reducing the draft( fin keel) by adding a bulb. Has anyone done this ? How is sailing performance affected? What about the rudder? Any other suggestions on how to reduce draft apart from a chain saw?