I bought the boat

[davo]

Hi
I bought the boat . Very happy sails great but, there are problems.1) it has a st 5000, it was OK then the compass was off by 30 degrees and it started to go wild.2) the gear shift creeps from N to F on its own and the throttle creeps down.3) I got a dingy and motor (4 hp/4cyc Mercury) how do I get the motor from the stern pulpit to the dingy w/o dropping it in the water or paying $300-800 for a hoist. 

[Jeff Tancock]

Free dinghy hoist....use the halyard.
Tie a piece of line around the engine to use as a handle, attach main halyard, raise it a few inches to lift it off the bracket, then push it out away from the boat and walk it around to the side of the boat. Hold it out firmly so as to not hit the side of your boat. It will slowly drop down like a pendulum. If you have your dinghy tied midship it should perfectly come down to the level of the dinghy transom.
Do a test run to see how it matches up and make adjustments accordingly.

[Stu Jackson]

1) it has a st 5000, it was OK then the compass was off by 30 degrees and it started to go wild.2) the gear shift creeps from N to F on its own and the throttle creeps down.3) I got a dingy and motor (4 hp/4cyc Mercury) how do I get the motor from the stern pulpit to the dingy w/o dropping it in the water or paying $300-800 for a hoist.

Congratulations and welcome.

1.  Look up (search) "Catalina Cocktail" and "st5000" here.

2.  Gear shift:  check at the engine end where the cable comes down to the shift lever on the transmission itself.  Have someone else upstairs steering, see what happens down below and get back to us here.  Throttle creep:  get the binnacle manual from www.edsonmarine.com.  There is a throttle adjustment screw inside, below the compass which comes off with a simple light twist; beware of the wiring for the lights before you lift it at all.

3.  Jeff's idea has great merit.  Many of us opted for motor lifts, I like Garhauer for its price and ease of use.

davo, please fill out your signature under user profile with the kind of information others have shared so we can help you better knowing the vintage of your boat.

[Jon W]

Congratulations, you'll find someone on this forum will be able to provide help for just about anything you run into. To pick up my outboard and lower down to the dingy I use my Forespar brand davits. I remove one quick release pin and rotate it to the starboard side, connect to the motor harness, lift by hand over the mount and let it swing out, rotate back to port and lower onto the dinghy. Something to consider if you have davits on the stern for the dinghy.

[Jim Hardesty]

congratulations
Stu's recommendations are spot on.  My recommendation is that you add your year, model, hull number, engine model, home port, etc to your signature.  You will get more specific information when you ask a question.
Hope you enjoy your C34 as much as I do.
Jim

[Ekutney]

Congrats

A Great 34

You'll find this forum a great resource for getting information on most any task you can think of.  Take the time to search & read, lots & lots of great info, I can easily lose myself for hours following 1 link after another.

Also agree with ADDING MORE INFO TO YOUR PROFILE.

Ed

[davo]

thanks guys. using the halyard for the dingy+motor worked great, the problem with the autohelm was because my toolbox was next to the compass, I didn't install it so I had to hunt. Next question: serviced the cabin top winch its stiff now ,doesn't turn as easy as the one I didn't service. I used the service kit from Lewmar will it get better with use?

[Jon W]

Mine were not stiff after servicing. Did you clean all of the old grease off then put just a light coating of winch grease? Personally I would take apart again and check that each gear spins freely, the bearings on the spindle spin freely, and the pawls are installed correctly and the new springs open and close easily.

[Phil Spicer]

Congratulations on your boat. I Remember that wonderful day . About your winch. I was told No grease on the nylon sleeves on the center spindle . Grease on the sleeves will cause drag. Learned this after the fact. Good news, you can do the job faster the second time around. Enjoy!

[SV Sand Pebble]

  A big congratulation on your new boat, I still remember way back like it was yesterday when I purchased my first new boat. Wait a minute it was yesterday or should I say last Friday. A great feeling to have so much to learn and so much adventure ahead. I don't know about you but for me this forum was the nudge I needed to go ahead and make that step. It felt good to know that I could get with so many others with Catalina 34's to trade idea's and get advice from. My survey is June 5Th 2019.

  George