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The 2 way waste valve, you know the one at bottom of closet between nav desk and head, the one that either directs to holding tank or dumps overboard? Mine leaks a little every time I exercise it. The scent manages to permeate throughout the entire saloon area. In my pursuit of a nice smelling cabin this is a thorn in my side!  I've considered replacing this RC Marine valve but I am wondering if I shouldn't just remove it entirely and replace with a standard shutoff valve or just a barbed straight fitting.  Isn't this design from a different time when flushing overboard was accepted practice?  I can still dump via the macerator through-hull if I happened to be in a location where this is acceptable.   Has anyone else had these thoughts, removed this valve?

I've been attempting to stop the water that leaks into my boat from above when it rains.  I replaced the saloon hatch, caulked chain plates, R & R'd the deck vents and have gone over my mast boot several times with 3M sealant adhesive. Even with all this effort I am still finding water all around my mast and (sometimes) on my nav table which is below one of the deck vents.  Water from these two areas now seems to have a common theme; it appears to be leaking out from between layers of the deck above and the cabin ceiling. I can see what appears to be a crack parallel to the deck inside the hole that the mast passes through as well as the hole that makes up the vent "though-hole(?)"  I have placed a moisture meter on the ceiling in various places on the saloon and galley ceiling to find high moisture readings mostly on the starboard side of the boat near the galley.  I cant for the life of me figure out how water is getting into this area, but as I mentioned previously, I see regularly indications of water exiting through these apparent cracks between layers. Is there anyone out there who has dealt with this problem or with knowledge of the inner workings of deck construction to know what is going on between my deck layers and how water might be getting in there?

I have been trying to stop water from entering my boat from above: rain water! One significant source of water WAS the salon hatch. After replacing the seal, r&r the hatch and plexiglass, I finally just replaced the whole thing - problem solved.  I had also noticed water entering around the mast boot.  My 33 year old mast boot is in looks pretty bad but when the hatch was replaced there was enough extra adhesive to put a nice layer over the entire boot. The current problem is that the leaking around the boot continues.  It appears that rain water is finding its way into the boat through the 3 block anchors secured to the mast boot hardware. This water drips out from a crack where the deck meets the mast hole (See photo).  This appears to be how the water gets around the boot. Assuming that this is where water is coming in,  Im not sure how to seal around these swiveling anchor pins. There may be another entry point that i have not found yet.  Has anyone else dealt with this kind of leaking problem?

If one's mast wedges fall out on to the salon table or floor how does one determine how to put them back so that they continue doing their job?  Does wedges falling out mean that my mast may need to be retuned before replacing the wedges?  I've read about replacing the wedges with rope, and silicon glue, can this be done from the inside and is it a btter option than the wedges? If one's mast wedges fall out what information does one use to determine how to put them back so that they continue doing their job?  Does this mean that my mast need to be retuned before replacing the wedged?

I wrote a long story here about the replacement of my strut but then I was forced to close the window down on my computer, while trying to load the a photo and lost the entire story. I'll be brief(er) now.  I took the advice given on this forum, asked experts and decided to replace my strut.  I could not find a boatyard within 50 miles to do the work so ended up in Port Townsend.  They originally estimated 15 hours to do the job. This turned into 35 hours after they chiseled through 4" of reinforced fiberglass to get the old strut out, found the new strut a fraction of an inch longer and with bolt holes that didn't match up had to realign the engine and drill new holes.  I now have a new prop strut.  Not only that but a bonus of an interesting piece of bronze yard art to show visitors!   

Thank all of you for your ideas on my cracked prop strut.  I would like to get this fixed as I don't want to be cruising around in a boat that might be like a time bomb waiting to breakdown.  However, I don't think that this requires immediate attention(??).  So while I am enjoying my new bottom paint and nicer weather coming, I will do some investigating:p; talk to the prop shop, see if I can find someone else to replace the cutlass bearing knowing that the crack is there. I'll also check if CD does still have the strut available. 

Thanks again to all!  I will report back with any new information.  FYI. I'm sorry it took so long for me to respond to your suggestions.  I discovered that my notifications were not turned on...

Rees,

The yard aborted the job but did they get the old bearing out so you can check if the crack is full thickness? I agree with the others, You got bad advice and you need to bring in a specialist. Sounds like your yard guys are in over their heads.

Noah,

I've only got one word for you----OUCH!

The boatyard aborted replacing the cutlass bearing as the force they were applying became great enough that they became concerned they might aggravate the crack.

My cutlass bearing needed to be replaced.  While a bearing puller was attached a hairline crack was discovered in the strut (see photo). The job was aborted without replacement of the bearing.  I was told that when this strut fails that is the end of my boat as there are no replacements, that is unless I can find one in a scrap yard. I'm told that welding doesn't work for bronze parts such as this.  Has anyone out there dealt with this problem and come up with a workable solution? 

I have contacted Catalina Parts. I was told that many records were lost in a tornado a few years ago. This included the ones for my strut . While this sounds like a particularly sad story in itself, this also means I don't even have records to tell me to which specific boats used this particular strut.  I am imagining that the strut is year specific due to changing hull designs, especially after my boat was built in 1989.  Any input would be appreciated.

Looking for an undamaged (prop shaft) strut for an 1989 c34.

Looking for an undamaged rudder for 1989 c34. 

During a recent haul out, while attempting to replace my cutlass bearing, it was discovered that the strut has a hairline crack parallel to the prop shaft immediately above where the shaft passes through the strut. The mechanic spoke with Catalina and learned that these struts are no longer available for the 1989.  They did not replace the cutlass bearing. I was informed that when this strut fails it will be the end of my boat unless I can find a used strut.  Is there anyone else who has faced this issue?  Come up with any other solution (In the mean time I'll be spending some time at the scrapyard)?

My bow, stern running and steaming light lenses are all severely crazed.  I have considered just buying entire new fixtures. I admit I have difficulty spending a couple hundred dollars for new ones when all I need is the new plastic lenses.  Heck, one doesn't even get LED light bulbs with the new fixtures!  Has anyone found a reasonably priced source for replacing just lenses for these lights? Any other smart solutions to the problem?   

I resolved this issue when I found that new lights were less than I thought they would be - under $25. I replaced the bow and stern lights with new. The most difficult part was drilling new holes in the stainless mounting plates. The steaming light was about $35 but I bought the identical fixture and was able to swap out the lens with new. 

 I think I am on my way to a solution to my reefing hardware problem.  Garhauer Marine referred me to Catalina direct, who in turn referred me to Catalina direct tech support.  Their tech support was great.  I was shown the mast collar pins that should be installed on the mast collar (as well as several other things).  I found that I in fact had a free mast collar pin on my mast collar (along with one that is used by the main halyard block) on the starboard side.  I moved the 4 reefing blocks, in pairs to the 2 collar pin attachment points, one pair is now shared with the main halyard.. It is a bit messy and the blue line rubs on the halyard but I think if I can find the right hardware to extend the position of this block I can make it work!  Thanks for the ideas !

I inherited the reefing block arrangement shown in the attached photo.  I have re-glued the nylon piece holding the two blocks 2x to the deck using 3M 5200 both times the unit pulled off the deck with ease while using the reefing lines. It seems pretty clear that this needs to be bolted though the deck with a backing plate.  The deck appears to be reinforced at this location (between the mast and salon hatch).  Before I drill through my deck of my '89, is there anyone who has done this who has any tips, photos or advice from a similar install?  What do I need to know about the construction of my deck in order to do this right? 

Oh, the leaky hatch also pictured; I'll save for another discussion🙁.