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My boat is moderately new to me and required a lot of work to get it ready to play with.  I have gotten a lot of that done now (though the list is still deep with projects) and have been able to go out sailing a fair amount after work.  Spring seems to finally have sprung here in the PNW and I was out for a solo romp on Puget Sound where I captured this photo.  It was really just a snap to share with a friend, but it turned out to be pretty epic.  I thought it might be fun to start a thread for everyone to post their epic sailing photos from time to time.  Post em' up!

NOTE: this photo is a wide aspect ratio.  Click on the image for the whole effect... it's worth it!

So ladies and gents, I was leaving a small harbor after a nice 2 hour snack stop with some out of towners showing them how awesome boating is and quickly determined the intake thruhull was plugged.  Unfortunately, I had to re-anchor (without a windlass) to get the job done and use a flexible piece of wire to jab open the clog THROUGH the side access strainer... not cool!!

I have heard of other switching to the Vetus strainers that allow for a straight shot through the bottom to clear the thru hull and would love to see some photos of what you all have done.

Yes Ron, I know about your clam shell solution mounted with some gook and pucky so you can push it off if needed.  I like the idea, but will probably only consider that at my next haul out which isn't scheduled for any time soon.

Thanks in advance all.

I have some pretty tatty looking welt cord on the bulkhead that goes over the fuel tank in the aft cabin.  I am wondering if anyone has an easy source for replacement.  Has anyone bought some recently?

I was out for my first test run after a VERY long time at the dock and all was working fine until I noticed erratic movements from the tach needle.  It then started to pulse rhythmically and eventually went to zero, I then noticed that the volt meter was showing resting voltage.

Belt was fine, and none of the wiring looked out of order.  My question revolves around if this is just an end of life failure or if there is something else at foot that I should look into.

Anyone have any input?

I have been considering a bruntons autoprop for my 91 mk1.5 with the m35 universal.  Does anyone have any experience with these on our boats?  Is a 15" too big with this design (where the blades flip around for fwd and rev)?

My boat came with an inoperative st4000+ wheel pilot.  The wheel drive was still salvageable so I rebuilt that and set about getting used evolution parts to make up the rest of the system.  I have never been too fond of the performace of the wheel pilots before and understood the ev sensor and rudder reference made a noteable improvement. 

In an effort to get the geometry as close to correct as possible, i chose a spot in line with the rudder post to mount the sensor.  Unfortunately in my situation, this spot is floating in space.  To get an accurate location and maintain a parallel plane to the radial wheel, I built a jig that sat upon the radial drive and then shaped a block to match the underside of the cockpit and attached it with thickened epoxy.

I have been experiencing high engine temp readings of 178 to 190 while at cruiae rpm since I have owned the boat.  After a TON of work replacing hoses, thermostats, raw water pumps etc... I was still having the problem.

After a bunch of messing about, i discovered that jostling the engine wiring plug reaulted in movement of my temp gauge reading at the engine panel.  This plug is called by many names (gummy bear plug, trailer plug, etc) and is called out in the critical updates section of this website as a "repair this or else" item.

Attached are a few photos of what mine looked like when I removed it.

I am getting ready yo pull the trigger on a Sure Marine diesel boiler install and wanted to find out if any current users have one and could share their component installation spots.  The one I am most interested to know is the expansion tank/headder tank.  I am considering mounting this in the cockpit coaming with a deck plate over the cap.  This will put an inspection plate in the cocpit coaming top which isnt my first choice but seems to be the best solution I can come up with.  Does anyone else have any alternate spots?

NOTE: The boiler will be mounted on the aft bulkhead in the port lazerette.  The headder tank needs to be ABOVE the furnace.  If someone has an alternate furnace/boiler location that has worked for them, I am all ears!!

My boat arrived to me with the macerator holding tank thruhull valve handle removed.  It appears to be a square stock (see photos).  Does anyone have a source for one of these as a replacement?  The valve holds water just fine and the boat is in the water so my preference would be to avoid replacement.  Thanks for your help.

So, my saloon table is in need of remaking and i went out to buy the MDO in 3/4" thickness.  When I got back to the shop and checked the tabletop, it measures out at more like 7/8".  7/8" ply does not exist.  Has anyone encountered this?  If you've rebuilt your table, what did you use?

We were leaving Cap Sante today and passed a mk2 named Odessa going the other way.  They were waving furiously and trying to sign something.  Are you cats on here? 

Alex

I have sadly discovered that the coushion cover I thought I could save has a stain beyond repair even at a quality dry cleaners.  I am on the hunt for someone's used cover for the port side cushion in the aft cabin.  I am not terribly picky about color as I am trying to get the cabin functional.  Let me know if you have one taking up space.  Thanks all...

So I have a 91 mk 1.5 and the aft cabin has a trap door in it to the port lazzerette.  It appears to be well crafted with a king starboard panel that is trimmed with teak.  The unfortunate scenario is that any water that gets into the lazzerette ends up in the aft cabin via this trap door.  I plan to remove it and replace it with a sealed access hatch since there is already a hole in the fiberglass liner.  Does anyone else have this in their late Mk 1 boats?  I'm curious if this was a factory install or a previous owner install.  I can see some benefits as an escape hatch for emergencies however that only works if the lazzerette hatch isnt shut and latched.

I am trying to organize the boat a bit and would like tk mount my sailing dinghy's mast and boom on the aft cabin hull liner above the head of the bed.  This would require some screws to be strong enough to hold the bracket and the spars.  Has anyone mounted brackets at this location and how long of a screw was suitable to avoid contacting the hull?  Photo for location reference.

I have just completed a full hose replacement (fresh and raw) on my 91 Mk1.5 with the M35.  I still seem to be loosing coolant somewhere, but can find no leaks at any of my hose connections.  I've ordered a new pressure cap and recovery bottle (bought the expensive one from Westerbeke because... why not.  It's FANCY!) and will install that due to it not being present (recovery bottle).  One of the times the temp started to climb and I stopped the engine to check and fill the coolant, as I was adding water, a small amount of steam appeared from the aft end of the exhaust manifold near the flange.  I've read that the gasket back there also seals the coolant passages in the manifold.  Has anyone done this job recently and can share with me how much of a son of a brisket it is and perhaps any useful tips?  I've considered buying an induction bolt heater to allow the removal of the nuts on the flange.  Getting a torch on those will be hard let alone somewhat dangerous.  I'd LOVE to avoid removing the manifold, but I need to solve this leak as it seems to run for about 3 hours before I need to add some more coolant.  Thanks in advance.

I got my new Iversons dodger installed yesterday.  Those who know of them will know who they are.  For those not in the know, they are a unique trade mark design of dodgers and enclosures here in the PNW.  In my opinion, they make the best looking and performing dodger.  I had mine upgraded with Markalon glazing (a polycarbonite glass), side and rear grab bar and UV resistant stitching.  The way they make them, the top section is stretched so tight that it rings like a drum when you strike it!!  Im pretty excited about it and wanted to share it with you all.

I was up at the boat yesterday doing a very thorough clean out under the vberth and had planned on just washing the debris off and using the bilge pump to get it out of the boat.  I quickly discovered there are no limber holes to the main sump.  Is this by design?  Has anyone drilled limber holes or installed a fwd bilge pump in this spot?  It seems the condensation alone could cause problems in this area with water build up.

I have the grey rub rail in my 91 and would like to replace it.  I know that it can be had at C-Direct and possibly CYachts, but i was hoping someone had the Taco Marine product number so i could do some more cost comparison.

So there was some discussion about the shaft in place strut bearing puller recently.  Does anyone know who has it now?  I think Patches had it up until recently, but it got sent on to someone else.  I need to replace my PYI PSS bellows and will likely need to have a new flange fit and faced post getting the existing one off (thus shaft out).

Has anyone ever over drilled the hole in the deck for the dorade boxes?  The new ones that I bought to replace my broken ones are notably larger in vented airspace and I'd like to take advantage of that as well as making the vent screw easier to manipulate.  My concern is what is the deck built of at that location.  If it is just plywood there, i should be just fine.  If it is hollow and they installed a tube, I might elect to leave the hole well enough alone.

I don't have a windlass, but hope to get one in the not too distant future.  This could be as long as 3 to 5 years out, and possibly longer.  I plan to get a Mantus 35lb and would likely anchor in 25 to 35' depths for my cruising grounds.  I'd like to get as MUCH chain length as possible but without a windlass, I'm concerned about physically lifting the weight.  Does anyone without a windlass have more than 35 or so feet of chain?

I've got a new set of deadlights from the Catalina parts department.  Presently, my 91 has screws fixing the deadlights and I plan to use adhesive only when I install the new ones.  Based on my research, a jig will be necessary to apply clamping pressure to the deadlight as the glue cures. Has anyone else built these jigs or done something different to avoid the screws?

I'm stepping my mast for the first time since it was shipped overland when I bought it.  I'm looking to find out where the mast ballance point is.  It appears that the spreaders or slightly above should be just fine, but as the person who own's the problem if I get it wrong, I'd love some confirmation or direction of what you all have done when stepping your mast.

I called Garhauer today to speak to Guido about a special order deck block and the gal I was speaking to let me know that he died of Covid about a week ago.  She said he went quickly predominately due to his age.  I'm glad that I was able to work with him for a few things on my boat before he passed.  He was such a wealth of information for our era of boats.  I'm sad we lost him.

My boat came with bottom paint painted all the way up to the top of the lower boot stripe.  I have nearly removed all the paint that covered it and am looking to find out where to strike the new waterline.  In pictures I've reviewed, the white reveal below the lower boot stripe appears to be a bit wider than the reveal between the two stripes above.  Does anyone happen to know what it is supposed to be?

In all but one of the C34s I've been on, they had the closet maid vinyl covered shelves turned upside down being used as shelves in the ice box.  The one exception was an 86 for sale that I came across when shopping for my boat.  It had clear acrylic/plexi glass shelves with holes drilled on a pattern.  When I saw that, I said, now THAT is what I want on my boat.  Now the problem is, how thick is the material, what is the hole spacing and the hole diameter.  Does anyone here (other than Stu Jackson) still have the acrylic shelves and would be willing to get me a few details?

Additionally, In my boat, there is a recess in the shelf support on the aft end of the upper and lower supports.  I'm curious to know if this was/is present in boats with the acrylic shelves and if it plays a significant or pivotal role in how the shelves fit.  I can't quite understand how that might be helpful or useful with the full width (fore and aft) acrylic shelves.

Thanks all for the assistance and I look forward to what you provide.  Photos are always welcome.

I'm getting ready to step my mast soon (for the first time in my ownership - came shipped with the mast down).  I have purchased the CA Direct "mostly" rigid mast boot (I like the look and the rigid shape).  I also plan to do the spartite for the partners.  My concern here is will I be able to get the mast boot on high enough to allow for installing of the spartite kit with the inflexible mast boot?  The aft end of the boom has the padeye for the main sheet which I suspect is QUITE close to where the boot sits.  Has anyone else done the spartite kit with the CA direct rigid mast boot?

CA DIRECT boot link for reference:
https://www.catalinadirect.com/shop-by-boat/catalina-36/rigging/standing-rigging/spar-fittings/mast-boot-c-34-c-36-keel-stepped-mast/

My mast is down presently as the boat was shipped after i purchased it remotely.  The boat has a rigid vang and id like to route that to the cockpit.  There is a D-Ring just under the bottom mount of the rigid vang.  When i went to view the boat prior to purchase, the rigid vang line was not led aft and the main sheet was led over the vang to the gooseneck and down to the mast base block.  With the rigid vang, the main sheet should not go as it was.  Does anyone with a similar set up have a photo or two showing how the lines for the main and the rigid vang route at the mast base plate?  Im getting close to stepping the mast and want to make sure I have everything i need prior to putting it through the cabin top to the keel.  Thanks in advance.

I'm looking into doing the Froli sleep system in the V berth.  The one question i have is how it works with the insert coushion which is completely encapsulated.  Has anyone installed the system including in the insert cousion?

Hello all!  Years ago I identified the Catalina 34 as the boat I wanted and chartered a few for many years.  I have spent years lurking on this forum reviewing all the great ideas and mods you all have come up with and have thought how I would do mine when I got one. 

That day finally came just a month ago.  I bought #1120 from the Ozark Yacht Club in Missouri where she was used as a teaching boat.  She had suffered what i call club rash and has a number of bumps and small bruises, but is otherwise all there.  I brought her to the Pacific NW where she will live somewhere on Puget sound.  Presently she is on the hard in Anacortes while i recomission all the cruising systems and clean her up.  I plan to launch in April 21.  I cant wait for that day!

Cheers all...

Alex
C34 #1120 (std wing)