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Topics - cmainprize

#1
Main Message Board / Sold Boat #1344
July 26, 2020, 11:13:07 AM
After 10 years of great memories we have sold our beloved 34.  The boat is staying local and I am looking forward to seeing it bring many more years of enjoyment to its new owners.  The first thing I told the new owner was to join this fantastic owners group. 

Thank you to everyone who has contributed and oversees this site to make it arguably the best association out there. 

The search for our new 42 is officially on!

Happy sailing friends! 
#2
When applying bottom paint this week I noticed the shaft is just touching the bottom aft edge of the stern tube where it exits the boat.  The shaft has never been centered in the shaft where it exits the tube, but I have never noticed it to touch the bottom of the tube.

The cutlass bearing has not play, and does appear to have any uneven wear.  The boat is still in the cradle, I do understand this can "bend" the boat a bit, but the shaft seems to low.  I also noticed some additional vibration sounds late last year.  I am thinking the mounts have compressed a bit causing the engine to sit a bit lower changing the angle the share exits the tube causing it to just touch the tube. 

The boat is set up with a dripless log and federal flex coupler. 

I am thinking one or two turns on each corner would be enough to lift the engine enough to increase the shaft angle and prevent it from touching the tube and should keep the alignment close enough that I can fine tune it once the boat sits in the water for a week or so and "straightens out'.

Thoughts or suggestions? 
#3
Main Message Board / Synthetic Teak Decking
July 10, 2017, 06:28:30 PM
Nothing beats the look of beautifully maintained natural teak decking.  We have also really liked the looks and feel of the synthetic teak finding it's way onto many new boats. 

We decided we liked it enough to have our C34 done.  The cockpit is pieces are done and being installed next week.  See pic.

They will  template decks for install later in the season so we don't lose any time from our already short season.  I will send pics after install next week.

Cheers,
#4
Main Message Board / MK11 complete mast available
April 21, 2016, 04:27:15 AM
C34 association members, if you remember my old post my mast was damaged when the boat next to me fell and hit the spreader.  The impact resulted in a slight depression where the spreader mounts to the mast.  The mast was condemned and because the exact extrusion is not longer available the entire rig was replaced from masthead to step including boom, rigging, and all hardware.  Aside from being a total PIA the entire rig is brand new.  I think the total bill is just over 50K if you were wondering.

Now I have an mast assembly including boom and all hardware that was removed.  The extrusion and the spreader mount is of no use.  My wife and I are still debating if we want a 45 foot flag pole on our front yard! 

If you need any parts let me know.   
#5
Main Message Board / new mast
November 05, 2015, 04:53:19 PM
This is an additional thread from my previous one titled rigging got hit.  After inspection yesterday it appears the mast will be condemned.  I put out several call today to start the process of the mast replacement so I know my options when I discuss with marina and insurance company.  Seems that no one is sure who built the mast.  Charleston spar did confirm it was not theirs when I sent pic and they believed it was a forspar and that profile is no longer available.  UGGG!!  I spoke with the factory today and they are getting back to me.

Does anyone have any suggestions to determine the spar manufacturer and where to get one.  The factory did say the believed a new seldon package ( read very expensive) from a 355 would fit if I changed the mast base and the standing rigging.  Sails would be a little small for it though.
#6
Main Message Board / rigging got hit
October 22, 2015, 05:18:33 AM
HI
The boat next to me fell over yesterday shortly after the marina placed it on the stands.  I was down below working when it happened.  The mast of the fallen boat hit my outer shroud as it fell.  The impact ripped the spreader off the other mast and his outer shroud broke.  His mast snapped at the spreader.   Fortunately everything that fell hit the other boat and deck and hull were not damaged.  The broken mast remained pressed hard against my forward lower and outer.  The tension on the shrouds were very high.  I had to leave it and the boat was being lifted off mine today.  Aside from a rig inspection can anyone suggest what i should be looking for to check for damage.
#7
Main Message Board / Mk 11 Keel Bolts
June 03, 2015, 04:14:31 AM
So after much discussion I went to check the bolts yesterday and realized the aft bolt is impossible to tighten.  The bolt is so far aft in the bilge I am not able to get the socket over over the bolt.  I tried every combo of flex socket and extension I had with no luck.  Has anyone with a MK11 had better luck?
#8
Main Message Board / Tightening keel bolts
May 30, 2015, 05:45:10 AM
I just got my new socket to fit my keel nuts.  I have read several posts saying keel bolt tourqe should be checked while the boat is in the cradle.  I don't understand this concept.  It seems to me that unless you are able to balance the boat perfectly on the keel checking the tourqe in the cradle may not be accurate.   We have a fin keeled boat and in my experience we are not able to balance boat in cradle.  The angle of the fin keel puts more weight on the bow because the boat wants to tip forward.  My understanding is this would put unequal load on the keel boats.  The front of the keel is under some compressions and the rear is under some tension. 

It seems to me that checking/adjusting the tourqe in the water is the most accurate way to ensure the tension is equal and accurate.  With the keel in its natural position the torque would be equal because the load is equal.

Just my thoughts.  Can someone offer an explanation that concurs or dissents. 

#9
Many Mk11 owners have written about how the companion way cover drains right onto your seats when it rains.  I decided to fix it this year and caulk around the seam.  I also have been trying to drill out and fill every deck fitting with epoxy to prevent water damage in the event a fastener leaks.  When I removed the cover to drill and fill the holes I found the screws had been leaking and caused significant damage to the core material in the cover.  Thankfully it's and easy fix and you won't see the repair because it on the bottom of the cover.  I have done about half the fittings on the boat over the last couple of years, but after seeing this damage and realizing how lucky I was it was an easy fix I will spend the next coupe of weeks doing every remaining deck fitting.  My rough math says I have just over 75 holes left to fill.  I have done about half already.   Its amazing how many fastens are in your deck.  I did the enclosure snaps yesterday, that was over 30 holes.
#10
Main Message Board / Keel hull joint fairing
March 13, 2015, 05:16:45 AM
The keel hull joint on Mystic shows no signs of movement and does not leak.  My only issue is the fairing over the joint has been touched up several times and and has a couple of spots that need to be redone again.  I am thinking I will blast the sand/walnut blast the area 10-12 inches above the joint and do a complete repair so it looks uniform  prior to paint this year.

What I was considering is doing a 4, then 6, then 8 inch wide layers of glass over the joint then fairing everything smooth.  I would then reapply barrier coat in blasted area and paint.  I was thinking I would use g flex expox to account for the "flexing" of the joint.  I would also do the area behind he strut mount at the same time in a similar fashion.  Most the mark II's have some cracking or separation behind the area where the strut is mounted and require frequent refairing as well.  

The only downfall I can see is if I ever had to separate the joint in the future.  
It's a bit off work but I would think this would keep things looking good for many more years.

Can anyone share their thiughts or see a negative impact.

Thanks in advance!
#11
Main Message Board / MKII companion way cover
July 10, 2014, 05:53:50 AM
The design of the companion way cover has driven me nuts for years.  Water drains off the cover into a track and then aft into the cockpit right onto your cushions.  After a couple of rainy days I got fed up and taped over the grove that the cover sits in.  Can anyone tell me whether I can just fill this grove with silicone and deal with the mess if I need to remove the cover.
#12
Main Message Board / Belt removal
April 18, 2014, 03:51:12 PM
I was attempting to replace my accessory belt this week and realized I cannot get enough slack in the belt to get it off.  The alternator hits the coolant line running down the port side of the engine.  I have an extra piece of hose around the coolant line to prevent chafe because the hose rubs a bit on the engine and the alternator bracket so this might make things worse for me. 

I removed the water pump pulley to get it off, I guess I could have pulled the alternator as well, but the pulley seemed easier.

Anyone else run into this issue, I will take a picture next time I am up!

#13
Main Message Board / Stoage under nav station
July 04, 2013, 06:23:28 AM
In our never ending quest to improve storage and stop stuff from ending up on the cabin floor I was inspired by a previous post where a member built drawers under his nav station.  Behind the door is a shelf in the middle.  The new built in cabinet makes the cushions a tight fit because they do extend under the desk slightly but they still fit.  The door size is 15 x 20 purchased from the discount pile at WM and the teak trim is from my hatch boards that I cut up. Made new hatch boards from PVC lumber ( great stuff to work with).  I still need to add a piece of trim to the bottom at the front so you can't see the little section of the old floor that was under the nav station.  Not a big deal just, just being picky.
#14
I have a Raymarine C80 with navionics silver great lakes charts, and a 24 inch dome 4KW radar removed from a customers boat for sale.  Unit works perfect and shows very little wear.  Included is 5 meter radar cable, gps antenna and cable, power cable, cover, and most of the manuals.  Any sailboat application would require a longer radar cable (around $175) to install.

$800.00 or best offer.

#15
40 inch leather wrapped wheel, great shape, fits one inch straight shaft.  FYI, shipping outside ontario will be cost prohibitive.

$150.00

mainprize@rogers.com
#16
Main Message Board / MK 11 exhaust hose
April 12, 2011, 04:44:28 AM
When inspecting the section of exhaust hose from the riser to the muffler I discover the wire reinforcement inside the hose had broken and the hose had delaminated and was very close to failure.  Visually the hose appeared normal, give it a squeeze to test.

I have never liked the Hardwall hose used between the riser and the muffler.  It is very hard to work with, and the distance from the riser to the muffler on the MK11's is very close and requires a very hard bend.  This type of hose also transmits alot of the engine vibration to the muffler.  

My solution was to use Silicone hose and a fiberglass elbow to reduce vibration and make a fair hose run.  No one had the fiberglass elbow in stock and my local stainless guy was super busy so I made the elbow with standard fiberglass and epoxy.  I will be able to test it in a few weeks when we go back in the water.  Picture attached.
#17

We are freshwater sailors and have not filled up the aft water tank for several years.  We have plumbed every fixture in the boat to lake water ( including hot water) except for a small tap in the the head and galley for brushing teeth and making coffee and cooking.  We use lake water for everything else.  We usually end up dumping the the bow tank before it's empty because we end up at a marina anyway for a pumpout.  

We need to get a pumpout every 7 days or so.  Two adults, two kids.  We could do all kinds of stuff to reduce our need for a bigger holding tank but we don't want to.  I think the aft water tank is 42 gallons and will be perfect.

So what I want to do is remove the port side holding tank and re plumb the waste line to the aft water tank.  If I can modify the tank that is there great, if I need to change the tank that's fine too.  The wast line will be a little longer and the tank is higher than the head.  I don't trust the joker valve to hold back 400 pounds of poo so I will put a shut off on the line when the head is not in use.  

any thoughts?
#18
Main Message Board / Folding Wheel and Autopilot
December 28, 2010, 07:38:46 AM
Hi
My wife bought me a folding wheel for xmas (gotta love her).  When I was looking at it I noticed it is slightly convex/concave depending what side you look at.  Has anyone put a wheel drive autopilot on one of these wheels.  I was wondering if it is going to an issue or if fits with no modification.

Thanks in advance
#19
Main Message Board / exhaust flange gasket
December 25, 2010, 06:24:09 PM
I need to replace the exhaust flange gasket on my m35.  I did this on my old m25 (C30) a couple of times.  The first time I did this I changed the gasket and it continued to leak.  Changed it again and add some high temp rtv and it worked. 

Does anyone have any concerns adding the rtv to the gasket.  Good, Bad, indiferent? 

I have seem some have gone this route and others have not. 

Thanks in Advance
#20
Main Message Board / Hx Zinc Seal
October 30, 2010, 09:23:26 AM
I changed my HX zinc last week for the first time when we were hauled for the winter.  I am wondering if the new zinc is self sealing when it threads into the Hx or does some type of sealant need to be applied to the threads.  The old one appeared to have "pipe dope" on the threads.  I did not have any with me when I changed it so I used the Yellow (oil resistant) Teflon tape.  But now I am  second guessing my self.  The raw water system is drained so if I need to change it now is the time.  Thanks for your input.
#21
Main Message Board / exhaust riser replacment
September 04, 2010, 06:44:55 PM
When I was cleaning out the HX last week I noticed some dampness aroung the exhaust flange.  I pulled back the fiber wrapping to get a better look and guess what.  The exhaust riser has been welded to the flange.  I assume it leaked exhaust gas at some point and instead of using muffler cement someone welded it.  The gasket area only showed a little dampness with no obvious leaking so the job will be added to my fall projects list when I haul the boat in six weeks. 
The weld job looks solid but I can't live with it.  I noticed catalina direct sells stainless risers.  My question is this, is it worth it to get a stainless riser made or should I just replace what's there and make one from black pipe?  The boat is in fresh water.  Obviously I need a new flange as well.

The PO is a friend who bought the boat new and he swears he did not have it welded.  He actually came over to look at it and had no idea.

Cory
#22
Main Message Board / Normal Operating Temp M35
August 16, 2010, 03:01:08 PM
Looking for some info on the normal operating temp for a M35.  The Manual says normal is 165 to 195.  We usally run around 180 at 2100.  The boat is still fairly new to us and 180 has always seemed a little high for a engine speed of only 2100.  My M25 ran seemed to sit around 170. 
I fried an impeller yesterday just as we entered the point of no return in the marina.  The high temp alarm sounded just as we got into the slip.  Changed the impelller today (what a silly design) and went for a test run.  Lots of water from the exhaust but temp was running at 195 at 2100.  Had to limp it in to keep the temp down.  I was unable to find all the impeller vanes.  I got three out that were jammed in the pump casing and lots of little pieces.  Every vane was torn off the impeller.  I suspect it was on the verge for quite some time.  I was hoping luck was on my side and the rest went out the exhaust.  No such luck.  I will start the hunt for the rest of the pieces tomorrow. 

I was just wondering what temp the other members find there engines run at at say 2100 to 2500 rmp.
I was also wondering if the gaskets on the clean out covers on the HX are reusable once they are removed. 

Thanks for the advice.
Cory
#23
Stern View
#24
Main Message Board / MK11 Davit Installation
June 26, 2010, 06:30:46 PM
I have read several posts outlining different systems members are using to lift there tenders.  Attached are pictures of our davit system.  We mounted the davits as far outboard as possible.  Our aluminum bottom rib is 11.5 feet long and the mounting points on the rib are 80 inches apart.  The davits ended up also being 80 inches wide once they were mounted.  This is important because the lines run fairly from the mounting points inside the rib to the end of the davits.  The extra width also made for a perfect mounting point for for the solar panel.  The panel is almost 70 inches wide.  The stern rail seats put the davit quite far out over the stern and required the bottom of the davits to be bent aft to be mounted.  We also had padeyes welded to the top of the davit and we ran 3/32 coated wire to the masthead.  We use turnbuckles on the davit to tension the wire.  This was overkill but it does relieve some strain on the sternrail.
The davits have a 4 to 1 block and tackle system.  The engine side needs to be 6 to 1.  I can lift it but it is very heavy.  Our rib has a 15 hp two stroke engine.  The rib weighs 125, the engine is 75, fuel is another 50 pounds for a total of 250 pounds.  The solar panel also weighs 50 pounds.  It would also be common for us to have another 25 to 40 pounds of stuff (beach toys, chairs, propane tank) in the rib.  At this weight I can say the entire system seems bulletproof.  The davits are also high enough to drop the swim ladder with the dinghy up.  We can bury the rail and the dinghy does not drag in the water.
The davits were built by Stainless Outfitters in Barrie ON.

Cory
#25
The M35 and M25 have a crankcase ventilation hose running from the top of the rocker cover that ends at or near the air filter assembly.  The system allows a small (or large) amount of oil contained in the vented air to drip out of the hose onto the engine or engine room floor. PIA

Many members have posted thoughts on sticking the hose into the filter so the oil is burned by the engine or into a can to be drained later.  Pros and cons to both solutions.

Our solution was to install a oil separator designed for crankcase ventilation from jegs.  The separator was $40 plus shipping and purchased on line.  We routed the hose from the rocker cover nipple to the separator and then from the separator into the filter.  The separator has a see through bowl that can be drained when the oil level rises.

The system works great, no increase in crankcase backpressure and the diesel smell seems to have dissipated.

Picture attached
Cory
#26
Main Message Board / attaching pictures
May 06, 2010, 05:07:27 AM
Can anyone tell me how to attach a picture to the message board.

Thanks Cory
#27
Main Message Board / washing mattress covers
April 05, 2010, 06:12:11 AM
Has anyone washed the fabric covers used in the veer berth or aft cabin?  The fabric used to cover the foam mattress's in our berths is different from the salon cushions.  I think many boats were done this way.  Just wondering if we can throw the covers in the washing machine and hang them to dry or if they shrink?

Thanks in Advance.
Cory
#28
Main Message Board / Flexable Coupling
March 24, 2010, 02:57:28 PM
After reading all the posts on this site we decided to install a flexable coupling.  I went with the federal-43A.  This coupling was a direct replacement for the stock coupling.  The shaft did not require any modifications and the prop remained the same distance from the strut.  This coupling also allowed enough space for the PYI shaft seal. 
We purchased the coupling directly from federal in Florida.  Including shipping to Toronto it came to around $275.  It came with the required hardware, including the bolts and grub screws.  I think that is what the screws that go into the shaft are called.

The boat won't be back into the water for a couple more weeks, so I can't say if makes reduces vibs or not yet.  We also changed our cutlass bearing and installed a feathering prop (from a folding) so a totally accurate report is unlikely.

Just wanted to let everyone know how straight forward the install is with this model.

#29
Main Message Board / Shaft removal????
November 09, 2009, 04:11:54 PM
Can the shaft be removed with the cutlass bearing and rudder in place.  I have seen a picture of it being done, but I cant don't want to have to bend the heck out of it to do it.  I am putting on a new j prop and federal flexable coupling so I plan to change the cutlass bearing at the same time.  I have seen the postings about greasing the shaft and what not, but has anyone actually done it.

Thanks