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I don't want to stick my neck out since I haven't completed this install, but I went under the V-berth and was able pass my hand through the gap between the v-berth above me and the anchor well. I was able to feel that the two bulkheads were in contact. I then removed the starboard naugahyde wire chase bottom and was able to slip my hand in and feel the two bulkheads were in contact at the top. So I concluded, if they are in contact on the bottom and in contact on the top... This was all done on the starboard side, so it it is still possible the port side is different. Since there are so few screws to remove to take out the decorative bulkhead, I assumed we would do it anyway just to be sure.
Todd

On 2nd Wish (1987) the light fixtures in the saloon switch by sliding the whole fixture fore or aft.
T

Depending upon where you sail, there is one more thing to think about with an open transom. Our first cruise on 2nd Wish was an overnight in Newport, CA. The local fauna are quite friendly- maybe a bit too friendly. We were moored next to a powerboat with a swim platform which the owners had covered with plastic chairs and plastic fencing in an effort to stave off the onslaught of the native Sea Lions. When we arrived at the mooring, the natives who had been loitering in the water behind the swim platform came to greet us- no doubt to see whether we provided a more accommodating sun platform. Brooke, my wife was concerned about leaving 2nd Wish when went ashore for dinner, but our 1987 closed transom model was too much trouble for them. Even then Brooke insisted we sleep with the companionway boards in. As we departed the next day, it appears she was probably wise in her insistence.

Attached is a photo of the scene with a victorious Sea Lion perched on the stern of the powerboat, having overcome the obstacles placed on the swim platform.  

T

At the risk of piling on... my wife insisted I post this response. French presses make great coffee, but they are a bear to clean out, especially on a boat. For boats and camping, she prefers an AeroPress (by Aerobie-yes the same people who make the frisbee like disk). The press is basically a big plastic syringe with a small paper filter in the bottom. They are extremely efficient for small cups o' coffee (it makes espresso also). You heat just as much water as you need, pour it into the syringe with ground coffee (ala french press),stir, put the piston in the syringe and press. The coffee passes through the filter on the bottom, leaving nothing in the chamber. Unlike the french press, the waste grounds are wrung of their excess water and cleaning is as simple as unscrewing the bottom-filter holder, continuing to press and a solid block of grounds pops out. Since the syringe is rubber (silicone?) it self cleans as it is pressed. You need only wipe the bottom surface after the grounds pop out. That said, each press only makes enough coffee for one person. I also find the coffee is not as hot as I would like-something about volume/surface area ratio. She disagrees reminding me that a good cup of coffee is never boiled. 

Todd

Ron and Hawk- Thanks for the information. I did read the tech notes before starting. We needed the voltmeter anyway, so we bought the kit. It sounds like the preferred solution is to purchase the voltmeter from Seaward and work the harness separately. I am not a big fan of butt-crimp-solder connectors as the joint gets covered by heat shrink tubing and is uninspectable. A splice-free solution would require either fashioning a new harness from individual wires (per Ron's suggestion) or purchasing a new one from Seaward. The Seaward option requires a harness longer than the 1 ft extra they offer as a standard product. Had I known that Seaward will make the harness as long as you want, I would have gone that route (still can actually).


Ron's suggestion of pulling the wires through one at a time results in an optimally sized harness. The downside is that cable-tying the wires into a single harness appears to be difficult after the fact. He suggests using plastic conduit, which seems quite reasonable. Alternatively, the harness can be pre-made, pulled through, cutting the wire to length as needed. This then means the harness needs to be significantly oversized and cut back. A third option would be to follow Ron's suggestion, replacing each wire, leaving a little extra on each, then disconnect one side, pull the wires, cable-tie them and pull them back through, then reconnect.


The suggestion was made that the harness is split with connectors for the purpose of engine replacement. It seems to me that the engine comes from the factory pre-wired with the connector (its in the Universal manual that way). It was probably very easy for Catalina purchase the panels with a mating connector and harness extension so that they did not need to perform engine wiring at the factory (my 2 cents). 

Either way the job is not difficult and less time consuming if you spend the $$ on new wires.

Todd

This came from here:  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,5861.0.html

Len and I finished this job the other day. The instructions provided by Seaward were pretty good, but we found a few things on the way which might help others who want to perform this upgrade (which they should).

I'm in agreement with Ron & Capt Al (in the Tech Wiki on this subject), that the terminal strips are probably more trouble than they are worth and replacing the entire harness, with no intermediate connections, is the least failure prone approach. That said, we used the terminals and the existing harness.

1) On 2nd Wish (1987 hull #464), it was difficult to pull enough of the harness through to the engine side to gain access to the harness extension wire ends after cutting off the connectors. This left little room and contortionist maneuvers to pre-tin the wire ends. It would probably have been easier to open the panel end first and cut all securing cable ties to create the extra 18 inches of slack in the extension. Alternatively, spending $35 for a new pre-tinned harness extension from Seaward would have been worth the cost.

2) On 2nd Wish  the wires from the engine to the connector were wrapped in electrical tape and routed between the starter and the coolant manifold, behind the harness grounding lug on the port side. In order to remove the orange alternator output wire, it was necessary to remove the tape, which required unscrewing the ground lug. We also found removing the orange wire from the alternator made it easier to cut it to the proper size, crimp (and solder) the terminal on. Placing the stack of the #4 battery wire, the orange and the red wire terminals on the starter stud was also tricky given access issues. Think about how the terminal lug will lie on the stud before cutting and crimping the orange wire.

3) The instructions provide no indication of how the terminal strip is to be secured, other than some comment about using spare wires to strain relieve the assembly. If anyone has a preferred way of doing this, I'd love to hear it.

4)The cockpit side: When working in the lazarette, wear long-sleeves or you will be itchy for a few days. Catalina apparently took little pity on those who would have to work in there.

5) The harness on the cockpit side had plenty of slack after cutting the cable ties there (see 1 above). Getting the panel out was tricky. The clearance between the panel parts and wires, and the mounting box is minimal. We had to remove the engine kill handle to get it out. There is almost no extra wire between the panel and the connector. In retrospect, having several feet of spare wire of the appropriate gauges (and colors) as well as corresponding crimp terminals, would have been a very good idea. Replacing the 7 wires between the panel and the cockpit term strip would have taken little time and made for a much neater job.

Hope this helps the next person.

Todd

2nd Wish, 1987 Hull# 464

Ron- The connectors were taped over and bound together by a cable tie under the tape. The most disturbing thing wasn't the cracked housing, but the insulation (housing material) which was completely missing around some of the pins and sockets. The rubber molded connector (Medallion)on the engine side seems to have weathered the ages better than the  plastic ones in the photo. The contacts themselves were in surprisingly good condition.

The engine has ~1050 hours on it.

Todd

2nd Wish, Hull #464

This goes on further, here:  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,5866.0.html

Hello Everyone- I recently became part owner of 2nd Wish, Hull #464 in Long Beach, CA. The other partner is PO Len Hirsch. I had been sailing with Len for several years and he kindly invited me to become partner. Before accepting, I spent many hours reading this forum, a wealth of information, and wanted to thank all of the dedicated owners (Registrants?)  for their valuable time spent helping so many.

Len and I have begun to tackle some of the more critical upgrades and maintenance issues. I'd be happy to share our experiences in these endeavors. We tackled the engine wiring harness yesterday- a typical 6 hour / 2 hour job, and we are now the proud possessors of 4 rather shocking looking connectors (see attached photos). I will post (in another thread) a list of a few things I learned, to help others in the future. We also replaced the engine sound insulation, a very messy job indeed and learned a few things there too. For owners of older C34s, if you were wondering where all that black stuff was coming from near the companionway...

Len has been and we will continue to be a C34IA member.  I look forward to future interactions with the rest of the C34 owners.

Todd Gaier    (and Len Hirsch)
S/V 2nd Wish

Linked on the Critical Upgrades page [Stu]