340 SUNDANCER THREAD

Thanks Perry, not surprised at cost it's a big job. May consider down the road, Thx again! Brenda
 
BritLady said:
We have a Garmin 840xs on the left of the helm that replaced our C80 and a Garmin 741xs right in front of the helm on the stand that came with it which is easier to see when under way than the 840xs.
We like having two as we were out one night in the dark when the C80 broke!
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We also have a 741XS, great Garmin quality, user friendly...I feel its a very good, high quality unit that fits that area well. I do have to lean a bit to see it.
 
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mjh7111 said:
We also have a 71XS, great Garmin quality, user friendly...I feel its a very good, high quality unit that fits that area well. I do have to lean a bit to see it.
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Have to agree, great minds think alike:)
 
We are looking at a 2005 Sundancer and we are surprised at the color of the steps. Are they really suppose to be pink?
 

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We are considering purchasing a 10 year old 340 DA and have narrowed the search down to two possible boats.

One has twin 496 Mercruisers on twin Bravo III drives with a bow thruster...the other being the same power through V-Drives. the boat will be kept on a lift behind a home in Punta Gorda, Fl. Both have Generators and A/C.

My questions centers around the propulsion. Is there any advantage or dis advantage to the Bravo's vs. the V-drives?

I am leaning towards the out drives due to the efficiency and added room for maintenance in the bilge...am I missing something?

What experience do you guys have with each in a 340 DA and what real world experience can I expect with each?

Thanks in advance.

John
 
My opinion will be fairly extreme......you couldn't GIVE ME stern drives over Vdrives....and if you have Vdrives I can't see any reason for a bow thruster.....I consider those cheating anyway till you get really big. :grin:
 
Regarding the pink steps...

The 2007 340 that had previously had pink steps. When we were shopping, looked at probably 8 340's that were about the same age. Probably 5-6 of them had pink steps. Could never find anyone to explain what appeared to be a common occurrence.

Mark
 
Do Over said:
My opinion will be fairly extreme......you couldn't GIVE ME stern drives over Vdrives....and if you have Vdrives I can't see any reason for a bow thruster.....I consider those cheating anyway till you get really big. :grin:
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Agree with you apart from the bow thruster comment :) We had one put in because we had a few scary moments coming in on one engine etc. Our son. whose a big bird pilot, captains it quite a bit and always remarked, "you don't need one of those". I should add that he can park that thing on a dime too! However, he soon changed his mind when we had it put in and found out how helpful it can be sometimes in really tight quarters and nasty currents.
 
chase said:
We are looking at a 2005 Sundancer and we are surprised at the color of the steps. Are they really suppose to be pink?
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I think they just go a pinkish color with age. Which is better than being wrinkled :grin:.
 
I look forward to being a staunch (and verbal) advocate of the v-drive in the very near future. I just picked up my first v-drive boat and fully expect it to meet/exceed my expectations for propulsion longevity (knock on wood). In my past life I think I’ve broken stern drives in just about every way possible. Detonated a universal joint (which basically destroyed the lower unit), broken skegs, broken bits and pieces on the trim assemblies, trim gauges stop working, trim limit switches stop working, trim pumps puke, worn gimbal bearings replaced, etc and so on. The Merc Alpha drive was, for me, the pinnacle of mechanical frustration on a used boat. I think I had more invested in the drive than I did the rest of the boat after 3 years. The Bravo seemed far better but still had its moments.

To me the outdrive is like having another motor to maintain. But we would have to acknowledge that owning an inboard means you accept the lower performance (speed/mpg) for the potential (or perception?) of less maintenance.

But if I’ve learned anything on the interweb this year it’s that debating v-drive vs I/O is like debating Ford vs Chevy. Each has their camp. Each are as hard core as the other.
 
I'm new to CSR so forgive me if I'm asking this question in the wrong place. I own a 2000 340 and am replacing the refrigerator. I think I've located a substitute that will fit but my boat is an hour north and the refrigerator an hour south, hoping not to have to make a trip just to measure the cabin door entry since that seems to be the big problem with this boat. So I'm looking on line for precise dimensions/measurements of my cabin entry opening. Does anyone know a resource for that information? Thanks!
 
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jehdog1 said:
I'm new to CSR so forgive me if I'm asking this question in the wrong place. I own a 2000 340 and am replacing the refrigerator. I think I've located a substitute that will fit but my boat is an hour north and the refrigerator an hour south, hoping not to have to make a trip just to measure the cabin door entry since that seems to be the big problem with this boat. So I'm looking on line for precise dimensions/measurements of my cabin entry opening. Does anyone know a resource for that information? Thanks!
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I have never replaced mine, but from what I heard the cabin door has to be removed to get a new refrig in... I option it to rebuild you refrig inplace...
 
Do Over said:
My opinion will be fairly extreme......you couldn't GIVE ME stern drives over Vdrives....and if you have Vdrives I can't see any reason for a bow thruster.....I consider those cheating anyway till you get really big. :grin:
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I had straight drives in my 390 EC and it was easy to handle and never had any issues. I have had Pre Alphas, Alpha I's, and currently have Bravo I's behind 450 HP SBC's in my 255 Formula. The Bravo's seem to be a much better product over all than the Alpha's ever hoped to be...I have very little experience with Bravo III's other than running a few boats with them. I understand that the earl releases of the Bravo III had corrosion issues in salt water and that has been hopefully addressed within the last 10 years.

I am torn between the boats because they are both clean and well equipped/maintained with the stern drive boat having near new 496's and fresh drives under Mercruiser warranty.

I guess it comes down to which one I feel meets my needs over all.

Thanks for the replies.
 
We replaced ours last July, ordered it from Wholesale Marine, just under $1100. talked to our systems and heat/air mechanic and he felt replacing was a better long term issue than rebuilding...not sure if they had to remove the door or not, but I'm sure they did...had a few small tears in the vinyl going down from the install, mechanic took the piece and had it redone...very happy with the new fridge, it's a Norcold as well. Sorry I don't recall the model but I'll check in a few days.

jehdog1 said:
I'm new to CSR so forgive me if I'm asking this question in the wrong place. I own a 2000 340 and am replacing the d refrigerator. I think I've located a substitute that will fit but my boat is an hour north and the refrigerator an hour south, hoping not to have to make a trip just to measure the cabin door entry since that seems to be the big problem with this boat. So I'm looking on line for precise dimensions/measurements of my cabin entry opening. Does anyone know a resource for that information? Thanks!
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BritLady said:
I think they just go a pinkish color with age. Which is better than being wrinkled :grin:.
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LoL. Unfortunately wrinkles are inevitable...hmmm.

Mine are starting to go pink as well - 2006 340
Definitely looks weird so I think I may look at replacing it with vinyl teak.

By the way, looking at the photo of your boat BritLady, how do you find the vinyl teak cockpit and what manufacturer did you use - looks good.
ChrisW
 
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