New Sundancer Announcement - Anyone have a sneak peak

copb8tx

copb8tx

Well-Known Member
SILVER Sponsor
Jan 26, 2008
2,835
Highland Village, TX/Port Richey, FL
Boat Info
SOLD 2005 420 DA w/T-8.1S Horizons
Engines
2018 Sea Hunt 255se w/Yamaha 300hp
File name of the photo is "320 Coupe Teaser" so that's probably a clue.

I wonder how Sea Ray's no big boat strategy is panning out for them.


320_Coupe_Teaser_V2.jpg
 
This "coupe" trend is really taking off. Four Winns has the 355 Coupe, Regal the 38 Grand Coupe...

All with a narrower beam than the boat's they've replaced. Curious to see what Sea Ray has come up with.
 
firecadet613 said:
This "coupe" trend is really taking off. Four Winns has the 355 Coupe, Regal the 38 Grand Coupe...

All with a narrower beam than the boat's they've replaced. Curious to see what Sea Ray has come up with.
Click to expand...

I can't say I'm opposed to it. While I like the "openness" of my 2007 310DA in warm sunny weather, I have zero tolerance for the zipping and isinglass routine to make the cockpit more "all weather". My boat came with a set that is basically zipped in or not, not the "fancy" kind where you can leave it in but just roll up/down the isinglass panels as needed.

The upshot is that we never go out if the weather is anything like marginal, and it definitely makes fall boating a fantasy. If I had a coupe setup, I'd be out more often in marginal and cool weather.

My slip neighbor has a Regal 35 Sport Coupe which I definitely envy for this reason. I kind of worry about the greenhouse effect in warm weather, though. He has no tint on his side windows, and I think a 20% tint on them would probably help a lot. His roof opens and the back is wide open (without canvas), so maybe it's more tolerable or maybe he just runs the genny/AC continuously. I think it has dedicated AC for the cockpit based on the fact I see water pouring out of two different scuppers when he's gone.
 
mobocracy said:
I can't say I'm opposed to it. While I like the "openness" of my 2007 310DA in warm sunny weather, I have zero tolerance for the zipping and isinglass routine to make the cockpit more "all weather". My boat came with a set that is basically zipped in or not, not the "fancy" kind where you can leave it in but just roll up/down the isinglass panels as needed.
Click to expand...
Most boats come standard with exactly what you have. Some people will have a canvas shop add "smilies" or "frowns" so they can open up a hole in the clears and roll them up/down. Smilies vs Frowns... that's a whole 'nother debate!
 
Last edited:
Lazy Daze said:
Most boats come standard with exactly what you have. Some people will have a canvas shop add "smilies" or "frowns" so they can open up a hole in the clears and roll them up/down. Smilies vs Frowns... that's whole 'nother debate!
Click to expand...
I like the frown for the helm, personally. When rolled it's out of the line of sight. And you can unzip just the top part for visibility or ventilation.

About the coupes, as I've gotten older I appreciate them more. I certainly enjoyed the "wind in the hair" experience of an open front, and it feels more open - like a convertible car. But I found myself just leaving the windows in place much of the time, and I left my camper canvas up all the time for shade. The coupe (or other fully enclosed hard top) offers some advantages that allows a boat to be used in a broader range of weather and conditions.

Last year I went to the Newport boat show and spent a lot of time at the Sea Ray dock. I looked at (I think) the 320 Sundancer (with the open bow), and another large open deck boat - the one where the aft starboard side folds out. I had a real problem with the low windshield of the DA. When standing it only came up to maybe my lower chest. From experience I know that running the boat would result in major wind blast. I told the rep at the show that I would love to see a Sundancer option that has a full windshield. He answered that would be nice, but it's NOT what Sea Ray considers the Sundancer philosophy. That kind of shocked me because the Sundancer I was on at the time had basically been turned into a bowrider.
 
Lazy Daze said:
Most boats come standard with exactly what you have. Some people will have a canvas shop add "smilies" or "frowns" so they can open up a hole in the clears and roll them up/down. Smilies vs Frowns... that's a whole 'nother debate!
Click to expand...

My boat is a 2007 and I'm guessing the canvas/isinglass set that came with it was original to purchase. I'm not sure how much sense it makes to pay to basically have this canvas improved to that level, I'm guessing it would run in the cost neighborhood of just having a new set of canvas/isinglass made. I mean if $5-7k buys new, retrofitting would probably be close. This boat is always $25k away from being perfect. :)

IMHO, it's still kind of way more futzy than an actual solid windshield would be. Worse visibility than real glass based on my limited experiments with my existing canvas set (which is just old, not trashed or unusable).

I guess I would be more interested if we didn't have a covered slip. Since we do, my cockpit cover is basically just a dust-bugs-etc shield, and not used for outright rain protection. I might buy into a lot more canvas if I was slipped out in the open or in a colder summer boating environment with more rain where having it in all the time was more appealing or necessary.
 
mobocracy said:
My boat is a 2007 and I'm guessing the canvas/isinglass set that came with it was original to purchase. I'm not sure how much sense it makes to pay to basically have this canvas improved to that level, I'm guessing it would run in the cost neighborhood of just having a new set of canvas/isinglass made. I mean if $5-7k buys new, retrofitting would probably be close. This boat is always $25k away from being perfect. :)

IMHO, it's still kind of way more futzy than an actual solid windshield would be. Worse visibility than real glass based on my limited experiments with my existing canvas set (which is just old, not trashed or unusable).

I guess I would be more interested if we didn't have a covered slip. Since we do, my cockpit cover is basically just a dust-bugs-etc shield, and not used for outright rain protection. I might buy into a lot more canvas if I was slipped out in the open or in a colder summer boating environment with more rain where having it in all the time was more appealing or necessary.
Click to expand...

You can get the smiles and zippers added cheap. To roll up, just have a strap added at the top of the canvas sections with snaps. Under $250 I'd say....
 
mobocracy said:
My boat is a 2007 and I'm guessing the canvas/isinglass set that came with it was original to purchase. I'm not sure how much sense it makes to pay to basically have this canvas improved to that level, I'm guessing it would run in the cost neighborhood of just having a new set of canvas/isinglass made. I mean if $5-7k buys new, retrofitting would probably be close. This boat is always $25k away from being perfect. :)
Click to expand...
All the shop would be doing is sewing a zipper into whichever pieces you want to have smilies (roll up) or frowns (roll down) put into.
 
I just got a new set of isinglass made last year and it's the zip-in , zip-out kind. We leave the front windows in all the time but open the smillies all spring/summer/fall. We remove the side and back curtains in the warmer months and I'm getting ready to put them in now.

It's only about a 30 minute job to take them down or put them up. An hour a year isn't too much time and besides, working on the boat is a labor of love.
 
copb8tx said:
File name of the photo is "320 Coupe Teaser" so that's probably a clue.
View attachment 75370
Click to expand...

If you look at the image at full/original resolution, it appears the "320 Coupe" is a bowrider a la the recently introduced 320 Sundancer, but with a full windshield added (you can see the 3-across seats in the bow and the cockpit access on the right).

uc
 
Shorter and narrower overall then my 310 Da I'm sure all the new bells and whistles are really cool but I'll keep my cockpit and cabin space.I know my 310 isn't a live on boat but it looks like Sea Ray has turned these boats into day boats.
 
mobocracy said:
I can't say I'm opposed to it. While I like the "openness" of my 2007 310DA in warm sunny weather, I have zero tolerance for the zipping and isinglass routine to make the cockpit more "all weather". My boat came with a set that is basically zipped in or not, not the "fancy" kind where you can leave it in but just roll up/down the isinglass panels as needed.

The upshot is that we never go out if the weather is anything like marginal, and it definitely makes fall boating a fantasy. If I had a coupe setup, I'd be out more often in marginal and cool weather.

My slip neighbor has a Regal 35 Sport Coupe which I definitely envy for this reason. I kind of worry about the greenhouse effect in warm weather, though. He has no tint on his side windows, and I think a 20% tint on them would probably help a lot. His roof opens and the back is wide open (without canvas), so maybe it's more tolerable or maybe he just runs the genny/AC continuously. I think it has dedicated AC for the cockpit based on the fact I see water pouring out of two different scuppers when he's gone.
Click to expand...

I had a camper enclosure made when I bought my boat 6 years ago. I did not do any screens. I used the existing small top sunshade piece attached to the arch and added back from there. $1800. Still in good shape as I only use it November - March. The rest of the time I use the cockpit cover.
 
I hate canvas. It’s a real PIA. That being said, I feel like a larger coupe style boat might be kind of hard for me to single hand.
I don’t like the thought of having to run outside of an enclosed space to handle a line, and the very few that I have gone aboard at boat shows seem to have some blind spots where there were sections of the boat itself that I had difficulty seeing from the helm which seemed to me would make close quarter docking a little more challenging.
But I guess like anything else, I could get used to it.
My perfect compromise would be a hardtop with zippered smileys in all of the plastic panels.
My current boat has a center panel that lifts back out of the way and snaps on the bottom of the arch, and I usually open it up as part of my leaving the dock routine.
It gives great air flow, but it’s a bit of a PIA to open and close because of the depth of the dash and it only opens up the center, not the part right over the helm.
On really hot days I remove all of the panels completely but storing them and putting them back up is another PIA.
One of these days I’m going to get around to adding some smileys to the two front facing panels and figuring out a way for them to be secured back on the hatch when open.
 
If I had to guess, it's the 320DA hull with a full glass enclosure (like the 350 Coupe). Good idea, just hope it looks nicer than the 350 Coupe. :)

This season was my first without canvas and, instead, a glass enclosure with opening sunroof. I have to say, it's pretty much life changing. Excellent visibility through the windshield, and if you feel like shade/it starts to drizzle, push a button to close the roof. Also, no stitching/zipper leaks.

My previous boat had canvas/lexan panels and it felt like I spent half the summer taking it down and putting it up. I don't miss it one bit.
 
My only 2 concerns with full enclosers are heat and night vision. Was on a 2015 400 Sundancer for an evening cruise and it was mandatory to have the gen and AC going and even at that it struggled to stay cool if you left the back door open. With the back door closed you're isolated from your guests in the cockpit.

Glare on the windshield from inside and outside made coming into the marina a real challenge, especially when trying to keep track of small boats with dim navigation lights. They just all ran together.

That said, the interior was a beautiful space to hang out in.
 
JVM225 said:
I hate canvas. It’s a real PIA. That being said, I feel like a larger coupe style boat might be kind of hard for me to single hand.
I don’t like the thought of having to run outside of an enclosed space to handle a line, and the very few that I have gone aboard at boat shows seem to have some blind spots where there were sections of the boat itself that I had difficulty seeing from the helm which seemed to me would make close quarter docking a little more challenging.
Click to expand...

I can only really handle dock lines on my 310DA at the stern or on the bow, which requires a fair amount of moving around. IMHO, there's not much the openness of the 310DA that contributes to docking or line handling single handed.

copb8tx said:
My only 2 concerns with full enclosers are heat and night vision. Was on a 2015 400 Sundancer for an evening cruise and it was mandatory to have the gen and AC going and even at that it struggled to stay cool if you left the back door open. With the back door closed you're isolated from your guests in the cockpit.
Click to expand...

Did they have any of the glass tinted? My current SUV I had tinted to 30%, with the factory tint the total effective tint is probably 5% on the back windows and 20% on the front driver and passengers and it makes a massive difference in heat rejection, but surprisingly little difference in exterior visibility, even at night.

IMHO, tinting a coupe's side windows is probably mandatory to help with heat management, and possibly even some light tint on the front windshield (to the extent its allowed by regulations and doesn't hamper navigation).
 
copb8tx said:
My only 2 concerns with full enclosers are heat and night vision. Was on a 2015 400 Sundancer for an evening cruise and it was mandatory to have the gen and AC going and even at that it struggled to stay cool if you left the back door open. With the back door closed you're isolated from your guests in the cockpit.

Glare on the windshield from inside and outside made coming into the marina a real challenge, especially when trying to keep track of small boats with dim navigation lights. They just all ran together.

That said, the interior was a beautiful space to hang out in.
Click to expand...

So far with my hard top I do notice that it's hot when I first go in, but that was also true with the canvas. I can open the side sliding windows for a breeze, and also the center window opens as well. I can see that air flow could be an issue if all the windows are fixed. I haven't had any issues with running in the dark yet.

To help with heat management I made some window shades from a thin insulation called Reflectix. It's basically bubble wrap with mylar on either side. Really helps with the heat load. I've also heard that a newer type of ceramic window tint works well; it can be very clear but still reduce thermal load.
 
Gofirstclass said:
I have it on good authority (no, it wasn't Frank or Rusty!) that SR's unofficial name for the boat is the Fugly320.
Click to expand...

Yeah, when you look at it against the Regal 35 Coupe, the Jeanneau 33 Leader, Carver C34, or even the Formula 31 or 34PCs (which aren't full enclosures), there's something about the boxy hardtop/glass that doesn't create a pleasing aesthetic, unfortunately.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,118
Messages
1,426,467
Members
61,033
Latest member
SeaMonster8
Back
Top