Official 330 Express Cruiser / 340 Amberjack 1997-2003 Thread

I find the sofa more comfortable than the berth as well for two adults. The ' ruffling' of the upholstery in the berth is uncomfortable. Maybe with a foam overlay but I mostly want to use it as a table area anyway too.
 
I find the sofa more comfortable than the berth as well for two adults. The ' ruffling' of the upholstery in the berth is uncomfortable. Maybe with a foam overlay but I mostly want to use it as a table area anyway too.

We made a 4" memory foam topper for the V-Berth and it is fantastic. Super comfortable and highly recommended. Make template and then get a California King memory foam topper, cut with an electric knife. My wife sewed a zippered cover for it too. Its a perfect fit. We even purchased a memory foam topper for the couch bed so the kids are more comfortable. It rolls up and is easily stored behind the couch when its in the up position. I was never happy with the V-Berth for dining so I added a table in the gallery area which is much easier to use and breaks down to be stored under the couch too.

table_2.jpg
 
We made a 4" memory foam topper for the V-Berth and it is fantastic. Super comfortable and highly recommended. Make template and then get a California King memory foam topper, cut with an electric knife. My wife sewed a zippered cover for it too. Its a perfect fit. We even purchased a memory foam topper for the couch bed so the kids are more comfortable. It rolls up and is easily stored behind the couch when its in the up position. I was never happy with the V-Berth for dining so I added a table in the gallery area which is much easier to use and breaks down to be stored under the couch too.

View attachment 40526

the table and floor looks great!

I've done the memory foam thing on my 370 and that was nice to leave up all the time. Yes I could see where the topper would fit nicely behind the upright back. I like that idea.
 
Looks fantastic!

Thanks,
I just finished the stairs this weekend too. Everything really came together in the cabin. I am sure I will find more work as I love modifying and updating the boat. took this today.
endweekend2.jpg
 
How do you a cess your account and switches? Are the stairs on a hinge? Can u put a picture up of the stairs when there open? Sorry to b a pain
 
How do you a cess your account and switches? Are the stairs on a hinge? Can u put a picture up of the stairs when there open? Sorry to b a pain

No problem at all. I'll get you a picture with the panels removed. See the two brass pull rings on the front of the risers? If you pull them the middle section of the riser for each step opens access to the main breaker panel or A/C equipment. I didn't like the cut access door in the OEM stairs, these are much more sturdy. The entire stairs are screwed together with stainless and brass screws and sectioned so if I need to remove the A/C it will only take a little while to get in there.
 
Let me know when you are ready to sell your boat. It looks very well maintained.

I sure will if I ever want to go bigger. I really love the 330EC and the layout makes it hard to want to let go. My wife and I are big on maintenance and we like everything "just so", it's a sickness, lol. She didn't like the slightly corroded edges on a few of the brass cabinet push latches when we got the boat so we replaced them all.....that kind of sickness, lol.

--Mike
 
looking awesome !!!! I want to do my stairs too!! except my model year only came with a two step stair wonder if a three step would work do you have a pic off behind your step for comparison?
 
looking awesome !!!! I want to do my stairs too!! except my model year only came with a two step stair wonder if a three step would work do you have a pic off behind your step for comparison?

O.K., Here is how to do it. You need to disassemble your current stairs carefully. You will be using the old stair treads and risers and maybe framing for templates. I completely removed mine and took them home so I could make templates, but first make sure you record the exact size and placement of your current stairs. My OEM treads were 1.5 inches thick so I knew I would have to double up on the wood. I was also going to get rid of the "Door" access and do a solid tread as I feel this is sturdier. Sea Ray did not care about perfect angle cuts or exact measurements because the original stairs are covered in carpet. Keep that in mind as I had to be more exact. They also used a ton of glue and staples, I used only stainless and brass screws so if I ever need to remove the stairs I can disassemble them easily. Here is what I have from my cell camera.

stairproj2.jpgstairproj3.jpgstairproj4.jpgstairproj5.jpgstairwork2.jpgstairwork3.jpgstairwork4.jpg
 
How did u fasten the steps without having the risers in? Looks great clean install

I made brackets from angle aluminum for the front and the sides, plus the back of the tread sits in a small pocket just like the OEM treads. Some facing risers could not be reached from behind due to equipment so I had to go through the front with brass screws. I also used about 8 brass angle pieces for inside the doors and under the bottom step.

--Mike
 
Thanks for starting this thread. We just bought our current boat and fished it for the first time last week.

mj duell your floor and steps look great. The previous owner of our boat owned a flooring store and installed real hardwood flooring in the cabin floor and outlined the hatch cover with the stainless trim like yours. Looks great and adds a little color to the interior.

Anyone have pics/ideas to attach rod holders to the sides of the radar arch? I'm thinking about removing the stainless grab handle and replacing it with a 60" rail of 1-1/2 stainless with maybe 6 or more rod holders. It would mount in the existing hole where the top of the current rail is and the bottom would attach under the vents following the same angle as the arch, maybe with a slight bend to match.
 
nice pics!!!!!hmmm my circuit panel has the batt switches on it I need acc to the top step to switch on, and under the top of my bottom step there are open slots for the air intake to the a/c. how does your a/c draw air? ill post some pic of my setup maybe you guys have some ideas how to modify.
 
nice pics!!!!!hmmm my circuit panel has the batt switches on it I need acc to the top step to switch on, and under the top of my bottom step there are open slots for the air intake to the a/c. how does your a/c draw air? ill post some pic of my setup maybe you guys have some ideas how to modify.

There is a 1" space on the top half and a very large area in front of the A/C intake. The OEM stair did not have a vent so I did not add one and there seems to be no issue with air into the system. You could use a brass cover like you see on house air returns or something if you need a vent. You also have the ability to completely redesign the stairs so you could add space or reroute ducting. I would need to see what you have now. As far as access you can put doors or removable panels where needed. You could just mimic what you have now as well.

I just looked up your two step set up. Should be very easy to switch to three steps. Its about 28-30" across the treads. Make two separate side pieces out of 3/4 inch marine plywood with 3 steps each. Leave about 2 inch pockets at the back of each drop. Then you screw those into the plywood framing for the side of the head and bracket the other side to the same areas currently holding up your OEM stairs.

--Mike
 
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Pulled the trigger today guys! Proud new owner of a 1998 330 EC :grin:

Survey and sea trial went well. If you can believe it, the spark plugs are original, which is crazy. Surveyor said that I needed to replace the following items:

Distributor Cap and Rotor
Spark Plugs
Spark Plug Wire
Recirculating Water Pumps

And there are a couple other small things like hose leaks and what not but those are simply fixes.

Here is a cool shot of the custom full bow pad. Rock on!

00d0d_hFdyQwuP12v_600x450.jpg
 
Pulled the trigger today guys! Proud new owner of a 1998 330 EC :grin:

Survey and sea trial went well. If you can believe it, the spark plugs are original, which is crazy. Surveyor said that I needed to replace the following items:

Distributor Cap and Rotor
Spark Plugs
Spark Plug Wire
Recirculating Water Pumps

And there are a couple other small things like hose leaks and what not but those are simply fixes.

Here is a cool shot of the custom full bow pad. Rock on!

00d0d_hFdyQwuP12v_600x450.jpg

Awesome and Welcome! That looks like a great boat! I love the bow pad, have any more pics? If you need any help with the maintenance work let us know. The items you listed are fairly easy on the 330EC.

Congrats,

Mike
 

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