Almost new to 240 Sun Dancer

gr1634

New Member
Mar 27, 2016
10
Canyon Lake Texas
Boat Info
2003 SeaRay 240 Sun Dancer
Engines
Merc Cruiser 260HP
Hello All - We bought a 240 Sun Dancer a bit over a year ago and love it. Keep it in a wet slip at Canyon Lake Texas north of San Antonio. Came with what appears to be brand new camper canvas. Tried to put that on and could not get it to fit to save me. Is there a trick I have not seen? Any help appreciated

GR
 
There are quite a few posts about this that can probably be found with searching, but the basics are:

-- The (3) pieces for the rear bimini are easy, no instruction needed.

The (5) front bimini pieces:
-- Extend the rear legs of the front bimini (push buttons).
-- Start each zipper for each canvas piece about 6"
-- Attach (3) front canvas pieces to windshield fully.
-- Attach the (2) the two front side pieces into side windshield as far as you can.
-- Collapse rear legs to normal position
-- Finish attaching side pieces to side windshield
-- Finish zippers
 
-- The (3) pieces for the rear bimini are easy, no instruction needed.

The (5) front bimini pieces:
-- Extend the rear legs of the front bimini (push buttons).
-- Start each zipper for each canvas piece about 6"
-- Attach (3) front canvas pieces to windshield fully.
-- Attach the (2) the two front side pieces into side windshield as far as you can.
-- Collapse rear legs to normal position
-- Finish attaching side pieces to side windshield
-- Finish zippers
Thank you so much - Will give this another shot.

GR
 
You got it.

Do your camper pieces attach via snaps or rubber "T" to windshield?
 
If the canvas/eisenglass shrunk a little it can be a pain. When I got the canvas for my 260DA I swore it would never fit.

Try stretching it on during warmer days where you may even need to wet the canvas. It may take several days to weeks but 1 snap at a time I eventually got it fit. From there out it was good - maybe a little extra stretching again after storing for the winter. You may want to enlist the help of a "top snapper" like this one on Amazon to get a little better leverage.

-Kevin
 
Thanks again for the help all. The pieces are the 'T' type. No going to be too warm here today so may wait for a little more heat before I tackle it again
 
The tool Kevin linked to is a must have. Good luck, it's major pain in the a**, but it can be done.
There are zipper extenders out there also. I picked up a set for my 260 before I sold it.
 
OK, with the "T"... first, you'll hear that some think this is the worst design ever. It's not, the trick is just knowing how to do it. I had that "T" design on both my 215EC and my 260DA and I could have the canvas up in 5 minutes. I've also put the canvas up on dozens and dozens of other boats with this design - all with similar results.

So, on to the tricks. Most I've listed up above. But just to reiterrate, one of the most important is extending the rear leg of the bimini. When you're at the step to collapse the rear bimini leg, grab the top of the bimini frame (the "bow") right in the corner, above the rear leg. Pull down on that - much more leverage than grabbing just the rar leg.

Now, with the T setup, another thing you can do is, a few times a season, wipe the rubber with a cloth that's been saturated with a vinyl cleaner/conditioner. It will make "snapping" the T into the channel easier and also allows you to slide the entire piece for final fit. Snapping... put the top edge of the T into the channel first, then use your fingers/hand/palm to snap/push the lower edge in.

Once you know the tricks, it's very easy. In the end, it's a better look than the snaps and it also ensures a seamless fit, as opposed to gaps between the snaps.
 
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I used to cuss the rubber attachment on my canvas until I learned the tricks that Dennis mentioned above and now prefer the rubber to the snaps at the bottom. I only hope new rubber pieces are available when mine go bad.

On our annual trip to Munising, MI (Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore) last year, we just docked the boat at the marina after launching and were starting to set up the side curtains just about cocktail hour and a guy with a 260 Sundancer stopped by and wanted to watch me install the side curtains. Apparently, he recently purchased his boat and was telling me he had a hell of a time setting up the canvas. I explained the tricks on how to install the curtains. He watched me set it up, and remarked that I made it look so easy.
 
Good Morning All

Bad news. Our Canyon Lake has been infested with Zebra Mussels. Have been watching for the critters for about a month and did not see any until this past week end. They are on my trim tabs and a bit on the out drive. Have been running around the lake and the temp has remained in the 170 range so I guess that means they have not gotten bad inside the system. Intend to get the boat to the maint guys, have he ones that are on there removed and paint the trim tabs and maybe the out drive with anti fouling bottom paint. Appears they can not adhere to the bottom paint. Anyone else had to deal with this issue - any thoughts? I really don't want to dry dock the boat but don't know what else to do !!
 
As a salt-water boater, using anti-fouling paint is a a given for me. Without it the bottom will be covered in both hard and soft growth in short order. As it is, any spots on the trim tab rams that get missed grow mussels like crazy. Growth doesn't stick to bottom paint because it contains a biocide that kills the growth - often metallic agents that include copper.

If you are in a hard growth area you'll have to add antifouling paint or dry rack it. When painting tabs or the outdrive be sure to use a type specifically designed for those surfaces. Otherwise you will have galvanic corrosion issues. I would check to see if there are any restrictions on using anitfouling paint on your lake.
 
Update: Had he boat pulled - trim tabs and outdrive antifoul painted. Bottom is already painted and was not infested. It appears running the boat a couple of times a week kills any muscles that might have gotten in the outdrive - temp is running fine. Had the guys there install camper canvas. Even they said that was a two person job.
 
Had the guys there install camper canvas. Even they said that was a two person job.

Then they didn't know what they are doing. I've done it so many times I can practically do it in my sleep. :)

Glad to hear the mussels thing figure out. And to think, your "preventative maintenance" is to use your boat more often - nice!
 

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