300 Sundancer questions.

Bridog

Bridog

Well-Known Member
Oct 4, 2006
4,961
Gulf Shores AL / Brick NJ
Boat Info
2016 19SPX OB
Engines
Mercury 150 4S OB
Please post any questions or information regarding the 300 DA. I'll start... Is removing the camper top a real chore? Where do you store it when not in use? Thanks, Brian
 
Bridog: removal of the camper top is not a chore. I really like the way it zips to the arch and snaps to the windshield frame. I store it under the aft facing seat in the cockpit. If you fold it carefully, it will stow under this seat easily. I folded the bag that it comes in and used it as a liner before placing it in there. I start with the aft curtain first, then the aft side curtains next. Just work your way forward and it'll all go in there. I had to wipe this locker out really-really well because of the white dust from the factory. Our camper is black...

Our camper was made by Great Lakes Boat Tops. I really wish they would have put a screen in the aft curtain and lowered the window about 12 inches. The screen would be nice for additional circulation, and it would be nice to see out at the same time!

Looks like you are taking delivery next spring huh? Whew...anticipation!
 
Hi Stray, That sounds great. Where do you store your life jackets? Yeah I can't wait. I will surely bug the heck out of all my fellow 300 owners over the next 6 months. Thanks again, Brian
 
Brian: I store the life jackets under the helm seat. There is a lot of room under it (had to wipe it out too!). The wet bar would seem to have a lot of storage, but with the cockpit fridge, you loose a lot of room.

Bug away...you will really like your power set up.
 
Stray Cat said:
Bug away...you will really like your power set up.
Click to expand...
Tell me more! I hope I made the right decision by going with the 350's. When I went on the sea trial(2 people/full fuel and water) it seemed to jump right onto plane and was going aroung 47mph? Does this seem about right? Thanks again, Brian
 
My canvas ritual is like Stay Cat's. I start at the back, roll the back curtain and folding the canvas over the glass. Don't fold the glass or let it rub on stuff. All the pieces will fit under the middle seat. Be careful to roll not fold or you will get creases. I roll the two side panels together. Then two large clear panels together and finally the three front pieces. I put two life jackets on top of the stack of canvas. It stops them from rubbing on the underside of the seat and keeps the pfds handy.

There isn't as much room as you would think in the wet bar. Behind the aft door is all battery switches, I squeeze in a type IV pfd. The middle door is the optional fridge which I don't have. Most of the space for the fridge is blocked off and not available for storage. The front most door covers storage for a trash can and a few things. In you need a blender, that's where it goes. We have a lot of stuff under the helm seat but the door is small and access is awkward. It's still a great boat!
 
jrcinnh said:
My canvas ritual is like Stay Cat's. I start at the back, roll the back curtain and folding the canvas over the glass. Don't fold the glass or let it rub on stuff. All the pieces will fit under the middle seat. Be careful to roll not fold or you will get creases. I roll the two side panels together. Then two large clear panels together and finally the three front pieces. I put two life jackets on top of the stack of canvas. It stops them from rubbing on the underside of the seat and keeps the pfds handy.
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Thanks jrcinnh/stray, Do you put sheets or something similiar between the isenglass when you roll them up?
 
no sheets this year, but I have notice some marks. I'm thinking about pillow cases for the small front panels. The rear curtain seems to be protected by the folding the canvas over the glass. The camper sides are protected by the screens.

BTW if you boat in cold weather get an ironwood canvas snap tool. Those glass panels shrink up and snapping is a bear.
 
Hi Bridog and all. I also just purchased a new 300 Sundancer (my 3rd Searay) and need to wait until the Spring for splash day. The winter should provide ample time to plan trips, shop for a dinghy, take another boating class and oh yeah try to pay for the boat. Me thinks this boating hobby is now officially out of control.
 
Brian............I guess I can dream about owning a 300 can't I? :grin:

On the camper canvas, if you can get some white packing paper (the types professional movers use to wrap and pack stuff in cartons) that makes an excellent way to protect your isenglass. Use two sheets of the stuff between the different pieces. And the paper is thin enough that your canvas will roll right back up so you can place it back in the storage bag. That's how I did mine since they delivered my boat with all the canvas in place and I had to take it down.
 
Brian,
I hope I made the right decision by going with the 350's.
Click to expand...

The wot speed according to my Smart View is 45 mph at 5200 RPM. (BTW-did you order that option?) My dealer ran it out to make sure it was propped right...uh huh! Normal crusing speed for us is in the 3550 to 3650 rpm range which runs around the 25 to 28 mph, burning around 21 gph and around 1.2 mpg (miles per grin :grin: ) This is all Smart View data, which seems to be accurate.

What you experienced on your sea trial is right on. Unless we are on an extended cruise, I don't carry a full load of fuel. I use a little trim tab (wouldn't have to) when going up on plane when topped off on fluids. The 350's are smooth and have a nice harmonic humm when they are synched. They sound pretty cool when you throttle back off plane too.

I don't remember what the Horizon option consists of...is it closed water cooling and a few extra ponies?
 
Thanks Stray. Yes I have the smartcraft system view. I dont know if I would have ordered the boat with it but it came that way. Sounds like you think it's a good option...right? The Horizon's are the same as you but with closed cooling. I'm not so concerern about top end but rather if the boat jumps up on plane. MPG seems pretty good for twin 350's. I'm looking forward to sharing my experiences with all the 300DA owners here and thank you all for the reply's. By the way I think the 300DA is one heck of a good looking boat...but maybe I'm a bit bias :grin:
 
Another question Stray. You said the speed was measured by Smartcraft. Is your Smartcraft hooked up to your GPS for the speed readings or is it measured differently? Thanks again, Brian
 
Brian: My readings are taken from the outdrive's lower unit. The set up menu in the Smart Craft System View allows you to select the gps or pitot tube. I don't have gps (or really need it for my boating waters) so it was already set up by the dealer when I took delivery.

I think the System View is a very "nice-to-have" option. Mine has worked well from day one. I like the ability to set up your favorites so you don't have to remember what menu to go to to find what you want to see. I really like the fuel tank gauges, it gives an aproximate level and how many gallons remain...really handy when topping off on an extended cruise. I would ask your dealer for the manual to Smart View, the vessel, and the engines prior to taking delivery...we did and it made orientation so much more intuitive.

We ordered our boat with the equipment we would enjoy....and what the next owner possibly would enjoy as well! :thumbsup:

Jeff
 
I concur with the life jacket location under the helm base, plenty of room. I keep all the standard canvas and eisenglass panels rolled up and stored under the aft facing cockpit bench. More than enough room for that and a good supply of towels.
 
Hey Guys,

I'm new to this site and wanted to say hello to other 300 owners. It would be great if we could get our own "300 Sundancer" category under Sport Cruisers so we could post "New topics" there. But I guess this will have to do. Look forward to contributing to the success of this site.... I am located in the Severn River off the Chesapeake Bay...
 
Villan Style: Great to have you on the board :thumbsup:
I really learned a lot from the other 300 owners as this was our first year with the new boat.

In another week Stray Cats will be going to the rack for a long winter :smt015
 
Bridog, we had a 300DA for three seasons. It was powered like yours. Here are some observations. Hope they help.

Engine/Engine Room... This boat has the best engine room of any boat I've owned or seen. Other than the really big boys, of course :wink: I am not a small person and I could step down in there and get at all the seacocks, generator, batteries, and all around the engines without having to lay on top of the engines or contort myself into a pretzel. The 350 MPI's are bulletproof according to my old mechanic. I know I never had anything go wrong with them.

Drives... Definitely have the extra mercathodes installed and keep an eye out for corrosion. Particularly in the area where the props meet the lower unit "cone" (I think that's what it's called.) Also, get the outdrives painted with the special aluminum anti-fouling paint. It's supposed to help with corrosion, too.

Generator... Run it often under load. I'm sure there's plenty of info on that topic. Also, carry a few spare spark plugs. Mine would go through 3-4 sets of plugs in a season. It turned out the carb was bad on my unit and it was just recently replaced under warranty. Just in time to trade her in. :smt009

Running... 46 MPH will all our stuff on board. We would cruise at around 3700 RPM, getting 1.2 MPG, doing 30-33 MPH (depending on tide and wind.) You're going to love the performance of this boat. The one thing I didn't like initially was that she really ran bow-high. I switched to all chain for the anchor and it fixed that right up. I never used tabs other than to adjust for passenger weight. I did try to tweak the performance with the tabs, but she would always feel best with no tabs and the drives tucked in. Again, you'll love the performance. :thumbsup:
 
After owning a 300 for a summer, here's a couple of questions..

1. Just inside the transom door on the port side, do you have any storage? I have a screwed on cover. It looks like access to the fuel and pump out connections.

2. Inside the cabin, to the left of the power panel door, sort of by the right side of the mirror there is a little RCA type jack. What is that jack for? Yeah....I don't know jacks :smt043
 
Stray Cat, the compartment just left of the transom door is not storage. The screwed on panel is there for access to the inside of the deck. When I first got my 300 I had one of the metal camper top attachment bases (the mounting points for the camper top frame) tear out of the fiberglass. The mechanic unscrewed that panel to access the underside of the deck to trough-bolt the bases to the deck. The other side was not as easy. There's a smaller panel on that side that requires the bench to be removed for access.

The RCA jack is probably a plug for an Xbox or game console that will display on a cabin TV. That's just my guess :huh:
 
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