89 300 Express vs 340

[ks65609]

Who invented Footitis ??

I have been infected.

However I would like to survey your opinions regarding selling our 300 and moving to a 340.

We love the 300 with the big blocks however need more room.

Thanks
Ken

 

[rondds]

If you need the space, it's a no-brainer. Only hard part is finding a boat that old that isn't going to be a money pit.

You thinking 340DA or 340EC?

 

[moparlvr4406]

I have been looking at both
we have decided on the 340 87-89 due to the interior space
it's amazing what 4 feet in length an a foot of beam can make
the bed is my big thing...the 340 seems to have way more bed in the front than the 300 that sits diagonal
our next thing to hash out is express or dancer...I prefer the EC personally

 

[hottoddie]

Who invented Footitis ??

I have been infected.

However I would like to survey your opinions regarding selling our 300 and moving to a 340.

We love the 300 with the big blocks however need more room.

Thanks
Ken

How long have you owned the 300? We owned a 32 ft mid cabin (not Sea Ray) for 10 years and moved up to a 390 Express. Glad we did. In a down market it is cheap to move up. Maybe you should do it now instead of 3-5 years from now. I love the rumble of the big blocks to.

 

[Pyrojodge]

I know of a nice 340 for sale where the owner would take an offer at this point. It has sat for a few years but the outside looks to be in good shape...
(Sorry, Aftica isn't up for sale) :grin:

 

[laramar]

I have a 1988 340 Sea ray sundancer and love everything about the boat. Its a great boat and can handle any kind of water. You will be happy as i am coming to this boiat from an 88 Searay sundancer. There is so much more space. Hope you find a good one. Good Luck!!!!

 

[ks65609]

If you need the space, it's a no-brainer. Only hard part is finding a boat that old that isn't going to be a money pit.

You thinking 340DA or 340EC?

We are thinking of changing to the DA. The First Mate never liked the size of the mid cabin on a 230DA we had however big difference with the 340.

However, would really like a sliding cabin door vs the two part in the 89s

Ken

 

[ks65609]

I have been looking at both
we have decided on the 340 87-89 due to the interior space
it's amazing what 4 feet in length an a foot of beam can make
the bed is my big thing...the 340 seems to have way more bed in the front than the 300 that sits diagonal
our next thing to hash out is express or dancer...I prefer the EC personally

I am with you on the EC. Love the one level cockpit floor and the central sliding door to the cabin. Also agree with your V berth comment. I actually think our 230DA v berth was larger.

Ken

 

[ks65609]

How long have you owned the 300? We owned a 32 ft mid cabin (not Sea Ray) for 10 years and moved up to a 390 Express. Glad we did. In a down market it is cheap to move up. Maybe you should do it now instead of 3-5 years from now. I love the rumble of the big blocks to.

We have owned the 300 for 3 years and I for sure want big blocks in the next one as well. Cannot afford diesels. I also have been looking at the 390 however read some comments regarding the fuel expense with such a large cruiser with gassers. Maybe you could comment on that.

Ken

 

[ks65609]

I know of a nice 340 for sale where the owner would take an offer at this point. It has sat for a few years but the outside looks to be in good shape...
(Sorry, Aftica isn't up for sale) :grin:

Whoa !! I though for a minute Aftica was on the block Where is the other one located ?

Ken

 

[AMFM3]

I know of a nice 340 for sale where the owner would take an offer at this point. It has sat for a few years but the outside looks to be in good shape...
(Sorry, Aftica isn't up for sale) :grin:

You scared me there for a minute Jason. Glad you're not leaving us!

mark

 

[ks65609]

I have a 1988 340 Sea ray sundancer and love everything about the boat. Its a great boat and can handle any kind of water. You will be happy as i am coming to this boiat from an 88 Searay sundancer. There is so much more space. Hope you find a good one. Good Luck!!!!

Thanks for the comments. We have looked at an 88 and I agree with you. It was a good boat however did not have camper canvass nor did my First Mate like the cabin entrance with no screen. She is very fussy about insects. At the moment looking at 92 with BB.

Ken

 

[AMFM3]

Ken,

where abouts in Ontario are you? I still have a few connections back home...may be able to help you find something to look at.

Mark

 

[ks65609]

Ken,

where abouts in Ontario are you? I still have a few connections back home...may be able to help you find something to look at.

Mark

Mark, I certainly appreciate the offer.
Our boat is slipped year round at the Atherly Narrows between Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching. We are going to look at a 92 330 DA with BB and Vdrive. No generator but pretty much everything else. Really wish to stay with the BB and inboards. The manouverability and handling of our 300 is simply awesome, just wish we had a bit more space. We have upgraded cautiously and wisely along with new raw water pumps, shaft logs repacking (GUI), microwave and head and the boat really needs nothing. On the wish list to really dress it up is new canvass and bump rails (from previous owner).

Thanks
Ken

 

[AMFM3]

Ken,

just PM'd you.

Mark

 

[hottoddie]

We have owned the 300 for 3 years and I for sure want big blocks in the next one as well. Cannot afford diesels. I also have been looking at the 390 however read some comments regarding the fuel expense with such a large cruiser with gassers. Maybe you could comment on that.

Ken

Your 300 probably gets 1 to 1.1 mpg at cruise. The 340 EC will get around .8 to .9 mpg. My 390 with 454 Crusader's burn 27 gph @ 300 rpm's and 20 mph. That's .7 mpg. I know it's accurate as I have Garmin GFS10 flowmeters connected to my Garmin 4212. Any of these hulls with prop pockets need bigger than standard trim tabs to get the bow down for best fuel economy, visibility and ride comfort. My 390 has 30" X 16" modified tabs as the outboard tabs and 12" X 12" fixed tabs at the lower part of the stern between the prop pockets. Going to increase the 12" X 12" tabs to 16" deep over the winter for some added lift so I can use the 30X16's for better lateral control.

All told with higher fuel consumption and slip fees at the yacht club the 390 EC costs about 1k per year to own than my previous 32ft Express with 5.7 small blocks. Well worth it, wife and dog both love it.

 

[rondds]

0.70mpg is about that I get - on a real good day.

 

[ks65609]

Your 300 probably gets 1 to 1.1 mpg at cruise. The 340 EC will get around .8 to .9 mpg. My 390 with 454 Crusader's burn 27 gph @ 300 rpm's and 20 mph. That's .7 mpg. I know it's accurate as I have Garmin GFS10 flowmeters connected to my Garmin 4212. Any of these hulls with prop pockets need bigger than standard trim tabs to get the bow down for best fuel economy, visibility and ride comfort. My 390 has 30" X 16" modified tabs as the outboard tabs and 12" X 12" fixed tabs at the lower part of the stern between the prop pockets. Going to increase the 12" X 12" tabs to 16" deep over the winter for some added lift so I can use the 30X16's for better lateral control.

All told with higher fuel consumption and slip fees at the yacht club the 390 EC costs about 1k per year to own than my previous 32ft Express with 5.7 small blocks. Well worth it, wife and dog both love it.

Excellent info.

Thanks very much
Ken

 

[Ka1oxd]

I love my 88 340. 3 kids, 1 yellow lab and we are not killing each other when the moisture falls from the clouds. The nice thing is this year my two oldest did not come down as much. The oldest is going to college and working. The next one down, he is just waiting for his boot camp date for the Air force. and the youngest, well she turned 12 this year. Give it another year, maybe 2 years and she will want to be with her friends more than mom and dad. The dog, well he will always be a PIA. But there is plenty of room in it.

hottoddie, send me some pictures on your swim tabs. This is the second time I heard someone making that change. Does it really make that much difference?

 

[hottoddie]

PM me your email and I will send pics. This types of mods have been done to 7-8 Sea Ray's at our yacht club. All of them have made drastic improvements in ride comfort and economy. Sea Ray and other boat maker should know better.