New to the Club-88 340 Sundancer

L

leap of faith

New Member
Mar 4, 2010
8
AUSTIN, TEXAS
Boat Info
1988 340 Sundancer
Engines
454 V DRIVES
Just bought a 88 Sea Ray 340 Sundancer. Took a "Leap of Faith" from my 26 foot Wellcraft Express to play with the big boys.

Questions:
1) Last owner took off the Radar and stowed it. The monitor screen looks like those old monitors in the school library. Is this original equipment and should I have it reinstalled to keep the boat as original as possible?
2) No Windlass-Initial pricing shows this is not cheap. Should I add it now or wait until the Admiral complains her back is starting to hurt.
We boat on Lake Travis in Austin Texas.

Thanks,

Ed
 
Welcome to the site! How about some pics of your boat to show off!

Great place Austin! My Uncle lives in Marble Falls right on the lake.

You will enjoy this site and all the great help on it!!
 
Congrats on the new boat! Upgrading electronics is nice, but an admiral with a bad back is not. When I owned the 290, I was told that the next one would have a windlass. The positive that came out of no windlass was that she learned to handle the boat a little because on deep anchorages, I did the rode hauling, she kept the boat where it was supposed to be.
Of course, knowing that I have a good life when I have a happy wife, the 330 had a windlass. Good luck with your new 340.
 
Aquapalooza will be held there this year.. gonna be a hoot... Congrads and welcome to the forum..
 
Congrats! I have a sister boat that I picked up last Nov. I have been working on it since Feb taking care of all the items found in the survey. Just got back from the boat now and the winter cover is off. I never had a boat with a windlass until this one. no one ever had back breaking work though, I always let the wind and current move the boat down wind, put the boat into gear and jockeyed the boat up to where the anchor was as someone took up the slack in the rode.
 
Electronics are one area where "original" is not a good thing...
Unless you're still using a Commodore 64 for your home 'puter.
 
Cograts and welcome.:thumbsup:

2) No Windlass-Initial pricing shows this is not cheap. Should I add it now or wait until the Admiral complains her back is starting to hurt.
We boat on Lake Travis in Austin Texas.

Don't wait for the complaints:smt009...not worth the drama...get a windless.:grin:

I've got to get out to Texas and check Lake Travis out...sounds like a neat place.

One of our members, Grant Erikson, owns and operates Erikson's Marina there on Lake Travis. He is a master of marine restoration and would be glad to help you I am sure.
 
Last edited:
Congrats, I have the same boat, Love it! I outfitted it with Furuno Electronics and a Maxwell Windless. Believe me, its worth every penny. I am able to run and operate the whole boat myself without leaving the helm. I even have a camera connected to my Navnet Video imput, I use it for docking, I dock on my Port side. Put plenty of toys, you"ll love it.:smt038

Gook Luck
 
Ed - Congratulations on your upgrade! Post some pics if you get a chance. Look forward to seeing you out on the lake. You definitely don't want to miss Aquapalooza.
 
Get the windlass. It will make your life a lot easier.
 
Congradulations Ed, you and the Admiral are going to love the new boat, I have an "87"....the only thing that would make it better, is bigger....maybe one day. My two cents on the electronics, unless your restoring the boat for show, using old or original electornics will only lead to frustration and more expense later, since the old radar has already been taken out...must have been a reason for that....upgrade now, I think you will be much happier. Unfortunately, for me, I just have a anchor winch on mine and plan on upgrading soon. It's not a big problem, it's just a hassle. My Son has a 340 DA, with a windlass.... he does everything from the helm...much nicer.
If you want to check it out...www.defender.com has one that will work with you 340 for nice price of 799.00..unless you want all chrome, this is a good buy. Good Luck. Rich
 
Did you buy that in South Fl from that guy on Craigslist? He had started as a rebuild but had not put her back together?
 
Now tht I look at your pics, It couldn't have been the same boat. Yours is in much too good of condition.
 
leap of faith said:
Just bought a 88 Sea Ray 340 Sundancer. Took a "Leap of Faith" from my 26 foot Wellcraft Express to play with the big boys.

Questions:
1) Last owner took off the Radar and stowed it. The monitor screen looks like those old monitors in the school library. Is this original equipment and should I have it reinstalled to keep the boat as original as possible?
2) No Windlass-Initial pricing shows this is not cheap. Should I add it now or wait until the Admiral complains her back is starting to hurt.
We boat on Lake Travis in Austin Texas.

Thanks,

Ed
Click to expand...

This is an easy answer; Happy Admiral Happy Boat. I put a windlass on our 238 Grew 12 years ago after that every boat we have looked at the first thing my wife asks does it have a windlass. Get the windlass now!

Ken
 
Welcome!!!! Just joined the club recently with the purchase of a '81 360 Express. Never look to own another. Plenty of room and love the lines of the older styles.

We're in Lake Conroe. Ever plan to be in the area, let me know and we can take a cruise. If we're not there on ANY weekend, it was due to an emergency...

Welcome again and ENJOY,
Tex
 
Texun,
Welcome....I have the same boat and should stay in touch and bounce questions/comments off each other. It is a great boat!!! Best of luck.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,208
Messages
1,428,587
Members
61,109
Latest member
Minnervos
Back
Top