Official 1980's Weekender/Sundancer 300 thread

I just got back from a trip to the Bahamas on my 300 Weekender. Quite monumental for me as I had to trailer it to South Florida from Chattanooga, TN. We had a blast and look forward to doing it again. I did have several issues with trash in the fuel and my starboard transmission suddenly went dry. I made it back but I think my transmission might be junk. Regardless, I'm focusing on the positives - pics included.










 
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Great trip! We need more write up, how long was the open water run, where all did you go etc.
 
I would like to introduce myself as I am new to the club but no stranger to Sea Ray (especially since I used to work for them). I've owned a few Sea Rays (4) and a few others and seem to always go back to the late 80's models. My name is Matt and I bought a '88 300 WE 6 months ago and began the process so many of you seem familiar with ;). I look forward to sharing with and learning from you all. Sounds like an AA meeting right?
 
Thanks for the reply Scorpio. I am concerned that the circuit breaker panel switches are corroded. Not sure that they would "pop" if I had an issue.

I was going to try the remove and identify method for the fuse panel this past weekend but decided to sit in the sun with my beer instead. I'll try to get to it this coming weekend and post what I find. I am still interested in swapping the fuse panel to go to blade fuses. I like to tinker.
 
Be aware that there will still be glass fuses in in line holders located under the dash as well as a few other places in the bilge. Don't know why they did that but there are several at least on my boat. I like the glass fuses, easy to tell at a glance if its good. Why do you think the breakers are corroded? That material on the face plate looks like it may wash off with a damp cloth or some spray cleaner.
 
by what I can tell by the blue/silver anodized aluminum component is an amplifier so I would venture to say that the glass fuses and bus bar is for the stereo and related components. It is certainly not factory wiring and connectors. Looks like a clean enough job though so if it's not broke don't fix it. The bottom pic is factory battery wiring and bilge pump main breakers- again looks fine IMHO
 
Great trip! We need more write up, how long was the open water run, where all did you go etc.

I didn't want to bore anyone with too many details, but I'll try to answer those questions at least.

We left from Lake Worth early one morning - bound to West End. Seas were 2-3 feet and of not much consequence. They knocked be off plane a couple of times, but mostly I was able to keep my efficiency up by watching the fuel flow. The trip over took about 2.5 hours.

It was the beginning of Memorial Day Weekend so it was a little busier than normal at West End. It took about 1.5 hours to check in and refuel. We immediately headed out for Grand Cay. That run was in maybe 1 foot seas - shallow, beautiful water - and took about 2 hours. About halfway across I had the port engine stumble. That's never happened before, but I assumed it was something in the fuel I had just bought. It immediately cleared and so I kept running. About 30 minutes later the starboard engine alarm went off. I checked all the gauges and couldn't see anything wrong. I checked the bilge and couldn't find anything wrong. The only thing I could figure was that the system was failing (I've had it happen before).

Spent a few hours in Grand Cay and refueled. Went to Double Breasted Cay to anchor for the night and play in the water. This place was awesome. We could have stayed here for several more days.

Long story short - we slowly (at 1,200 rpms) island hopped down to Allens Pensecola Cay. Another gorgeous location. The starboard engine alarm never went off again, but I couldn't get it out of my mind. This is when it hit me that this alarm system might be monitoring transmission temps. I checked the transmissions and found the starboard one completely dry. All I had was motor oil, so I filled with that. This is when I suddenly couldn't start the port engine. After much diagnosis, I pulled the brand new filters and found the fuel bowl had a TON of junk in it. After cleaning everything and installing new filters, I couldn't get the system to prime. I ended up getting some help from a guy in Fowtown with an electric pump. He primed the system and I was off and running again.

The next day we went to Foxtown and hung out there for a while. From there we went back to West End where we anchored and prepared for crossing back over the following day. I made sure the transmissions were full and we headed over. The seas were 4-6 initially, became 8-10 for a little bit, and then finished 4-6. It was rough. The boat actually did very well. With about 18 miles to go the starboard engine starting sputtering. More trash I guessed. I just kept going. After about 10 minutes it cleared up and ran fine the rest of the way. When we arrived back at Lake Worth and came off plane, I could feel and hear a shudder in the starboard driveline. I think the transmission might be done. The return trip took a little over 3 hours.

We got the boat loaded with no problems and drove back to Chattanooga. We can't wait to do it again. We barely scratched the surface.
 
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Welcome to the club! It's a great place to pick up tips, advice and recommendations from WE owners.
 
Great write up TitanTn. If you think that area is beautiful(and it is) just wait to you get to the Exumas. Thanks for the post, JC
 
You are a braver man than I. All those mechanical glitches would have forced me home even boating in my local waters. I applaud you handling of the issues and a safe trip. It's good to know these hulls can take those kinds of waves. Only thing I'd do if I were you is have a more extensive spares inventory to include spare fluids of all kinds used. Hope your trans isn't shot. Let us know what you find out.
 
anyone have rear seat dimensions? the rear bench? we have a 250 and my wife hates the rear seat and says it is too small to lay on and not real comfortable to sit. she likes laying acrossed it while we are anchored. just wondering if the 300 rear seat is wider and/or deeper. we have been considering a bigger boat maybe around late 90's but if the rear seat on an 80's era 300 is big enough then maybe we may go that route instead?
 
anyone have rear seat dimensions? the rear bench? we have a 250 and my wife hates the rear seat and says it is too small to lay on and not real comfortable to sit. she likes laying acrossed it while we are anchored. just wondering if the 300 rear seat is wider and/or deeper. we have been considering a bigger boat maybe around late 90's but if the rear seat on an 80's era 300 is big enough then maybe we may go that route instead?
I've been on some friends' 80s era 250 - 270 DAs....my transom seat is noticeably wider. I'm 4'9" tall and about 20" across the shoulders; I can lay down on it with just my feet hanging over the end and my shoulders fully on the cushion. I do relax that way once in a while, but not for extended periods of sunbathing or anything: with original height legs, the seat sits at a slight angle, rising from the stern toward the helm, so it feels a bit like I'm going to slide into the transom storage pocket (there ARE cup holders back there, though!)....when friends' dogs hop onto that seat, they DO slide into it!!! I don't know that I'd want to cut the legs any shorter, though, because the seat is already low. As far as using it for sitting, I prefer it to the aft-facing seats that fold down from the back of the helm seat, specifically because I'm short. First Mate prefers the seats that fold out from the back of the helm seat.

I'll be on the boat tomorrow so can post measurements if no one else has them handy.

Hope that helps!
 
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I find those aft facing seats are inclined a bit too much towards the transom and I feel like I'm sliding off of them. I think Sea Ray could have put a bit more thought into the resting angle the DA's would have due to the engines, outdrives and fuel tanks all being at the stern.
 
anyone have rear seat dimensions? the rear bench? we have a 250 and my wife hates the rear seat and says it is too small to lay on and not real comfortable to sit. she likes laying acrossed it while we are anchored. just wondering if the 300 rear seat is wider and/or deeper. we have been considering a bigger boat maybe around late 90's but if the rear seat on an 80's era 300 is big enough then maybe we may go that route instead?


I gave those dimensions and pics earlier in this thread.

http://clubsearay.com/showthread.ph...nder-Sundancer-300-thread?p=872709#post872709
 
thanks all. yeah, the aft facing seats are horrible. i'm 6'0 tall and just feel really awkward sitting in them. a small kid might be more comfortable but i doubt it.

so the seat is about 88" across? is the W/E the same rear seat as the dancer? my seat bottom is about 59" across by about 16" deep. my wife is 5'4" so she could fit on ours i guess but bigger would be better. our issue is the seating arrangement more than anything i guess. with more than 2 people it gets uncomfortable. i sit at the helm. if we are anchored then i sit sideways with my legs up on the helm seat and my wife lays across the rear seat. even if she sits it isn't comfortable for extended periods. we have a couple of folding chairs in the aft cabin. i think it would be more comfortable setting those up behind the helm and sit facing the stern. i thought about installing a small removable table near the center so we can eat or whatever but it gets pretty cramped on a 250. with the 300 being 3' wider it should be much better, not to mention a could of extra feet towards the stern i would imagine?
 
thanks all. yeah, the aft facing seats are horrible. i'm 6'0 tall and just feel really awkward sitting in them. a small kid might be more comfortable but i doubt it.

so the seat is about 88" across? is the W/E the same rear seat as the dancer? my seat bottom is about 59" across by about 16" deep. my wife is 5'4" so she could fit on ours i guess but bigger would be better. our issue is the seating arrangement more than anything i guess. with more than 2 people it gets uncomfortable. i sit at the helm. if we are anchored then i sit sideways with my legs up on the helm seat and my wife lays across the rear seat. even if she sits it isn't comfortable for extended periods. we have a couple of folding chairs in the aft cabin. i think it would be more comfortable setting those up behind the helm and sit facing the stern. i thought about installing a small removable table near the center so we can eat or whatever but it gets pretty cramped on a 250. with the 300 being 3' wider it should be much better, not to mention a could of extra feet towards the stern i would imagine?
The drawings are from '89; the Aft Lounge Seat was the standard WE option and is what TitanTN's '87 WE has, too. The others were DA options; I have the un-named one that folds out from the transom pocket and is the shortest length of the three.

Tomorrow I'll measure the seats and cockpit space--we do have room to walk across it even with people seated in both areas.
 

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thanks. that'd be great. on ours if there are people on the aft bench and the fold down seats you could squeeze between them but someone would probably have to move their knees out of the way...lol. i think it would be nice if a few of us could sit comfortably and carry on a conversation or eat at a table together or something
 
Please excuse the dirt (it's cleaning day) and the rudimentary editing skills.
If it's just the two of us, we tend to use the pull-out console between the jump seats as our table for beverages/sundries. If there's a larger group, we leave the console stowed or pull it out only one notch (there's a spring-loaded pin to adjust), then place one of our coolers there like a peninsula. Gives more surface area for a platter of food, plates, or several beverages, but still leaves a bit of room to walk through.

With medium to tall people seated on the jumps and the transom bench, they pull in their feet but typically don't have to move their knees sideways or pull legs onto the seats to let someone pass. Using folding chairs against the helm is much more comfortable, but takes up considerably more space depth-wise, because the jump seats rest on the bump-out for the aft berth but folding chairs can't. There's always a trade off!
 

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Where is the spring loaded pin located? I don't think mine has that or its missing.
 
Thanks a bunch. I will check mine tomorrow. Mine doesn't have the center 'console'. I don't think that was available on the 250? I know mine isn't 100" wide obviously, considering my beam is only about 96"...lol.
 

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