Official 240 Sundancer Thread

[craig240DA]

Grill Mount

I have a flagpole that was factory installed in the ideal position for a grill. I haven't yet seen a mounting kit for the grill that would work. The fishing rod holder kits are too big to fit the shaft.

Please let me know if you find one.

 

[craig240DA]

Drain Plug

Does everyone take out the drain plug after running the boat?

We keep our 240 on a lift and I can't easily get to the drain plug.

I thought by looking at the area around the bilge pump that I would get an indication of water in the compartment, but I had about a gallon drain out when I pulled the plug and I had no idea it was there. Apparently, there is room in the back of the engine compartment that can hide water.

 

[lfalla]

Your 7000 lb trailer should be just fine for your (our) boat. Dry weight on the '03 240 is 5550. Even with full fuel (490 more lbs) and full water tank (160 more lbs) and the usual safety gear, you're well within tolerance. Just carry the rest of the gear in your vehicle and not on the boat while in transit.

You should be able to get all the weights of your boat as you described above. The tongue weight can be found by putting the jack wheel down on the scale, disconnecting it from the truck, and moving the truck off the scale. You'll want to know the weight of the boat and trailer by themselves so you can figure out if the tongue weight is about right. You want the tongue weight to be about 8-10% of the total boat/trailer weight. So if your boat and trailer weigh 7500 lbs, you want your tongue weight to be around 750 lbs. Doesnt have to be exact, but try to be in that range. If your tongue weight is light, you need to move your boat forward on your trailer to adjust the tongue weight. And as always, make sure the trailer is level when its connected to the tow vehicle. ( i learned that on this forum...thanks guys!) If your weigh station is anything like the ones here in CT, you'll be the only one there today. Have fun and good luck!

I went to the weigh station and I definitely have some adjusting to do as my tongue weight is to low.

Axle 1 Axle 2 Total
1 Truck & Boat 7160 7380 14540
2 Truck Only 3520 3160 6680
3 Boat Only 480 7380 7840


On test 1 Axle 1 is truck and tongue weight. Subtract Axle 1 from total truck weight(Test 2 and you get tongue weight)

On test 3 Axle 1 is Trailer jack and axle 3 is remaining trailer weight

I still need to add the spare tire to the tongue which will increase it a little but I need to figure out how much to move the boat up to get proper tongue.
Put the boat in the water today so I can adjust the trailer now but I am going to wait a little while to pull the boat back out.

What an interesting story going to the weigh station was. I called yesterday morning and they said they could do it, I drive 35 minutes to get there and a different woman was so rude and would not do it. My wife walked in and her first comment was "what's your probelm?" My wife had not even said anything. Anyway I called the manager and complained and she is now fired. It is a much longer story but I won't bore. Put it this way I told a different employee today that she was on her cell phone and was told that she does not have service and just pretends to talk on the phone. You get the gist. Anyway got it weighed today, same place no issues.

Please let me know about moving boat fwd. on trailer.
Thanks,
Luis

 

[RiverRat]

Well, I finally got my spotlight installed... It wouldn't fit where I had planned the anchor locker lid hit so I had to mount it to the side of the nav. light instead of directly behind it.

 

[RiverRat]

Luis, To move the front post on the trailer, all you will need to do is loosen the bolts where it attaches to the tonge of the trailer and slide it forward a bit re-tighten the nuts and your done. There should be 2 u-bolts holding the post to the tonge. :smt001

 

[lfalla]

Hey RiverRat;
Thanks for the response. I'm, really trying to figure out if there is a way to determine how many inches or how far up I should move the winch post to get closer to the right tongue weight. I would rather get it in the general area rather doing it at the weigh station as my experiences haven't been the greatest there.

I just found the info below on the shoreland'r website which is who makes my trailer. This seems kind of low doesn't it?

To determine proper tongue weight, total the package weight (boat with fuel/battery, motor with maximum horsepower, and trailer) and multiply it by 6% on single axles and 5% on tandem axle trailers. ShoreLand'r suggests that tongue weight may be acceptable in a 5-7% range.

Example:

Boat with fuel and battery 2,000 lbs.
Motor 500 lbs.
Trailer 900 lbs.

Total Weight 3,400 lbs.
Single Axle Figure x 6%

Tongue Weight 204 lbs.



Thanks for all the help and let me know what everyone thinks.
Thanks,
Luis

 

[RiverRat]

Not really. The trailer should bear the load not the tow vehicle.

 

[craig240DA]

Couple questions

Anyone else with a boat-lift? How do you change the oil and pull the plug? I have to paddle out in our Kayak which is silly.

For those with the pulley on the bow for the anchor: When you lift the anchor with the pulley, then do you let it dangle there or do you still hoist it up?

We will be practicing anchoring and other maneuvers next time out, as we are brand new to all this.

 

[MAKC]

Hey Craig When i pulled my drain plug there was water that came out even though the bilge area i could see only had a little bit of water. Thats pretty normal. Washing the inside of the boat will always get some water down in the bilge (not a lot but a few dops here and there), the cup holders behind the helm empty into the bilge, etc. You'll alway sget some water down there thats for sure. As long as its not from a leak from a through hull fitting you should be just fine. I know that i wouldnt pull the drain plug everytime even if i could. The few drops of water that you might be able to drain would pale in comparison to the amount of water you'll get from forgetting to put the drain plug BACK!

Oil changes are a snap but you need one of those pump type oil extractors. They have an adaptor which screws on to the top of your dipstick hole (ever notice the threads there? Thats what they are for) and you pump the oil out through the dipstick hole. It works GREAT and theres no mess. The oil filter can be somwhat of a challenge since its upside down and when you get it unscrewed, it pours oil all over the place. So to keep that oil from getting in your bilge, you can do one of 2 things. 1.) Use lots of rags and QUICKLY turn the oil filter over when you get it unscrewed. It'll only get a little oil on the bracket and all those rags you have around it will catch the mess. or 2.) you can take a hole punch and knock a few holes in the top of the oil filter and that will allow the oil thats in there to drain into the engine which will be sucked up by your drain pump. I havent tried this yet but it seems like a great idea.

 

[RiverRat]

The punching a hole in the oil filter trick is Great!!! :thumbsup: You still have a little oil drain from it, but a couple of shop towels will catch all thats left.

 

[RiverRat]

Re: Couple questions

For those with the pulley on the bow for the anchor: When you lift the anchor with the pulley, then do you let it dangle there or do you still hoist it up?

We will be practicing anchoring and other maneuvers next time out, as we are brand new to all this.

Craig, Pull the anchor in all the way and put it back in the anchor locker. If you let it dangle you will soon find out that steel and gelcoat do not play well together. The steel always wins! (the bow will look like someone took a hammer to it!) :smt021

 

[GJarrett]

To prevent any oil at all from getting out when you change the filter, cut the top off of a 2 liter plastic coke jug, then slip it over the filter, then just squeeze to grab the filter and unscrew it out. Any oil will be caught inside the coke bottle.

 

[lfalla]

Another option for keeping oil from getting in the bilge is to use a zip lock back and wrap it around the filter when removing it. This depends on how your filter sits

 

[Shining]

Well, I finally got my spotlight installed... It wouldn't fit where I had planned the anchor locker lid hit so I had to mount it to the side of the nav. light instead of directly behind it.

I like the look. Good job. :thumbsup: Much better than the one in an eariler post with it mounted on the anchor locker door!
-Mike

 

[lfalla]

Hey RiverRat;
Awesome install on the light. Guess I need to go spend some $$$ and get that light. How did you run the wires and is it a remote light(does it move)? I want to do this and might do it this weekend. Please let me know any details or install tricks.
Thanks;
Luis

 

[RiverRat]

Ifalla, Igot it here: http://magnalight.com/pc-121-45-gol...-spotlight--permanent-mount-click-to-buy.aspx

They are on sale right now for $175.00. With shipping it cost about $190.00. You can also get this light in chrome... But I'm cheap.

As far as the install goes... It was one of the easiest mods I've done to the boat. The light has a wireless remote so you don't have to run wires back to the helm. I tapped into the bow light for power (inside the anchor locker). The grey wire is hot and black is ground. The wiring is plenty big for the 5.5 amp draw of the light. Open the helm station to access the fuse box which is clearly marked Bow light. You will need to remove the existing 5 amp fuse and put in a 10 amp. Put the cover back on and close the helm station. That's it for wiring.

Mounting the light: Find the location on the top of the deck for mounting, it will have to be on the port side so it will clear the anchor locker door when opening.(hold the light in place and open & close the door to check for proper clearance, aprox. 1/2" with light facing forward) Use a pencil and mark the location (with the gasket on the light) Remove the gasket from the light and use it for a template for drilling. I used 3/16" for the mounting holes. For the wiring I used a 1/4" drill. Drill in the center of the mounting holes (make an X diaganally across the mounting holes.) Center of the X marks the spot. You will need to get 4 #8X2" round head bolts and 8 nuts along with 8 flat washers to mount it. When you set the light in place you will notice the light will rock due to the deck shape. The port side front bolt you will have to put 4 of the flat washers between the base of the light and the deck. This will leave a 1/4" gap between the deck & light. They call for 3" of wiring to stay under the light to get full rotation. I put a cable tie on the wire to use as a wire stop, then siliconed the hole & wiring when dropping the light into place. Drop the bolts in through the light base. You will have to turn the light manually to do this. It will turn pretty easily. Install a flat washer and nut to each bolt and tighten, then install a second nut to each and tighten. connect the wires, Silicone the area where the light gasket doesn't touch the deck, and that's all there is... other than checking for proper operation. :grin:

Note: The spotlight will only have power when the Nav. lights are on. Should be the only time you will need to use it though! :smt001

It only took about 2 1/2 hours to intall. :smt001

 

[papogator24]

How bright is the light RiverRat?

 

[RiverRat]

From the Magnalight web site: The Cr5 Pentabeam II technology combines a five-sided parabolic reflector with an axial filament Phillips H-9 bulb. This 5,000,000 adjusted retail Candle Power (400k ICP) configuration generates an extremely bright beam to penetrate dark spots, cast a broad spectral pattern and reach distances of up to a half-mile away.

You gan get all the specs. on this light at the link I posted at the top of the page. :smt001

 

[RiverRat]

I have 1 more mod. I forgot about since last year... The admiral was complaining that she didn't have a good place to put her "refreshment" while underway. The one up front is to shallow to hold a cup so she ended up having to hold her "refreshment" while moving. She likes sitting on the aft port side while underway. So I went on a search to find something for her and I found the ones pictured below. I found them at a RV supply house and they even match the gelcoat color on the 2000-2004 240's. It's been a year so I don't remember the name of the place I purchased them from, but I did find them on e-bay but purchased them direct from their online website.

And the admiral is now happy! :grin: :thumbsup:

 

[Dave S]

I have 1 more mod. I forgot about since last year... The admiral was complaining that she didn't have a good place to put her "refreshment" while underway. The one up front is to shallow to hold a cup so she ended up having to hold her "refreshment" while moving. She likes sitting on the aft port side while underway. So I went on a search to find something for her and I found the ones pictured below. I found them at a RV supply house and they even match the gelcoat color on the 2000-2004 240's. It's been a year so I don't remember the name of the place I purchased them from, but I did find them on e-bay but purchased them direct from their online website.

And the admiral is now happy! :grin: :thumbsup:

You mind explaining how those work? :smt017 :smt017