Official 330 Express Cruiser / 340 Amberjack 1997-2003 Thread

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Good morning...well all is done and I am now waiting for my 18 X 21 props to be re-pitched by one inch and my canvas guy to take some pics of the final product. The engines and trannys came out together but the seats had to come out and the hatch had to be removed to get the proper access. That was yet another unforeseen cost!!
 
Ok correction!! Not sure what I was thinking...The Hatch did NOT have to be removed but the seats came out and the rams disconnected to get the proper access, opening the hatch higher
 
fl amberjack said:
Ok correction!! Not sure what I was thinking...The Hatch did NOT have to be removed but the seats came out and the rams disconnected to get the proper access, opening the hatch higher
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That was my assumption. Very nice. Get her or on the water already! Very curiouse
 
Thanks! Well, shooting for thursday or Friday now...hope to have the canvas, props, shafts all ready for a glamor shot! with the old props slipping a bit i was able to run along the beach @ 24mph burning 30gph...I should pick up a good 2 knots whit the new cupping and pitch so I think my goal of running 24 knts to 26 knots at 34-3600 is attainable, we'll see
 
Hi everyone,
I'm in the market for a boat in the 33' foot range and am down to 2 choices. A 1997 330 Express Cruiser with 7.4L's and 540 hrs. or a 2000 340 Sundancer with 8.2L's and 310 hours (original owner put new 2008 engines in to upgrade from 350's). A few questions 1) the EC indicates it is 16,400 lbs vs. the SDA's 13,000 lbs. Will this have a big impact on cruising speed, top end and fuel economy? 2) everyone talks about roughly 25 gph, is this per engine or combined? 3) should I stay away from a boat that has been repowered? I have found other 340's with the 7.4's. We will entertain a lot and only occasionally have 4 people overnight. Kids are 19, 17 and 15 so they and all their friends aren't little kids. Thoughts will be helpful to my decision.
 
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If you're planning on having two other adult "kids" sleep overnight, I'd say the Sundancer would be a better fit - especially if the two other adults are not a "couple" that would not want to share the same bed.
 
Thanks, I'm really thinking we will rarely have anyone sleeping on it other than my wife and I. Anyone have a response on the fuel consumption of an EC vs an SDA ? Is it much different considering the EC weighs 3,400 lbs more?
 
I've boated with other 340 Dancers of that era and they seem to be a bit more efficient on fuel. My guess is about 10% better. That being said, the Amberjack is simply a bigger boat. Taller, wider, and definitely heavier, it will be able to handle the tough stuff (that tall short choppy stuff that the Great Lakes are famous for) at a much lower planing speed due to its width and mid-ship engine configuration. That makes for a smoother more comfortable ride which is worth the minor fuel penalty IMHO. It has the feel of a much larger boat than it is and always draws comments about its size at the dock.
 
The reasons I choose the 330 ec over the dancer
1. I do my own maintenence. When I looked at the dancer I dreaded climbing in there to do something as simple as an oil change. In the ec I can actually sit down comfortably or stand up in between the engine and have more then enough room to work on anything down there.
2. Beam. At 13 6 it just gives you so much more room and makes the boat so much bigger not to mention it runs in bigger seas so much better. (A little wetter of a ride tho) with a slight keel she runs like she's on rails.
3. Cockpit space is just unreal for a 33 ft boat. When rated up everybody flocks to me simply because I have the room for everybody to be together, dance and be comfortable with 10 or so people.
4. A real size bathroom. Yea it's still a wet head but it's almost twice the size of a dancer head.
Cons.
1. Loud while cruising.
2. Sleeping arrangements are tight. for 2 couples it's doable (one couple on couch and one in the v berth ) anything more then that is very tight.
3. Small swim platform.

Don't be scared to purchase a boat that had been repowered. Ask questions on why it was repowered and what company he purchased the motors from. He could have simply repowered die to lack of power. 350s seem a bit light hire these boats. 8.1s seem to be perfect (From what I hear) 25 gph is definetly a very low guestimation. I run 3400 3450 at 25 to 27 mph depending on load with 21p 4 blade nibral props burning about 34 gph.
 
Had a question for all the three step stair EC owners. I have the two step stair and want to change to the three step. Can anyone provide me with the dimensions for the 3 step version?

Thanks in advance.
 
keilind3 said:
Had a question for all the three step stair EC owners. I have the two step stair and want to change to the three step. Can anyone provide me with the dimensions for the 3 step version?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

If you email me a diagram of what measurements you want I'll spend a couple minutes and measure it out. It probably won't be exact because of the carpet but I'll try my best jonathanschanter@gmail.com
 
What is everyone doing for rear fenders? There is no cleat for a fender. Ideally we'd have a cleat by/near the rear flushmount rod holder. We don't use the rod holders so as of now I just took off the bottom cap of the rod holder tube, then put the fender line in the rod holder and out the bottom and tied it. The annoying part is that I can't easily detach the fender so I just flop it back in the boat when we go cruising but it takes up a seat on the back L bench.

Any thoughts?

I found a unique solution here but don't entirely like it:
http://rodholdercleat.yachtinnovations.com/
 
the latest, getting there!

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I figured I would post a picture of my new baby.
It is at the guest dock at Sportsmen Yacht Club.
The Clubhouse is the historic ferry Sausalito, built in 1894.
The club has owned the ferry since 1939.

Neal
 

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When I change out my Radar (Raymarine R11XX) next year I'm thinking I might add a short mount to elevate the dome.
What do you all think?
Short mount, or no mount?
If I do a mount, forward leaning or aft leaning?
Enquiring minds want to know what the collective wisdom of the Express/Amberjack owners think.
Others are welcome to chime in also!

Thanks,
Neal
 
No response on my last question under this category, so I'm going to try another question.

For some reason when my 330 Express was built the live bait well was not plumbed for a fill or aerator.
I figure it can't be too hard to plumb that feature, but I'm wondering if anyone has a picture of their Express or Amberjack showing how that was done?

Thnks
 
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