Kevin A Wright
Member III
Loren, what diameter and pitch is your 3 blade prop? I'm toying with changing from the 2 blade original on my E35MKIII. Was hoping it would give me a little more umph when the wind picks up as well as better backing control from a dead stop?
As far as what to look for on a 35 MK 3, I bought a 1986 2 years ago and have been working on the list. Really nothing super major has surfaced, just the regular stuff on a boat that old that has suffered from several years of 'benign neglect'. The rubber seal on the forward hatch was leaking (plan to eventually replace but has been fixed for 2 years with a strip of electrical tape on the outside), other opening ports were leaking as well and have some crazed plexi, but just needed cleaning and a little silicone on the seals. No signs of leaking windows yet, but have lots of practice from rebuilding the ones on my E27 when that day comes.
Hull, rigging, deck, etc. were all in good shape. Needed to replace the running rigging because it was overdue. Had a broken fuel filter bracket that I had to fabricate and replace as well as rebuilding the alternator mount which had ground itself away from improper placement of the Racor fuel filter (alternator would bang against the Racor in operation - so moved the racor as well).
Wiring was in pretty good shape considering the age although some of the indicator lights on the electrical panel have burned out. Bought a bunch of LEDS to replace them when I find myself on the hood for a rainy weekend someplace with nothing to do. The shower sump pump was also dead and had to rewire.
The only major surprise I got hit with was the forced air heat. Worked fine the first month I had it, then went belly up. Cost about $4k to have it replaced (yeesh!). Also have a little play in the rudder I want to look at next time I haul. Seems to be moving slightly fore and aft so that the top of the rudder can rub against the bottom of the hull at times.
So all in all everything has held up very well for an 80's vintage boat that I know has some miles on it. They are just well built boats so I expect to get a lot more years out of her.
Kevin Wright
E35 Hydro Therapy
As far as what to look for on a 35 MK 3, I bought a 1986 2 years ago and have been working on the list. Really nothing super major has surfaced, just the regular stuff on a boat that old that has suffered from several years of 'benign neglect'. The rubber seal on the forward hatch was leaking (plan to eventually replace but has been fixed for 2 years with a strip of electrical tape on the outside), other opening ports were leaking as well and have some crazed plexi, but just needed cleaning and a little silicone on the seals. No signs of leaking windows yet, but have lots of practice from rebuilding the ones on my E27 when that day comes.
Hull, rigging, deck, etc. were all in good shape. Needed to replace the running rigging because it was overdue. Had a broken fuel filter bracket that I had to fabricate and replace as well as rebuilding the alternator mount which had ground itself away from improper placement of the Racor fuel filter (alternator would bang against the Racor in operation - so moved the racor as well).
Wiring was in pretty good shape considering the age although some of the indicator lights on the electrical panel have burned out. Bought a bunch of LEDS to replace them when I find myself on the hood for a rainy weekend someplace with nothing to do. The shower sump pump was also dead and had to rewire.
The only major surprise I got hit with was the forced air heat. Worked fine the first month I had it, then went belly up. Cost about $4k to have it replaced (yeesh!). Also have a little play in the rudder I want to look at next time I haul. Seems to be moving slightly fore and aft so that the top of the rudder can rub against the bottom of the hull at times.
So all in all everything has held up very well for an 80's vintage boat that I know has some miles on it. They are just well built boats so I expect to get a lot more years out of her.
Kevin Wright
E35 Hydro Therapy
