Mainship 34

[PGeo]

Hey there you guys my name is Panay I’m new to this forum so first if I’m cutting in on a conversation I’d like to apologize I’m just learning how to post and use the forum . That being said so I’m looking at a 78 Mainship 34 and it needs a motor I’d like to know what you guys think of the Mainship dare they good sea worthy boats is it worth to buy a 78 and try to fix it up you think what kind of advice can I get from you guys .

Thanks

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard both of you. I like the older Mainship 34s. Are they worth fixing up, it depends on the price. Replacing a diesel isn’t cheap even if you can find a good used motor. They usually have wet core in the decks and flybridge deck. Check the decks carefully for that.

 

[PGeo]

Thanks for that dave how do you fix that do you know ?

 

[Bacchus]

Panay
Check your PM (personal message) for some tips getting started.
Happy to assist if you have questions

 

[Comodave]

Repairing wet coring is just hard physical work but relatively easy technically. You cut the top layer of fiberglass and dig out the wet core. Then lay in new core using thickened epoxy and lay the old top layer of glass back on with more thickened epoxy. Then refinish the top of the deck. That is the hardest part, getting it to look good. I grind a shallow trough and lay in some 1708 to strengthen the place where you cut the fiberglass. Then fair it out and paint the deck. I use Kiwigrip non skid paint. It is great stuff. Very easy to apply, covers imperfections well and can be repaired in the future very easily if necessary. All in all, not really difficult just a lot of time on your knees. Most Mainship 34s will have wet coring somewhere in the decks because when they were made they were not sealed properly at deck penetrations and over time water would get in. So unless a particular boat has had the decks repaired I would expect that there will be wet core. No a deal breaker if you like to work on boats but probably a deal breaker if you like to hire the work done. It can get expensive quickly if you hire the work done. Good luck.

 

[jleonard]

I reglsssed most of the decks on my old mainship. I did not save the original top skin. I just layer the fiberglass over a new plywood core, re ground the crown, and used non skid gelcoat (colored gray) over the top. Looked fabulous and was easy to do.

 

[Pete Meisinger]

Why do you need a new engine ? If you can rebuild the present block you will be way ahead because it will be a drop in. Changing engines, even similar make and model will almost certainly involve shaft, transmission, prop and bedding work.

If you "selectively" rebuild the present engine, meaning you only repair broken parts you may be able to get by for 6 or 8 thousand. A total rebuild, top to bottom, out of the boat will be $20,000.

Is it worth it ? Only you can say, depends on the cost and condition of the boat. My gut feeling is that it is probably worth it if you can get the boat for around $10,000.

Welcome Aboard!!

pete

 

[jimisbell]

I own a 1978 Mainship 34. Its a great boat. Before I bought it the decks had all been redone and the engine swapped out. It has a Volvo TAMD40 that is great. But I have owned Perkins 6-354s and they are bulletproof. A rebuilt Perkins is worth two brand new anything's.

 

[ranger58sb]

Hey there you guys my name is Panay I’m new to this forum so first if I’m cutting in on a conversation I’d like to apologize I’m just learning how to post and use the forum . That being said so I’m looking at a 78 Mainship 34 and it needs a motor I’d like to know what you guys think of the Mainship dare they good sea worthy boats is it worth to buy a 78 and try to fix it up you think what kind of advice can I get from you guys .

We had an '87 34 Mk III and it was a great boat. That said, can't tell if the one you're looking at is viable, since almost all of that depends on previous service/maintenance...

And then there's that engine thing. What was the original? WHY does it need a motor? Original got stolen? Original blew up? Original actually just needs some TLC? Lot's of differences between the two extremes...

And then the cost versus value analysis depends...

-Chris

 

[Polar777]

Hello Panay,
I own a 1980 Mainship and am very happy with it for what I use it for. Soft decks are a definite problem. I cut out the entire bow deck and was able to resuse the skin. I did the grunt work of cutting the deck and removing what was basically mush. I had the fiberglass work done for $3000. I had to redo a portion of the flybridge (2ftx5ft) and a portion of the cockpit under the ladder (2x2). I did that myself at a cost of $300 and a lot of time. The boat is a solid fiberglass hull below the rub rail which was a factor in why I boat the boat. I didn't want a cored hull for this old a boat. The one negative I would say is the boat is terrible in following seas.
Good Luck

 

[Aron Zions]

Hello Aron Zions just received my 1996 MS 34 Motor Yacht looking for all ideas. Would like a copy of owners manual and line drawing. I have the twin Marine Power gas 454 7.4. Some comments on what to watch for?

 

[Bacchus]

Aron
Welcome to TF (a little belated) and MS ownership.
I have SOME MS manual links on my Bacchus website in the useful links section as well as some other MS info others have found useful.
Mine is a 2008 and has been the focus of my searching and posting but I do add any / all MS I fo I can find.
Many happy MS owners here on TF and more coming over with the demise of the MS Yahoo usefulness.

 

[jleonard]

A new engine will make it a new boat.
I repowered my old Mainship I in 1999. Basically rebuilding would have been a shade over half the cost of new. It was an easy decision for me.
I also went up in HP, going from the original Perkins 160 (brake HP) to a Cummins 6BTA at 270 shaft HP.
this gave a nice 12 to 13 knot cruise speed, an increase over the 8.5 knot original, and an 18.5 knot top speed an increase over the 10.5 knot original.
And a 30% increase in fuel economy.
Plus I no longer had trouble getting parts for an old engine.

 

[petemait]

My parents had a mainship 34 and loved it. Pretty hard to beat for the $.
Good luck.

 

[Larry M]

We had a 1981. What a great boat! Best bang for the buck with good lines. A separate shower on a 34 footer is almost unheard of. A fun boat!

 

[R. Bush]

A new engine will make it a new boat.
I repowered my old Mainship I in 1999. Basically rebuilding would have been a shade over half the cost of new. It was an easy decision for me.
I also went up in HP, going from the original Perkins 160 (brake HP) to a Cummins 6BTA at 270 shaft HP.
this gave a nice 12 to 13 knot cruise speed, an increase over the 8.5 knot original, and an 18.5 knot top speed an increase over the 10.5 knot original.
And a 30% increase in fuel economy.
Plus I no longer had trouble getting parts for an old engine.

Just wanted to make sure that I am reading this right. By bumping up your HP you managed to get a 4 knot speed increase while using 30% less fuel? This just seems counter intuitive to me. I would have thought hull speed for a 34' boat would have been more in the range of 7.5 knots anyway. Can I ask what your current fuel consumption figures are?

I am in the market for an affordable boat in the 30 - 35' range and the Mainship seems to be a popular contender.

 

[rgano]

Just wanted to make sure that I am reading this right. By bumping up your HP you managed to get a 4 knot speed increase while using 30% less fuel? This just seems counter intuitive to me. I would have thought hull speed for a 34' boat would have been more in the range of 7.5 knots anyway. Can I ask what your current fuel consumption figures are?

I am in the market for an affordable boat in the 30 - 35' range and the Mainship seems to be a popular contender.

If you are looking to spend nights aboard on any sort of a regular basis, I always say the larger the better. If like me, you are done with longer range cruising and want the ability to remain aboard overnight once in a blue moon in some comfort, this little Mainship 30 Pilot II is just the ticket. When I sold my trawler, I sat down with a surveyor friend of mine and his books and looked through various vessel characteristics. I told him diesel inboard, 30 feet, ability to RON, "affordable," and twice the speed of my GB42. It took about 30 seconds for him to come up with Mainship Pilot 30.

As to fuel use (I do not use the word economy since owning a pleasure boat is NOT economical in any sense of the word), I can run 16 MPH with 8.7 GPH (1.8 MPG) registering on the Floscan. It is possible to run at hull speed or thereabouts at about 1.5-1.7 GPH (4.5 MPG), but I have never done that - see avatar.

 

[KenM]

my 2 cents.... before you buy this particular Mainship ( the 34 is a great boat for overnights but for living aboard is a bit small) I would look around at what other mainship 34s are available that don't need all that work. IMHO the MK III (the third "generation" of the 34's has the best layout, with a transom door, no bulkhead between the salon and galley, separate shower, and larger salon than the MK II. Others may disagree, so if you have opportunity, check out all the MK models, there are subtle but useful differences with each model....

 

[smitty477]

Hey there you guys my name is Panay I’m new to this forum so first if I’m cutting in on a conversation I’d like to apologize I’m just learning how to post and use the forum . That being said so I’m looking at a 78 Mainship 34 and it needs a motor I’d like to know what you guys think of the Mainship dare they good sea worthy boats is it worth to buy a 78 and try to fix it up you think what kind of advice can I get from you guys .

Thanks

We are on Long Island as well and owned a 34' 1978 Mainship many years back. Costs depend on how much the boat needs and how handy you are with those repairs. Any boats cost will be a combination of initial acquisition along with the funds needed to bring it up to your standards. The Mainship has a keel and shoe protecting the prop but still draws more water than some boats- would that be an issue with you where you intend use at Moriches ?

 

[smitty477]

Just wanted to make sure that I am reading this right. By bumping up your HP you managed to get a 4 knot speed increase while using 30% less fuel? This just seems counter intuitive to me. I would have thought hull speed for a 34' boat would have been more in the range of 7.5 knots anyway. Can I ask what your current fuel consumption figures are?

I am in the market for an affordable boat in the 30 - 35' range and the Mainship seems to be a popular contender.

FWIW - our 1978 34' was able to cruise at 11-12 knots speeds with the original 160 Perkins 6 cyl - about 14 knots top.
Best speed was 6-7 knots where the fuel use was excellent for that aged boat and weight.

 

[boomerang]

FWIW - our 1978 34' was able to cruise at 11-12 knots speeds with the original 160 Perkins 6 cyl - about 14 knots top.
Best speed was 6-7 knots where the fuel use was excellent for that aged boat and weight.

Smitty, that's not the performance we get with our stock Perkins 160. WOT of 2450-2500 RPM with a clean bottom & 2:1 reduction with both 3 & 4 blade 20x20 wheels (I've tried both...no difference)gives us a top speed of maybe 12 knots on a good day. I can't say the boat is excessively loaded ,either. The only thing I could think of that you might have different would be large trim tabs &/or a keel fairing ahead of the prop. Is this the case? We're very ok with our economical 7-8 kt cruise but I'm always on the lookout for performance modifications!
Regarding the Mainship model the for which OP mentioned, we're quite happy with the living accommodations of our 34-1 ***AS A COUPLE***, Any more people than a couple for overnight stays and the boat is too small, IMO.

 

[smitty477]

Smitty, that's not the performance we get with our stock Perkins 160. WOT of 2450-2500 RPM with a clean bottom & 2:1 reduction with both 3 & 4 blade 20x20 wheels (I've tried both...no difference)gives us a top speed of maybe 12 knots on a good day. I can't say the boat is excessively loaded ,either. The only thing I could think of that you might have different would be large trim tabs &/or a keel fairing ahead of the prop. Is this the case? We're very ok with our economical 7-8 kt cruise but I'm always on the lookout for performance modifications!
Regarding the Mainship model the for which OP mentioned, we're quite happy with the living accommodations of our 34-1 ***AS A COUPLE***, Any more people than a couple for overnight stays and the boat is too small, IMO.

We had a 4 blade tuned prop and the engine was in good working order - I believe our max rpm was 2,600 which was only used as a test and never run at that rpm. We did have some larger trim tabs but I do not know if they would be considered oversized or not for that boat. Our speeds were mostly recorded in slat water on Long Island sound but we also cruised some in fresh water when went up the Hudson an d Ct rivers. A number of our typical cruises called for a 100 nmile run (give or take) either out tp Block Island or up to Kingston NY - that gave us an easy mileage to calculate speeds and consumption from. The tides were always a factor as well but the speeds I quoted above were from a measured mile off of where we boat from a 2 way average as well as the GPS as a check.

"Any more people than a couple for overnight stays and the boat is too small,"
I would tend to agree with this and we sold the Mainship and moved to a 38' Bayliner which added space, speed and other items we were looking for.