mainship pilot 34
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JackD
Veteran Member
I'm 6' 4" and am fine.
Trying to Decide
Good afternoon
I'm torn between purchasing a newer Mainship 34 Pilot or an older Eastbay 38. I really like the helm and salon seating on the Mainship for day cruising but feel the East Bay would be better suited for longer cruises and offshore. That being said I would also prefer a single which is not available on the Eastbay.
My plans for the boat are to do some weekend cruising in the Carolinas with possible travel to FL in the winter and NE in the summer. I would appreciate any insight this board could provide from your experiences, such as:
Fuel consumption at various cruise speeds both single and twins
How well the boat handles various sea conditions
How difficult is it to get to the outboard side of the twin Yanmars?
Engine noise at cruise
Is the Nexgen 3.5 kw sufficient to run A/C and refrigeration?
Overall build quality
Sorry for the long post but I figure I'll learn far more from the folks here than I will from the brokers
Good afternoon
I'm torn between purchasing a newer Mainship 34 Pilot or an older Eastbay 38. I really like the helm and salon seating on the Mainship for day cruising but feel the East Bay would be better suited for longer cruises and offshore. That being said I would also prefer a single which is not available on the Eastbay.
My plans for the boat are to do some weekend cruising in the Carolinas with possible travel to FL in the winter and NE in the summer. I would appreciate any insight this board could provide from your experiences, such as:
Fuel consumption at various cruise speeds both single and twins
How well the boat handles various sea conditions
How difficult is it to get to the outboard side of the twin Yanmars?
Engine noise at cruise
Is the Nexgen 3.5 kw sufficient to run A/C and refrigeration?
Overall build quality
Sorry for the long post but I figure I'll learn far more from the folks here than I will from the brokers
I have owned a single engine Pilot 34 for five years and have a passing knowledge of the Eastbay 38. For your cruising profile I would pick the Eastbay hands down.
Our Pilot is fine for 3-4 day cruises but gets a little cramped for a week. Your cruising profile has you cruising for months and lack of space and fridge capacity is going to get old.
Going slow at 7 kts my Pilot 34 burns a bit less than 3 gph, and fast at 14 kts about 11 gph. The Eastbay being heavier will burn a lot more fuel, but should be quieter than the Mainship at a fast cruise. The Pilot is tolerable for a few hours at a fast cruise and would be tough to do all day long.
I am not sure about engine access on the twin Eastbay. It has a 13' 4" beam which would be ok for inline twins, but I suspect that the twin V8 3208TAs will be tight. Forget the Pilot 34 twin for engine access.
The NextGen 3.5 can easily run the A/C on a Mainship as well as one of the following: water heater, electric stove (one burner) or 100 amp battery charger when the batteries are low, and not much else.
And the Eastbay sells for more than double what the same year Mainship sells for. You can buy a nice Pilot 34 in the low 100s. It will cost in the upper 100s for a 5 year older Eastbay.
I doubt if there is anything real difference in seakeeping between the two other than 4 feet which should be marginally better.
David
Our Pilot is fine for 3-4 day cruises but gets a little cramped for a week. Your cruising profile has you cruising for months and lack of space and fridge capacity is going to get old.
Going slow at 7 kts my Pilot 34 burns a bit less than 3 gph, and fast at 14 kts about 11 gph. The Eastbay being heavier will burn a lot more fuel, but should be quieter than the Mainship at a fast cruise. The Pilot is tolerable for a few hours at a fast cruise and would be tough to do all day long.
I am not sure about engine access on the twin Eastbay. It has a 13' 4" beam which would be ok for inline twins, but I suspect that the twin V8 3208TAs will be tight. Forget the Pilot 34 twin for engine access.
The NextGen 3.5 can easily run the A/C on a Mainship as well as one of the following: water heater, electric stove (one burner) or 100 amp battery charger when the batteries are low, and not much else.
And the Eastbay sells for more than double what the same year Mainship sells for. You can buy a nice Pilot 34 in the low 100s. It will cost in the upper 100s for a 5 year older Eastbay.
I doubt if there is anything real difference in seakeeping between the two other than 4 feet which should be marginally better.
David
Last edited:
One more thing.
One of the Pilot 34's I looked at recently had lead ballast weights glued to the hull under the v-berths port and starboard as well as to the aft end of the single engine compartment. Was this doe to the weight difference between single and twin? Or did some of the hulls need ballasting? Not sure if I like to see added weight in the ends.
One of the Pilot 34's I looked at recently had lead ballast weights glued to the hull under the v-berths port and starboard as well as to the aft end of the single engine compartment. Was this doe to the weight difference between single and twin? Or did some of the hulls need ballasting? Not sure if I like to see added weight in the ends.
Jeff:
I suspect that the weights were added after market in an attempt to correct some perceived handling problem. I can't see any other reason to add weight at both ends. But I can't see a handling problem that needs correcting either.
The single engine Pilot 34 definitely needs the trim tabs to get the bow down at higher speeds. Mine will pick up at least a knot with tabs down vs not at 14 kts. I can see adding ballast forward to try help with this issue, but not both ends.
David
I suspect that the weights were added after market in an attempt to correct some perceived handling problem. I can't see any other reason to add weight at both ends. But I can't see a handling problem that needs correcting either.
The single engine Pilot 34 definitely needs the trim tabs to get the bow down at higher speeds. Mine will pick up at least a knot with tabs down vs not at 14 kts. I can see adding ballast forward to try help with this issue, but not both ends.
David
ljk
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2013
- Messages
- 285
- Location
- USA
- Vessel Name
- Hobie Kayak
- Vessel Make
- Passport 12.0, 34 Mainship Pilot, Mako 24,32 Regal Commodore, PT-41 Trawler, 33 Chris Craft Cavalier
I have the 34 Pilot with twin Yanmar 240's. I don't do my own engine service. But the engine surveyor who went over the engines pre-purchase said there was in fact room to service the outside of both engines. His exact words were "tight, but doable." He was about 5 ft 9 inches, 230 lbs.
Also, I have observed no handling problems with my boat, and am very pleased with her. Although I have never been on an Eastbay 38, it seems to me that that boat is in an entirely different class (higher) than the Mainship. And at a different price point, too, I bet!
dmarchand's comment about being fine for 3-4 days but not a week is worth considering. We have done a week in my Pilot and it was fine for us (a couple), but it might not be good for others.
Overall, ours is a very seaworthy boat, and we have had minimal trouble with the enignes/drivetrain. Love those Yanmars. If you want to try her out, she is available for charter through Southwest Florida Yachts.
Also, I have observed no handling problems with my boat, and am very pleased with her. Although I have never been on an Eastbay 38, it seems to me that that boat is in an entirely different class (higher) than the Mainship. And at a different price point, too, I bet!
dmarchand's comment about being fine for 3-4 days but not a week is worth considering. We have done a week in my Pilot and it was fine for us (a couple), but it might not be good for others.
Overall, ours is a very seaworthy boat, and we have had minimal trouble with the enignes/drivetrain. Love those Yanmars. If you want to try her out, she is available for charter through Southwest Florida Yachts.
