Luhrs 340 Convertible

[tangled up in blue]

Hello,

My family got a 2001 Luhrs 340 Convertible with the 315 Yanmars last season.
We are new to the boating scene, the last boat we had was some 20 years ago and only a 16 foot lake boat. We have been learning pretty quickly though and have had nothing but good times on the boat.
We fish and cruise out of Ocean City, NJ, everything from putting around the bays to running out to the canyons and have had some good luck so far putting fish on the deck.
As we do not have a lot of experience I hoped to get some input on handling and performance. We are still pretty conservative as to when we go out and try to pick our weather days well. The boat handles most seas well enough although it does seem to get a little squirrely with a following sea and can lean and roll a bit while either drifting or with a beam sea, even in small short period waves.
My question, without much experience on other boats, is how much can these boats lean without being dangerous? Is this inherent of all smaller flybridges? When it does catch and ride the side of a wave and lean, what can be done to correct the roll? And finally, how far could it lean without capsizing and worst case, if it did, would it right itself?
Again, we love the boat, just trying to get a better idea of its capabilities and handling characteristics. Thanks for the info.

[Esquire]

Congratulations on your new boat. While I do not consider myself an expert captain, I have boated for 15 years with my first boat a 32 Express and now I have owned a Luhrs 360 convertible for the last 7 years, I would make a couple of suggestions. Following seas can be tricky for any boat, make sure that your trim tabs are retracted as far as possible, adjusting your speed relative to the waves is also important, I have found that if I am in a large following sea, if I retract my tabs all the way and slow down a little bit relative to the speed of the waves I retain better control. I would suggest the next time you are in that condition to play around with your speed to see what works best for your boat. When you talk about catching the side of a wave and leaning I am assuming this is when you are running in a following sea? If I am correct then in my humble opinion you need to slow down and let the wave roll underneath you to stop surfing them. As far as the leaning goes... I've been in some pretty rough beam seas, never once felt as if I was close to rolling over though. How much lean are you talking about?

[tangled up in blue]

Thanks for the reply and information. I have lately been running a bit slower coming into the inlet and letting the following seas flow underneath and it does seem to help a bit. When you say retract the trim tabs all the way, this is to bring the bow up, to prevent the bow from digging into the wave in front, correct? Sometimes, especially with reduced speed this seems to make the boat lumber through the water really dragging the stern and making it hard to keep a line through the channel.
As far as the leaning, I'm sure its more just a matter of getting used to the wave's effect on the boat. I've not been on enough other boat types to know if our's leans more or less than others. We went out sharking yesterday- conditions weren't too bad: 15 kt wind with short period 3 footers. Even with a drift sock off the bow the boat was broadside to the seas and was really rocking, at times the downside gunnel was just about even with the water. Even though they're only 3 footers, they seem pretty close to coming over the side into the cockpit. If one did, how big of a problem would it be. Makes me a little nervous being 20 miles out with 2 buckets of chum in the water and a slick out to the horizon! Thanks again!

[Esquire]

Yes, retracting the tabs brings the bow up so you dont get it jammed into the wave, but I feel it also gets the tabs out of the way of the wave as it rolls underneath you. I think that the tabs if left down can cause a boat to be harder to control due to the waves coming up on the opposite side of the tab and pushing against it. That being said I try not to come off of plane which means at times really keeping on top of the throttle to adjust the speed of the boat, kinda a dance between keeping on plane and not surfing the wave. As far as the rocking goes, I have never been on a 340 C before but I cannot imagine 3 foot seas swamping your cockpit.. my 360 is not that much larger and I have not ever had it close to a wave coming over the side. As far as taking water in the cockpit, if you have a access hatch to get to the rudders and steering gear like I do, make sure that it has a good gasket on it and the drains are clear around the hatch, any water that gets in will drain out the scupper or door not into your bilge.

[bimini_tom]

Esquire, what year is your 36. I have a 2004 36 and water does enter the bilge through the hatch even when I wash the cockpit. What type of gasket did you use to stop the water?

[T380fisher]

tangled up in blue....congrads on the boat...you'll love it. I joke about my 38 saying "she rides like a Cadillac, floats like a cork". The deadrise is so aggressive, that these boats cut through almost any sea, however, drift style fishing can be a little tough in a short sea. I boat out of Wildwood and have had concerning days drifting the CM rips as well as offshore, but have never felt my boat couldn't get us home. If you ever feel that, you probably shouldn't have gone out. The worst ever was in the Wilmington overnight in true 8 footers. That was the only time waves broke into the cockpit...I never want to do that again in any boat.

Anyway, I fish on friends boats including a 36 Blackfin open, a 38 Henriques, a 31 Bertram and a 40 Jersey.....they all hate the aft quartering sea. I agree with ESQUIRE, slow down a bit and respect the water....getting home safe is better than getting home quickly.

[Esquire]

bimini_tom,
I have a 2000 36 C, there is a rubber gasket that is attached to the hatch about an 8th to a quarter inch thick and about an inch wide that runs around the perimeter of the hatch which sits on the combing of the opening. I get no water at all in that hatch, in fact I dont believe the bilge pump that sits down below ever had to pump out a drop of water. I also make sure the drain around the hatch is kept clean. You also may want to check and see if the latches are adjusted so they pull the hatch down to seal the gasket.

[bimini_tom]

Thanks for the response. The under side of the hatch cover is lined with a thick rubber mat, but it is not thick enough to seal the opening. I already adjusted the latch adjustments all the way. I will add a rubber gasket around the perimeter of the hatch and see if that seals it.