Mainship 350, 390, or 34T
New here. Not only new to the site, but new overall or in general. We are looking for some help and advice from you seasoned folks here. We think we have decided upon a Mainship 34 Trawler. I have found 8 of them that are on the east coast (north to south), ranging from 2005 to 2008 models. We do not have the time nor the inclination to go look at 8 boats from MA to FL and several locales in between. Is there a path to take or a route to take to cut this list down to 2 or 3 boats and then make a final decision? We have owned runabouts in the pst but nothing with the complexity, uniqueness and price of these boats we are looking at. Appreciate any help that you might provide us.
Steve and Kelly... In 2016 my "Admiral" and I faced the same dilemma. After a lot of conversations with other boat owners and our buyer's agent, we decided on Mainship because of their molded staircase to the bridge, rather than a ladder, and we had decided on single screw, single head, and single stateroom. We were focused Mainship 390s until I came across a review of the Mainship 34T that entered the market in 2004. The author (a captain) loved the lines of the boat, and especially liked the fact that you entered the boat through "french doors," rather than a sliding door, and entered the engine compartment from the cockpit, rather than having to move a rug or furniture in the salon to simply check the oil. He also mentioned it lessening the chances of ever getting diesel "aromas" from the engine compartment. One weekend we left Charleston, drove to New Bern, NC to look at a 390, and then to Deltaville, VA to look at a 34T. While my "Admiral" liked the galley up of the 390 we boarded, she was perfectly happy with the galley down of the 34T because while standing in the galley she could see anyone coming through the doors and everyone sitting in the salon.
A friend told me that whatever we bought we had to have a "marriage saver," also known as a stern thruster. Before leaving the 34T in Deltaville, I asked the broker what -- besides a sternthruster -- he would add if he was buying the boat. He replied due to the number of short fingerpiers on the Chesapeake Bay, he would add "gates" in the port and starboard railings, about 12 feet or so aft of the bow. The gates would allow much easier boarding when coming bow first into slip with short finger piers.
Though we liked the Deltaville boat, we decided to return home and spend a couple more days researching available Mainship 34Ts. We found our 2006 Mainship 34T in Fort Lauderdale. The owner had installed "gates," a sternthruster, shorepower connections in the bow (also for going bow first into slips), changed every light on the boat to LEDs, and made numerous other upgrades that got our attention. Since he had already taken delivery of his new twin screw boat, he was a pleasure to deal with.
In the first two years we owned "Slow Dance," we've put nearly 500 hours on her. She "drinks 6, feeds 4, and sleeps 2 very comfortably." My advice: look at the model(s) you want as close to home as possible, board and explore every inch of them, read everything you can find online, and then zero in on the what appears to be the best available Mainship for you. I would also encourage the two of you to personally inspect the boat before paying a surveyor to do his or her inspection, and seatrialing it. And don't be afraid to walk away from the deal if things just don't seem right. Hope these words help at least a little. Who knows, if you cruise the ICW or do the "great loop," we might see you on the water!
Final piece of advice: As the old wooden boat builders say, "Measure twice and cut once."