J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment Tech questions

I was looking at build #51 as a possible purchase but noticed a couple of things which may or may not be of concern.
1. the main electrical switch was located on the starboard side by the cooler. On all others I noted it is fitted to port by the galley. any thoughts why thisshould be.
2. I recall reading somehwere that the hull to deck was bolted every 4 to 5 inches. This is bolted every 6 inches and it has NO washers under ANY of the nuts. Surelty this could lead to the nuts breaking down the GRP?
Any thoughts?
Thnx.
PS Were all boats factory fineshed or could they be purchased for home build?

Well, I can't tell you about the bolting, but you're not alone on the electrical layout. Hull 3 has the powerswitch on the starboard side, below the nav station/icebox

- David

From the various J/30's I've raced on I've seen that the 'new' interior layout (starboard quarterberth only) the battery switch is to port, in the locker under the sink. The 'old' layout (quarterberths on both sides) has the switch to starboard next to the cooler.

I believe all J/30's were factory finished. There were a number of options (teak & holly sole, for example).

Well, I don't think port v. stbd switches is a function of new vs. old layout. I've got hull #337, 1981, it's got the old cabin and cockpit layout with both quarterberths. My switch is to port.

This makes a lot of sense to me. My batteries are under the port quarterberth, so it involves the least amount of cable and voltage drop to keep the switch to port.

For those with battery switches to starboard, is the battery bank under the starboard quarterberth too? (For me, that's where the engine water intake and fuel lines run, so I wonder how a battery bank could go there.)

For hull 3, it is, in fact fully flipped. Our batteries are starboard, engine intake is port, straight shot to a strainer, then onto the engine water pump. The fuel line runs just forward of the battery box. The fuel tank is on starboard on all the boats, I believe.

- David

Hi Guys,
Thnx for your input. Any chance you could take a look at your deck to hull bolts and see what size & spacing they are?

Finally got a chance to look at our deck joint. (It not being 98F and 100% Humidity this morning) It appears to have been bolted every 4-6 inches, with washers under most of the nuts. The bolts all appear to be though very solid portions of glass, with no signs of crushing. (26 years on)

- David

Hello David,
Thnx for the information which confirms what I was looking for, that there should be washers under the nuts. Just makes sense to spread the load. The question now is why does the boat I am looking at have no washers????
Thnx once again.

My guess is that someone replaced the toe rails at some time and neglected to put the washers back on. My J(195) has the batteries to port with battery switch to port also.