P
Pearce O Shea
I am looking at a moody 33 eclipse mk1 1990 and would appreciate any advice on any issues and what to look out for many thanks P
- Boat name
- JONIKA
- Berth
- Whitehaven
- Boat type
- Moody Eclipse 33
- Cruising area
- UK West Coast
Hi Pearce and welcome.
An excellent choice of vessel, if I may say so! I'm assuming you mean E33 specifics rather than general stuff like mild steel fuel tanks, window seals and chainplate shoulders. If so, there are variations on the support for the bottom of the mast compression post, some of which involve glassed in wooden blocks that go with age and water ingress.
The arrangement (and existence) of pipes between various parts of the bilge (the proper name for which escapes me right now) changed over the lifetime of the model's production so these may want checking for correct function.
Check how tightly routed the throttle morse cables from the upper helm are: mine were curved way beyond design specification and also too short, resulting in stresses on the helm station control lever and the throttle lever itself - one causing a £150 replacement, the other a rather expensive engine fix.
Many (probably most if not all) E33s were fitted with autopilot using a fluxgate compass. These go with age and not all were located in a suitable position. Mine is under the inner helm inside a locker often used for cooking pot stowage. Even after removing all the contents, I've been unable to use the function to swing the compass and build a deviation table for the autopilot course computer. I suspect the proximity of the inner helm steering chain, master electric switch and other components to be the cause.
Those are the issues that occur to me immediately, I'm sure others will be along shortly to help further.
Best wishes,
Paul
An excellent choice of vessel, if I may say so! I'm assuming you mean E33 specifics rather than general stuff like mild steel fuel tanks, window seals and chainplate shoulders. If so, there are variations on the support for the bottom of the mast compression post, some of which involve glassed in wooden blocks that go with age and water ingress.
The arrangement (and existence) of pipes between various parts of the bilge (the proper name for which escapes me right now) changed over the lifetime of the model's production so these may want checking for correct function.
Check how tightly routed the throttle morse cables from the upper helm are: mine were curved way beyond design specification and also too short, resulting in stresses on the helm station control lever and the throttle lever itself - one causing a £150 replacement, the other a rather expensive engine fix.
Many (probably most if not all) E33s were fitted with autopilot using a fluxgate compass. These go with age and not all were located in a suitable position. Mine is under the inner helm inside a locker often used for cooking pot stowage. Even after removing all the contents, I've been unable to use the function to swing the compass and build a deviation table for the autopilot course computer. I suspect the proximity of the inner helm steering chain, master electric switch and other components to be the cause.
Those are the issues that occur to me immediately, I'm sure others will be along shortly to help further.
Best wishes,
Paul
P
Pearce O Shea
Many thanks Paul for the comprehensive reply this is very helpful -owners always know the issues-as I am heading into pensioner territory the deck saloon is looking more attractive and an article in YM by Duncan wells gave a favourable view on sailing ability and I believe they can cope well with weather thanks again Pearce
- Boat name
- JONIKA
- Berth
- Whitehaven
- Boat type
- Moody Eclipse 33
- Cruising area
- UK West Coast
Hi Pearce, I think I know the review you mean. It came out a short while after my purchase and was an excellent affirmation of the choice I made. She is a far better boat than I am a sailor and will happily cope with far worse than I'd dare go out in. More thoughts spring to mind: check the mainsail reefing is free-running. There are quite a lot of lines involved and I've had to work hard to free up some of the pulleys/sheaves at the base of the mast and under the coachroof where they are led aft.
A baggy mainsail will jam, so factor that into your offer. I was probably unlucky and didn't spot it in time, but the wire to rope halyard for the foresail, being in the same place over the masthead sheave for so long fractured and came down inside the mast, dumping the sail on the foredeck mid trip. These rope/wire halyards are likely to fail in such a fashion eventually so they are worth checking. Crimping a new eye on to a good part of the wire rope is no hassle for a yard, but if the halyard has come down there is the added hassle of getting it back in position.
I've seen here that the raw water inlet strainer (mounted on the seacock) is quite fragile and can fail - the rather unique design could be difficult to replace without a redesigned, more modern system.
I'm sure more might come to me, but lest I put you off, these are minor niggles in an otherwise bomb-proof design. Biggest criticism? Lack of storage space in the saloon (after all, those windows have to come from somewhere). Biggest boon? A heads you can actually use without crashing into the walls all the time. Second-biggest boon? In-mast reefing. Some may hate it, but infinite reefing from the companionway steps is a massive safety and ease of use factor.
One thing to note: E33s have quite a high freeboard, so getting from pontoon to side-deck is a bit athletic...
A baggy mainsail will jam, so factor that into your offer. I was probably unlucky and didn't spot it in time, but the wire to rope halyard for the foresail, being in the same place over the masthead sheave for so long fractured and came down inside the mast, dumping the sail on the foredeck mid trip. These rope/wire halyards are likely to fail in such a fashion eventually so they are worth checking. Crimping a new eye on to a good part of the wire rope is no hassle for a yard, but if the halyard has come down there is the added hassle of getting it back in position.
I've seen here that the raw water inlet strainer (mounted on the seacock) is quite fragile and can fail - the rather unique design could be difficult to replace without a redesigned, more modern system.
I'm sure more might come to me, but lest I put you off, these are minor niggles in an otherwise bomb-proof design. Biggest criticism? Lack of storage space in the saloon (after all, those windows have to come from somewhere). Biggest boon? A heads you can actually use without crashing into the walls all the time. Second-biggest boon? In-mast reefing. Some may hate it, but infinite reefing from the companionway steps is a massive safety and ease of use factor.
One thing to note: E33s have quite a high freeboard, so getting from pontoon to side-deck is a bit athletic...
P
Pearce O Shea
Thanks Paul for all the info- I don’t have experience of in mast reefing but is prob the way to go for a pensioner so that’s good to know what to look out for re halyards I’m well armed now
Thanks for your time
Best regards
Pearce
Thanks for your time
Best regards
Pearce