I just got a 35 commander 1968,I have being checking CC forums and the answer regarding a 35 CCC engine choice is still not clear to my mind,perhaps you guys with 35s would care to comment.First the boat has not arrived yet but I know it has 350s rebuilts(not originals,spoke with mechanic, 2 bolt blocks)PO states cruising 12knot@3200 max 20knts @3900,paragon transmissions,I don t know which model, in need of repair,original fuel tanks.What are the largest capacity fuel tanks one can stuff in the 35s?Now the tricky part: a balance of $$ and desired performance.Intended use: fishing and diving to an atoll 70nm offshore during summer,yearly use less than 150 hrs. fuel range needed about 200nm, cruising speed 18knts.The possibilities I see are to rebuilt the 350s stroking them to 383 (I have no idea of mpg advantage over 454s or if paragones will take them without braking(according to the PO mechanic the transmissions will brake)second choice purchase rebuilt 454 crusaders again I don t know if paragons are strong enough for these engines,I m shure I will get the speed but I m not so shure about range.Lastly the most $$ Cummins 5.9BT 210hp,according to "boatdiesel" calculator it should give the speed and range,but looking at other boats of similar LOA with this engines here I don t have the speed,perhaps the 35CCC should be considered a slow planing hull and recalculate.I don t like diesels because you can t leave them for weeks or months and then expect them to start without problems, something I can do with my gas engine.
Thanks in advance for any of your thoughts on this.
Eduardo

In a 35 a pair of small blocks should work fine unless you load it with a couple thousand pounds of gear and people (and try to go fast).

If you do your boating like Paul does on the river system, you really don't need lots of power. Not suggesting our fearless leader here on the forum isn't prone to running at WOT, as there is plenty of evidence he does, but in this day and age of high fuel, you could adjust your boating habit and be just fine with a pair of small blocks. Naturally, many will say there is no replacement for displacement, and it's true, but that is much more true in big water wheree you really have to hunker down and run at a good clip for an extended time frame, than it is running on cocktail or picnic day cruising. (In my humble opinion). Small blocks (and flathead Hercules motors with less power) have powered larger boats than a 35 with little apparant problem other than top end. In the end, top end is generally only for bragging rights and larger boats.

Tom

Thanks for you reply.The venue is open water 3 or 4 ft wave , typically 15knot winds.I see you general point, it is the fine tunning where I have a problem with,is it worth to stroke the engines I have for the assumed savings and range that I will get from them or go to 454 and then be in a position where I have to change transmissions probably shafts and propeller picht and if I have gone so far should I just go for the diesels?Unfortunally I have not seen 35s for sale or in the forums with diesels to get an idea of their performance.

Hi Eduardo

I tend to agree with Tom. Mark Weller has a 35 with stock small block Q motors and he runs his IT' FIVE OCLOCK SOMEWHERE on Lake Erie about as enthusiastically as anyone I know. I've seen small block 35s get bogged down when they're over loaded with beef (on one occasion we had one with such a load of big guys aboard, it was plowing quite a wake) but that is the very small exception you need not even consider. The times when you'll be doing that will be a small percentage of your boating.

Everything I've heard about diesel in a boat this size suggests it's just not the right thing to do. The initial cost is higher, they are NOT MAINTNANCE FREE, quite the contrary. You'll NEVER recover the cost based on fuel consumption so don't even think about that, and the actual performance is not going to make much difference. Yes indeed, they have an advantage with safety. Gas is the way to go unless you have the cash to burn and you just wanna do it. If that's the case, then it's a valid reason to do it, but forget about trying to justify the cost, because quite frankly it's hard to justify a boat in the first place if you look at it from an accounting point of view (which few of us actually do, or we wouldn't have boats in the first place).

If you don't have a heavily loaded 35 and you prop the boat well, you should be happy as a clam with it. Tim Toth has one with big block Fords, and it's safe to say he has an abundance of spare power, and if you have them they're nice.

I had a 35' Chris Craft (wood) Sea Skiff years ago and I loved that boat. It was 12,000 pounds, which is pretty light for 35'. It had a pair of 327F 210-hp solid lifter small blocks, and that darn boat was the fastest cruiser at our yacht club. One day I ran an aluminum Marinette with a pair of 454s and we walked away at less than full throttle. Thankfully there were guests aboard each boat who talked, ha ha, or word wouldn't hav gotten out. I never felt that boat needed more motor.

Decisions like this always have to consider the actual hours per year you'll be putting on the boat, the safety factors, and the type of boating you'll be doing as Tom so correctly pointed out. Hope my comments give you some sort of a perspective. There are, however, several guys including Dave Varnadore, Jerry Namken, and Don Hancock, who have picked up a pair of 454 take out motors complete with all marine hardware and transmissions, and they're grinning about their deals and the performance.

Good luck, let us help you whatever you plan to do.

Regards,

Paul

Thanks Paul your comments are on the mark as usual I agreed about diesels,I have two diesel cars a merc a vw and a truck navistar 7.3 and they are economical to run and I m happy with them but the secret is that I use them.The boat wont be used for months and diesels don t like that,I only considered diesels because of range not speed or economy but I know how troublesome they can be if you don t pamper them and we are talking very high water salinity here but do you know if the original 35CCC paragone trannys could take a 383 or a 455.
Thanks again
Eduardo

Eduardo,
So, you ended up with a 35. That's cool. What year and model? I wish you could have come to look at my boat in person, I have a feeling the broker might have done you a disservice by recommending against it! No hard feelings though, and welcome to the FORUM. As a Commander owner in the Yucatan, you are probably in a pretty exclusive club. As my boat does have SBC's and weighs in at over 22,000 lbs. I can assure you that you have plenty of power. However, as was previously stated you will suffer a lack of top end. I am sceptical of the PO's claimed cruising and top speed. As I noted to you while we corresponded about my boat I cruise @ approx 15 knots and top out @ approx 21 knots. I am also considering the stroker option during my rebuilds. Thus far my opinion is that risk/reward is not favorable. I figure I would be lucky to 4 or 5 knots, but lose economy and longevity of engine life. Knowing myself and my weakness for speed, I figure I would probably run the dog crap out of 'em. I would entertain increasing the low end torque for more response in docking situations ,but I don't see how the extra top end is all that relevant. Even if I was running the 70 KM to your atore, I can't see 5 knots making that big a difference. What are we talking 45 minutes or so each way. That would be a little extra time to tackle up or just sit back and enjoy the ride. That is what it is really all about for me anyway.

Good luck getting into the nitty gritty of Commander ownership. Learn how to use photobucket and share some pics of the boat and the atore and the fun you will be having soon.

Yours Truly, Chris Wade

Thanks Chris it is very gracious of you.Obligations here prevented me from going to see Feelgood but I can tell you that it wasn t easy to it let go.I got a 1968 with a flybridge which has being removed and it should soon leave WI to its new home.
Its good to hear from you
regards
Eduardo

don't rule out 383 or 400/406 small blocks. The 383 are great, torquey little motors. 2 bolt mains is no problem in a boat. The small blocks are light, physically smaller, and inexpensive.

Thanks Bill I wonder what other mods I will have to do to the cooling system to cope with the xtra heat from an 383,if you have any ideas pleaes let me know.
Eduardo

I doubt if you'll have much of a problem. Clean your heat exchanger real well and you should be ok.
Alot of engine cooling is performed by the oil. Make sure your oil cooler is in good shape. Ideal oil temp. is 210-220 degrees.

Ok Ed I have a 35 with small block 350's cruise is approx. 17 knots at 3400 rpm but I have the double cabin model so I know I am heavier than you even with the flybridge my guess is you should weigh in around 15 to maybe 16k lbs with a bridge where I weghed 18,500 at lift out this year. I see what Chris is saying concerning the numbers you have been given that boat should cruise faster than stated. I see no issue with having plenty of power with the small blocks just the way they are. I think I see an issue with possibly the prop selection if the information you have been given is correct for speed and rpm. I max out at 4100 to 4200 rpm and Chris Craft rates the motor to 4400. Which is average to me for a small block. The issue you are going to have is range if hte tanks are original you have no where near the range you are looking for. Unfortunately the older Chris's are not real economical on fuel about the best you will see is 1 mpg. Original tanks are only 90 gal a side for the express I have even smaller tanks at 75 per side. 200 nm range is going to equal around 300 gal of gas to have any sort of reserve and you wont have much of one. I would recomend seeing what props are on the boat I would think at least 20 x 22 if not 20 x 24 or even 23 x 24 might be good. I have 20 x 22 and as I said I get max rpm and I have had 17 people on the boat and it went on plane without any problems just a little more tab than usual.
One thing you will find out as I did I get even worse mileage at 3000 or 3200 rpm than I do at 3400 to 3500 rpm and after speaking to Jim Wick he suggested I try 3600 rpm for cruise I might see even better mileage the thing to do is adjust the carb to not get into the 4bbl if you can if you have the AVS model Carter it is easy if it is the AFB it is a little harder. Get a flow meter it's the only way to really see what kind of fuel mileage you can get in real time. Good luck with the new boat!

Thanks for your very precise info Mark,I almost bought a boat like yours from MA but at the end I thought it would be too hot to navegate in the gulf of Mex. I did noticed that the given fuel capacity was 300 g,I guess the tanks were not originals.
Eduardo