My new Tomcat so far.

I

Island Fred

New member
Hi,

I took delivery of my new Tomcat in June, The boat rides and handles like a dream and I think it will be a great boat once I sort out the things that bug me. I sold a Camano 31 this spring so I am used to a well built and intelligently thought out boat. I appreciate how well that Camano was assembled when I look at a lot of other boats. I had hoped that my Tomcat would compare to the Camano but I don't think so. Factory support seems non existent if I believe the dealer who sold it to me.

It seems to be well built and strong but the final outfitting and some design features sure are frustrating. I've crawled all over the boat runing cable and installing equipment. A great way to learn about your boat.

1. Fish boxes. Who thought up this design? It's been well discussed by others so I won't go there other than to say the boat would be better off without them. I am going to install some drains in the trough that empty into a sump with an automatic bilge pump. I don't want anymore moisture in the bilge. Any thoughts, pro or con?

2. The hose from the 3 way valve to the toilet macerator is short and bent so tightly that it has kinked and probably is 50% blocked. Think that might be a problem?? The good thing is that the system is still virgin and I can fix it without all the ugliness. If something this obvious is sent from the factory, what is hiding where I can't see it?

3. Condensation. Also discussed widely in other forums. I found 3" of water in the front port sponson which I removed with a shop vac. I was convinced there was a leak but running a hose all over the deck and lots of rain hasn't led to any more water inside. I finally realized it was condensation, unbelievable how much water gathers in these unvented compartments. I took the cushions home, left the hatches off and run a couple small heater/fans and all is good. Seems like the factory could possibly insulate these areas, wouldn't take much to solve this problem.

4. My boat was shipped missing a few items (stove, shore power cord, stern nav light, interior grab rail etc.) Some items arrived eventually but still missing a couple things, the broker says the factory doesn't respond to their inquiries. Someone is giving me the runaround, I will be near the factory next week and hope to stop in and see just who it is.

5. There are no side port windows in the V berth, I have not seen another Tomcat without them. When I asked where they were I was told that they don't install them anymore because they leaked. Huh??? Still need to get to the bottom of that. Any experience on this?

6. Rear bilge area was absolutely dripping soaking wet, lots of water in the bilge. I again thought I had a leak but it seems it's condensation. I put some vents in the side storage bins and leave the battery door propped open 1". I sucked all the water out and with this air movement the situation is much better. I plan to install a bilge blower pump on a timer to draw air into and out of this cavity. There are electrical connections, fuse panels etc that will be much better off in a dry environment. Thoughts?

7. I have this nice Lewmar windlass but no bow cleat?? The chain locker has has no drain to let the water out. Where is it supposed to go??

I get the feeling that this boat was built by people that aren't boaters. How else can you explain these simple but important oversights or omissions.


I have some pictures that I will post once I figure out how.

Having said all of that I think this is a very nice boat that will be just fine when I get the issues sorted out. It just bugs me that in this economy and competitive market that builders would let this kind of crap go on. Us boaters do talk to each other in case they didn't know that.

Any suggestions on any of the above items or any others are most
welcome.

Great site.

Thanks

Fred
Nanaimo BC
 
Unbelievable.

This is in no way acceptable. The dealer should not have delivered you an incomplete boat. If it is a Triton Boat bought from Port Boat House then I am shocked.

Raise hell. Triton has had a great reputation for building quality boats. This is a surprise.

Stefan
 
I agreed to accept the boat with some items missing due to circumstances so that's not Port Boat House's fault. I did expect them to get me the parts without constant nagging however. I agreed to install some items personally which Port Boat House compensated me for, so no problem there.

The issues I have encountered have surprised me to be honest, I expected more from Triton and Port Boat House.

I guess it's time to raise hell like you say.
 
***

Hi Fred.....

Item-2..........we don't seem to have that problem.
you can check out the pictures we posted of that area in Lady KC photos.

Item-6.....we find it impossible to keep the bilge dry, due to water from
condensation which is typical in our part of the country. If you are successful, please post your solution. :idea:
We do have vents in the top of both side storage shelves.
(not sure if I explained that area correctly)

I find rainwater gets into the fish tanks so will add some door seal material hoping the the tank stay dry.
We do like the tanks for storage of many different items.

xx
 
Hi Bill,

Thanks for your reply. I did see your pictures, I've been scouring the site looking at ideas. I have posted a picture of my kinked hose, just sloppy workmanship. I will install a 90 in the line to eliminate the kink.

My idea for the bilge is to run a bilge blower to pull air from the bilge and exhaust it overboard. This will pull in fresh air through the vents and pullout the moisture. That's my theory at least. I'll let you know how it works.

The fish tank thing is more problematic, I am not sure if more sealing will help but if you try it I would be interested if it works. I agree that it's great storage but mine are full to the brim this time of the year. I am putting a canvas top on the cockpit which will largely overcome the problem but they will still leak when I wash the deck.
 
***

Checking Island Fred's pictures,
the location for the shore power
would be completely unacceptable for us.

The power cord runs across the cockpit floor. :roll:

***
 
People have had issues with those fish boxes in Tomcat forever. Still the same stuff. It's a shame the factory does not get together with some of the local Tomcat owners who have had their boats awhile and make a few changes to correct some of the issues. The part about not installing portholes because they leaked is a classic. I hope you get things straightened out to your satisfaction. I think the factory is having an open house. You would be a real hit at that event. :cry:
D.D.
 
We had some initial problems with the 255, see Thataway initial thread. I see it is a 2010 boat; is this a triton marine? I agree some issues are not acceptable. Our cabin ports never leaked.

Holdbthere feet to the fire! If it is a triton boat...Fluid, then the dealer!

Anchor locker should drain to easy side locker, then out the side of the hull. Should be mini vent covers over these holes. There are better wats.
 
I'm very sorry to read this. The shore power port and the condition of the macerator hoses is ridiculous. As is the notion that porthole windows leak. Windows are not installed at a dealer - that was the factory.

There have been a few solutions to the fish boxes. Some installed drains to empty into the bilge, some figured out a way to tighten the latch or otherwise build up the seal, and I think one person plumbed fish box drains to the scupper hoses. I have enough things to store that I don't mind getting wet - my dive ladder, lead weights, extra fenders, etc.

What I learned was once you get past these (totally unacceptable) little problems what you have is an excellent/stout boat that is easy to work on. I've cruised 3300 nautical miles on my Tomcat thus far and I think it's a solid boat.

Good luck getting these fixes done. Once done you will be happy with it.
 
Hi all,

Thanks for your comments, they are greatly appreciated.

The boat was built by Triton, it came directly from their factory at the end of May and was delivered to me in early June. I have been under the weather for a few months and haven't really been in fighting form. My wife says I must be better because my ornery streak is resurfacing.

I plan to discuss the issues with the dealer today and will stop in to see the dealer next week since I will be in the area.

Interested to hear that no one has complained about leaking port windows in the V berth. Has anyone experienced a problem with this? It was Triton that told me they were no longer installing them due to leaking problems, not the dealer. He just passed on the info.

Thanks again

Fred
 
I have had some minor issues with both the port windows and the hatch leaking but they were easily solved by tightening the screws that are designed to increase the tension on the seal. Once that was done, no problem.

The location of the shore power cord is ridiculous. Most other boats have them on the side of the cabin or tucked up under the gunnels and either location will work. The side of the cabin is better IMHO as it allows power to be connected w/o having the cord serve as a drip path under the canvas for water to enter the cockpit. The fact that the door won't latch open with power connected just adds to the stupidity of that location. It's also low enough that if there's much water in the cockpit, it's a cause for concern.

As for the fish boxes, the real issue is that they were never designed properly. The lips on the boxes should be wider/deeper and should either be connected to drains or should be drained through surface troughs to the scuppers. Triton (makes of the Orca) knows how to build proper fish boxes as the ones on the Orcas has wider lips that drain through troughs to the scuppers. I'm thinking about re-doing mine with a similar design. I hope that Triton will modify the cockpit floor molds so that the fish boxes drain properly. I don't put anything in there that I don't want to get wet but the issue is the smell from a moist and partially sealed box (gets worse once you use them for fish too).
 
that is an interesting response to factory installation of the cabin windows. i recently inquired if i could get two windows installed by the factory in the cabin of a 25 ft cruiser and they said no problem. you might check directly with the factory. good luck - bill
 
Sad to see the factory has gone backwards on the boats.

One of the things we had positive comments about from Tomcat Owners at the boat shows was the finished interior as it provided insulation and eliminated the constant condensation issue inside the cabin.

Your information lists the boat as a 2010, but was just delivered to you. This may be one of the boats that was started by Sea Sport that was picked up by the bank, and repurchased by Triton at the auction and then finished.

The lack of factory repsonse is not surprising, as we had poor communication with the factory before all parties agreed to end the relationship.

I keep hoping for better from Triton, but haven't seen it in the boats I've been on or seen pictures of.
 
Hi

The boat was ordered in 2010 and construction began then. The purchaser apparently couldn't complete the deal and the boat sat 3/4 finished until I purchased it. They then finished it and shipped it out. So technically it could be a 2011?? The boat was built by Triton.

Walldog:

I did buy one of the angle adapters for the shore power cord which partially solved the problem. Like you say though, I shouldn't have had to. Thanks for the tip.

Fred
 
May have been the first one out the Triton door. Any other newer TC owners have these problems or is it one of a kind? (you lucky guy :roll: )

Many of those problems are just unacceptable, Hope the factory steps up and makes it right, they should. The windows on the house forward have never leaked on my boats, never heard of that problem, sounds like an excuse to save money (or maybe they just didn't have any in time).

Charlie
 
I was thrown off by the 2010 also. If the boat was started in 2010, it is probably a 2010. The cut off date for model year has been July. The HIN is assigned when the boat hull is molded. The cut off date for C Dory model year in the past has been July. The last 4 digits in the HIN determine the model year of the boat. There will be a letter: A for Jan, B Feb etc, and after than letter either a 1.9 or 0 depending on what year and month the boat was started. If the last two digits of your HIN are 10, then the boat is a 2010. If it is 11, then the boat is 2011. It is even possible that your boat was started in 2009, and labeled a 2010 model--in that case there might be a "J910" as the last digits of the HIN.

It is suspicious with the history you gave, that this hull may not have been molded by Triton, and that it is one of the 2009/10 boats by Fluid? If a boat is started, usually it is finished and then sold to the next customer who comes along.....So it is possible that some of these "mistakes" were made before Triton took over the company--Hopefully Triton will step up to the plate and let us know--as well as fix the boat.

I think that they owe you windows, a fix on the plug, fix the macerator hose, anchor locker drain etc. You paid for a new boat--and should get a perfect (or near so).

As for the fish boxes. The under lip is so close to the water line, that overboard drains don't work. It would be very expensive to redo the cockpit (raise it)---or deepen the hulls.....Unfortunately you will have to do one of the "fixes" which we have done--or live with it....
 
Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I have a 2010 CD 25 & It's my understanding that 2010 models were built as a sea sport product but Sea sport was owned by Triton. The few issues I had with mine were warranteed by Triton. That being said no matter how you look at it 2010s were Triton built. I will say factory support is next to non existent. They pull thru but it takes forever. I had hoped that my case was out of the ordinary but sounds more like it's the norm. Imho any product that cost this much should be gone over with a fine tooth comb.Most of these issues should be non existent( leaky fish boxes , condensation, shore power in wrong location, etc.). I know nothing is perfect & you will have problems but most of these have been discussed for years, & after the first few were pulled from the molds & realized these problems they should have been corrected. Don't be totally discouraged though you have a well built boat ( I would buy another one if buying today) it just has sorry factory support. I came to realize with my first small issue to treat it like it is used , meaning if something breaks you have to fix it . Being a building contractor most of my life I wouldn't dream of selling someone a house even in the same price range as these boat & not being on top of any problem right away.
 
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