D-31/32 Tips, Hints and Parts Suppliers

Universal made the Atomic 4. If you’re looking to replace an Atomic-4, one of the Universal B-Series deisel engines may be a good choice. The M-25XPB, M3-20B, and M-35B offer many similar dimensional characteristics to the Atomic-4, making for a much easier installation. Universal Atomic-4 replacements are not direct drop-ins in all cases. Some engine compartment reconfiguration may be required. Westerbeke now owns the Universal line and carries an extensive inventory of parts.

Wilcox Crittenden manufactures and distributes a complete line of specialized marine and industrial hardware including marine toilets, lighting products, marine hardware, and marine plumbing fixtures.

A source for marinium cleats and other deck hardware.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN YOUR MARINE SURVEY

Oil-Canning - In heavy seas, flexing of the hull up forward causes the topsides to contact the the vee-berth partial bulkheads. In 2-3 foot seas you may actually feel the topsides motion if you go below when boat is beating to windward. Look for hairline cracks/crazing in the topsides area adjacent to this area, and for ill-closing lockers in the forward cabin. This is caused by those bulkheads being too close to the skin.

One suggestion was to cut those bulkheads away from the skin and tape them in. While this will not address the oil-canning, it may reduce hairline cracks at the hard points. Ted Brewer has suggested putting stringers from the bow to the first bulkhead to solve the oil canning problem. A plant manager at Command Yachts told an owner that he had added those main cabin braces to take his D-32 home to England and back. The story is they caught the tail of a hurricane off Bermuda, hove to and rode her out while sipping tea. How British! On the other hand, take into consideration how many years it took for the damage to become apparent, and you may determine that it is not a major concern.

Delamination - The deck is fiberglass over wood core - so look for signs of delamination around stanchions, deck equipment and the chain pipe.

The deck around the chain pipe and a few stanchion bases on one D-32 had some advanced delamination. The surveyor's suggested solution was to use a circular saw w/o mandrill, and cut holes in the underside of the deck, through the balsa core to the upper layer of fiberglass. Allow the core to dry, fill the void with injected epoxy, and replace the plugs. Regardless of the state of your deck, plan to rebed deck equipment on a routine basis.

Old Rubber - Check out the diaphragm in the foot operated water pump, the rubber between the engine and the prop shaft, and all manual pumps. After several years, rubber can go bad. These are not major repairs but something to keep in mind.

Deck Stepped Mast - One owner reported that the deck stepped mast had shifted off center and was not properly supported by the compression post.

Fuel Tanks - A few owners have reported leaks in fuel tanks. Some models have aluminum tanks, other models have fiberglass tanks that are integral to the hull. Reported leaks are from both styles.