Everett:
I learned, as most do, by accident. I reserve the right to be wrong
about all of this:
When you see a CHB, it may be a lot of different, but similar appearing
boats, too many to even try to mention without a lot of research. These
boats had three basic evolutions. All this changes by model as to when
it occurred.

Evolution #1 Fiberglass hull, wood deck (mostly early 70's)
#2 Fiberglass hull, glassed wood deck (later 70's +)
#3 Fiberglass hull and deck
You can probably guess which one you want to find. A good surveyor can
teach you how to tell which is which. Learn for yourself how to do a
brief survey when looking at any boat. The basics are pretty easy.

There's the "Europa", vs aft cabin models. Like someone said in another
message, watch out for the "Europa" cabin top. But, the cabin tops, and
decks, can be trouble in all models. Knowing what I know, I would only
be looking for a molded fiberglass cabin top and deck. Plywood coring
of these molded decks can be trouble. Learn how to tell what you're
looking at. Look for evidence of leaks and the consequences of those leaks.

All these boats have badly conceived windows, and all of these 30 year
old boats need tanks by now.

As the guy who taught me about tanks told me, "There are two types of
owners of 30 year old tanks, those that know their tanks need replacing,
and those who do not know it."

When I did mine, I cut the old ones out, made modular ones that can be
removed if ever necessary. Total cost was about $3000. $1000 of it was
the labor of cutting the old ones out with a sawzall. I could have done
this myself. I made wood box patterns for the tank maker to use as
patterns. The new ones are 50 gallons each, connected by a manifold. I
now have 200 gallon capacity and a lot of storage space. I could add
more tanks if I ever decide 200 gallons isn't enough.

Yes, the wiring...sometimes they used some non-tinned wire, the color
coding is terrible, and then there's what has happened to all of it in
the last 30 years. My boat had some welding cable used for battery
cable...and a of other sins committed in back of the electrical panel.
I had a professional go over everything, and it wasn't that bad to start
with, total $2000. But, I know everything is proper.

The good side is that the hulls, engines, trannys seldom cause trouble,
especially if MAINTAINED. Zincs, oil changes and such.....

I accidentally bought the right boat, and as you can see, I had a lot to do.

Good luck, and let the rest of us know what you see out there.
Jim

Everett wrote:

I'm thinking about a used CHB 34. Can anyone point out common problems I
should know about and watch out for in these 30 year old beauties??
Anything along the lines of "if it hasn't been fixed by now, you're going to
have to ..."

Thanks and wish me luck!
Everett