Tayana · Sailing yacht

Tayana 37

The Tayana 37 is a double-ended cruising yacht of 36 ft 8 in (11.18 m) on deck, designed by Robert Perry for the Seattle dealer Flying Dutchman Yachts and built in hand-laid fibreglass by Ta Yang Yacht Building in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, from 1975 — sold as the CT 37 at first and as the Tayana 37 from late 1977. Ta Yang counted 588 boats by 2012, most of them built before the early 1990s, as a cutter or ketch with the traditional Mark I deck, the Mark II deck from 1981 or a pilothouse, and with largely custom teak interiors. The yard had no standard engine: early hulls ran Volvo Penta MD2, MD3 or MD17C, then came the Yanmar 3QM30F or the Perkins 4.108, from about 1987 the 44 hp Yanmar 4JHE and later the 4JH2E — and many boats have been repowered since, so read the plates before ordering parts. Ta Yang’s website survives only in archive.org copies; the Tayana Owners Group keeps the dealer’s owner’s manual, a brochure and its newsletters from 1979 to 2004 online.

Manuals & documents

Ta Yang’s old website, tayanaworld.com, now carries unrelated content, so the yard’s pages and spec sheet are linked as archive.org copies. The manual, the brochure and the newsletters come from the archive of the Tayana Owners Group. We host no manuals or drawings.

Marked “unofficial copy”: the maker publishes no manual for this model any more, so the link goes to a third-party copy. Prefer the maker’s or a dealer’s version if you can get one.

Equipment & its manuals

Standard equipment as the builder’s documents list it. Boats were ordered with options and refitted since — check what is actually aboard.

ItemModelManual / pageNote
EngineVolvo Penta MD3B · MD21,2,3Early hulls of the late 1970s: according to TOG News many of them had Volvo Penta engines, naming the MD-2 and MD-3; an owners’ table of 1980 lists an MD-3BVolvo Penta MD2B Parts & service pageCooled directly with seawater. TOG News (1987) warns that a failed seal in the original Johnson raw-water pump of these Volvos lets seawater into the crankcase. Our page covers the MD2B; the three-cylinder MD3B shares many of its service parts.
EngineVolvo Penta MD17C4,5Early years: Ta Yang had stocked the ‘Volvo 17C’ but no longer did by June 1983Volvo Penta MD11C Parts & service pageAn owner reported his MD17C with an 18 × 10 in two-blade propeller, cruising at 1800 rpm and topping out at 2500 rpm (TOG News 1982).
EngineYanmar 3QM30F4,6,7,8,9Late 1970s to 1987: standard engine of the dealer Southern Offshore Yachts and one of the two engines Ta Yang stocked in 1983 (about 30 hp, fresh-water cooled); the yard had six left in September 1987Yanmar 3QM30 Parts & service pageTa Yang’s 1983 installation: 2.21:1 reduction gear, flexible coupling, fixed stern tube with packing gland and an 18 × 13 in right-hand three-blade propeller from Japan. Early engines had motor-mount failures, put right with a different mount (1981). The 3QM30 usually carries an engine-driven bilge pump that runs whenever the engine does. Before it, Ta Yang had also stocked the Yanmar 3HM.
EnginePerkins 4.1084,10,11,6,12,9Option of the 1970s and 1980s: the 4.108(M), about 49 bhp, fresh-water cooled with British marinisation (Ta Yang, 1983)Perkins 4.108 Parts & service pageTa Yang’s 1983 installation: Hurth HBW 100 gearbox (1.86:1), 1 1/4 in shaft and a 17 × 11 in left-hand three-blade propeller; owners of earlier Perkins boats report a Borg-Warner Velvet Drive (1.91:1). With the HBW 100 and a left-hand propeller, Ta Yang advised a gearbox oil cooler for long motoring.
EngineYanmar 4JHE7,13,14,15,16,17,18,19From about 1987: Ta Yang’s basic engine, four cylinders and 44 hp; Ta Yang’s spec sheet of November 2011 still names the ‘4JHE, fresh water cooled, 55 HP’Yanmar operation manual JH(2) series, 49961-201372 (covers the 4JHE; Yanmar Europe download, archived)The 55 hp of the 2011 sheet does not fit the 44 hp 4JHE, so read the engine plate. Owners report a 17 × 10 in three-blade and a 19 × 8 in propeller; on some late boats the shaft has no SAE taper (TOG News 1997). On hull 580 the expansion plates of the heat exchanger rusted through after only about 900 hours.
EngineYanmar 4JH2E20Undated Ta Yang brochure for cutter, ketch and pilothouse: ‘Diesel engine by Yanmar 4JH2E 50HP’ in the standard equipment listYanmar 4JH2E Parts & service page
GearboxHurth HBW 100 · Borg-Warner Velvet Drive · Yanmar KBW204,10,11,21,6,19Perkins 4.108: Hurth HBW 100, 1.86:1 (Ta Yang, 1983), on earlier boats a Borg-Warner Velvet Drive, 1.91:1 (owners, 1980–81); Yanmar 3QM30F: 2.21:1 reduction gear (Ta Yang, 1983); Yanmar 4JHE: KBW20 according to Yanmar’s manual—TOG News (1980) recommends servicing the Velvet Drive yearly and checking the recessed nut at the back of the gearbox, which works loose when the engine is out of line. Read the gearbox plate before ordering oil or parts.
PropellerBronze, 3 blades, 17–18 in4,9,22,18,23,24,16,25,26Ta Yang 1983: 18 × 13 in right-hand with the Yanmar 3QM30F, 17 × 11 in left-hand with the Perkins; the manual gives about 18 in diameter and 12–14 in pitch; spec sheet 2011: bronze three-blade—Shaft 1 1/4 in stainless steel through a bronze shaft log; the water-lubricated cutless bearing (1 1/4 × 1 3/4 × 5 in, plain without threads, owners’ data) sits in a bronze housing screwed onto the shaft log, and owners report left-hand threads on the propeller nuts. Older boats have Ta Yang’s packing gland (about 10 in of 3/16 in packing; several owners fitted a Wilcox-Crittenden instead), the 2011 sheet lists a dripless gland. Ta Yang fitted no shaft zinc.
Fuel systemBlack-iron tank, 90–100 US gal8,9,20,18Manual: about 100 US gal (379 l), under the cabin sole or under the forward berths, plus an optional 50 US gal (189 l) tank in the lazarette; brochure and spec sheet 2011: 90 US gal (341 l), black iron or mild steel—Copper fuel line through a ball valve by the tank to the engine’s own filter; the manual advises adding a bulkhead-mounted filter/water separator and an electric lift pump that makes bleeding easier. See the tips on tank corrosion.
WinchesBarlow9,21,27,28Early boats: Barlow (the manual says Barlow or Lewmar); a ketch owner listed Barlow 26 two-speed for the jib, 23 two-speed for the main and 16 and 19 on the halyards (1980)—The Barlow 16s on the mast can run stiff when their plastic bearing sleeve swells; owners sanded the sleeve to fit (TOG News 1992, 1993). Barlow passed to Barient and then to International Marine, Lewmar’s group at the time; spares were already scarce in 1992.
WinchesLewmar 40 CST · 30 CST18,29,20,9Spec sheet 11/2011: seven Lewmar winches — two 40 CST for the jib sheets, one 40 CST for the mainsheet and four 30 CST for the staysail sheet and the jib, main and staysail halyards; brochure: seven winches, eight on the ketchLewmar Ocean & EVO winches Parts & service page
SteeringPedestal, wheel and cables · worm gear18,11,30,21,31,6,32Pedestal steering with teak wheel, teak and stainless emergency tiller and stainless rudder stock (spec sheet 2011); some early boats had worm-gear steering, which several owners replaced with hydraulic or Edson pedestal steering (1980)—TOG News 1980–81: make sure the quadrant cannot slide down the rudder stock and that the cable eye bolts and their nuts are locked; one owner fits two cable clamps per thimble. TOG News reprinted Edson’s pedestal maintenance as largely valid for these boats.
Mast & riggingAluminium (Isomat, Yacht Spars) or spruce12,18,26,7Manual: aluminium spars from Isomat (France), Yacht Spars (New Zealand) or Japan, or spruce spars from Ta Yang’s own spar shop; spec sheet 2011: aluminium mast and boom with wiring conduits, 5/16 in stainless standing rigging with swaged terminals and a staysail boom—Isomat spars came anodised, Yacht Spars masts were painted at the yard. Masts were moved forward on some boats — see the tip on weather helm.
SailsMain, yankee, staysail (+ mizzen)18,21,33,34Spec sheet 2011: 8 oz mainsail with two reef points, 100 % yankee and staysail, mizzen on the ketch, all with bags and covers; early boats came with Lam sails from Hong Kong—Perry and many owners judged the early standard sails poorly cut; a lot of boats have had new sails since.
AnchorBowsprit with anchor rollers18,29,35Laminated bowsprit with teak platform and anchor rollers, chain locker with one deck pipe and teak samson posts; Ta Yang’s standard list (2011) has no windlass—Owners fit their own windlass, for example a Maxwell VWC 2000 on hull 564 (TOG News 1995).
ToiletManual marine head (seawater flush)8,9,18All years: a manual head of ‘one of the standard US makes’ (manual), discharging overboard or to the holding tank through a tee with two valves; spec sheet 2011: manual marine head and 30 US gal (114 l) GRP holding tank—The holding tank sits under the engine and is emptied through a deck fitting or with the manual bilge pump. Close the inlet seacock after flushing — the pump valves can let water through and flood the bowl — and keep a pump rebuild kit aboard (manual).
Bilge pumpPAR electric · manual pump8,9,10,18Manual: a PAR electric pump in the compartment aft of the companionway, drawing from the sump under the engine, and a manual pump near the mast step that also empties the holding tank; the Yanmar 3QM30 usually adds an engine-driven pump; spec sheet 2011: one heavy-duty electric and one high-capacity manual pump with strainer—TOG News (1980): the manual pump is a copy of an Edson pump and takes Edson’s size ‘0’ diaphragm. The usual fault of the electric pump is a clogged pick-up screen. With an engine-driven pump the bilge looks dry under power even when there is a leak (manual).
Water pumpPAR diaphragm pump9,36Manual: PAR medium-duty diaphragm pump with pressure switch, aft of the companionway ladder next to the electric bilge pump and the optional shower sump pump; PAR is also named in a 1984 Tayana advertisement—Usual faults: a dirty or failed pressure switch, a broken belt or holed diaphragms; PAR sells rebuild kits. A pump that cycles with every tap closed points to a leak or a loose hose clamp.
Water heater10 US gal (38 l), American Appliance8,9,18,28Manual: 10 US gal heater, usually by American Appliance, with an electric element and a heat exchanger fed by the engine; spec sheet 2011: 10 US gal, 110 or 220 V, engine-heated—Fill the heater before switching it on, or the element burns out (manual). On hull 564 the hoses from the Yanmar 4JHE to the heater had no elbows and cracked at the bend (TOG News 1993).
FridgeIce chest (4 in foam, stainless-lined)18,22,37,38,39Spec sheet 2011: ice chest insulated with 4 in polyurethane foam and lined with stainless steel; the dealer’s commissioning list leaves refrigeration to the buyer—Owners added, for example, a Crosby 12 V cold plate (1982), an Adler-Barbour unit (1985) or Grunert engine-driven refrigeration.
StoveNot standard (propane locker)18,22,6,5,40,41,42Spec sheet 2011: stainless-lined stove alcove and a propane locker for two 20 lb tanks, vented overboard; the stove itself came from the dealer or the owner—Owners report Kenyon kerosene and propane stoves, Shipmate, Force 10 and Taylor’s. The manual says to leave the propane installation to a professional if in doubt.
Batteries120 Ah, 12 V (1 or 2)20,18,8,9Brochure: one 120 Ah battery; spec sheet 2011: two 120 Ah 12 V batteries in GRP boxes with a three-way switch—Never turn the battery switch through ‘off’ with the engine running — it can destroy the alternator diodes (manual).
Shore power110 V, 30 A8,18Manual and spec sheet 2011: 110 V system with a 30 A inlet, usually on the aft face of the cockpit coaming, AC panel with breakers, voltmeter and ammeter; water heater element for 110 or 220 V—A battery charger was an option, wired to the output side of the battery switch and cut out automatically when the engine runs (manual).
Hatches & portsTeak or Bomar hatches · 10 opening ports18,33,36,23Spec sheet 2011: teak skylight and companionway hatch, teak or aluminium forward hatch, ten stainless opening ports and four dorade vents; the Mark II deck of 1981 took its two deck hatches in teak or Bomar aluminium—Bomar is among the standard equipment named in a 1984 Tayana advertisement; on hull 564 the Bomar hatches sit on a teak base.

Specifications

Years builtFrom 1975 (introduced; sold as the CT 37 until late 1977); still offered by Ta Yang in 2011–2012, though few were built after the early 1990s — hull 583 was still for sale new in the late 1990s43,18,44,45,23
Hulls built588 (Ta Yang, 2012; also on Robert Perry’s website)43,46
VersionsCutter or ketch; deck as the traditional Mark I, the Mark II (from 1981, with the cockpit coaming carried round the stern) or a pilothouse (with a short or a long house); semi-custom interiors20,47,6,33
DesignerRobert H. Perry, for the Seattle dealer Flying Dutchman Yachts47,34,20
BuilderTa Yang Yacht Building Co., Ltd., Lin Yuan, Kaohsiung (Taiwan), building Tayanas since 197320,18,48,44
HullHand-laid solid GRP (Airex core to order); deck cored with wood blocks; isophthalic gelcoat from late 1985; cast-iron ballast encapsulated in the keel12,18
Length overall12.85 m (42′2″) including the bowsprit12
Hull length11.18 m (36′8″)43,20,12
Waterline length9.45 m (31′0″); the manual gives 9.40 m (30′10″)43,20,12
Beam3.51 m (11′6″)43,20,12
Draft1.73 m (5′8″)43,20,12
Displacement10.2 t (22500 lb), dry43,20,12
Ballast3.63 t (8000 lb) according to Ta Yang; the manual gives 3.33 t (7340 lb)43,20,12
KeelLong keel with a cut-away forefoot, separated from the canoe body in Perry’s words; rudder hung on the aft end of the keel49,20,22
Sail areaCutter 80.0 m² (861 sq ft), ketch 71.3 m² (768 sq ft) according to Ta Yang; the manual: cutter 80.3 m² (864 sq ft: main 31.8, yankee 27.1, staysail 21.4 m²), ketch 73.0 m² (786 sq ft, with a 13.0 m² mizzen)43,20,12
MainsailCutter 31.8 m² (342 sq ft), ketch 24.4 m² (263 sq ft)12
Rig dimensions (I, J, P, E)Cutter, from the designer’s sail plan: I 15.54 m (51.0 ft), J 5.87 m (19.25 ft), P 13.41 m (44.0 ft), E 4.65 m (15.25 ft); I varies from boat to boat, and boats with the mast moved forward differ12,40,34
Air draftAbout 16.8 m (55 ft); the manual says to check it on each boat12
Fuel tank341 l (90 US gal), black iron or mild steel (brochure, spec sheet 2011); manual: about 379 l (100 US gal), plus an optional 189 l (50 US gal) tank in the lazarette20,18,8,9
Water tank379 l (100 US gal), stainless steel20,18,12
Holding tank114 l (30 US gal), GRP, under the engine18,8
Engine optionsNo standard engine from the yard (Ta Yang, 1983): early Volvo Penta MD2, MD3, MD17C or Yanmar 3HM; then Yanmar 3QM30F (about 30 hp) or Perkins 4.108 (about 49 bhp); from about 1987 Yanmar 4JHE (44 hp); Yanmar 4JH2E (50 hp) in a later brochure4,1,7,13,20,9

Good to know

  • Ta Yang had no standard engine — the dealer or buyer chose it. Early hulls ran Volvo Penta MD2, MD3 or MD17C, later boats a Yanmar 3QM30F or a Perkins 4.108 (with a Borg-Warner or Hurth gearbox), from about 1987 the four-cylinder Yanmar 4JHE and in a later brochure the 4JH2E, and many boats have been repowered since. Read the engine and gearbox plates before you order filters, impellers or a propeller.4,1,7,20,9
  • The original fuel tank is black iron (mild steel in the 2011 sheet): forward under the V-berth on older boats, where a full tank trims the bow down, or amidships in the bilge on others. Owners report tanks rusting and scaling from outside and one that began to leak on passage. Inspect the tank from below, keep it full during lay-up against condensation, and see TOG News 59 for a replacement in the keel — the large amidships tank does not fit through the companionway.50,8,9,18,51,52,53,54,55,56
  • Leaks at the chainplates, the hull-to-deck joint and the hollow bulwarks are the classic T-37 complaint. Owners who pulled chainplates found crevice corrosion and hairline cracks low down where nothing shows, and damaged hanging knees behind them; reseal the deck slots and pull the plates for inspection on an older boat.31,41,57,58,39,59
  • Many owners replaced the original Taiwanese seacocks — plug-type copies, in one case with the head outlet seacock held on a short threaded pipe — with bronze or ball-valve seacocks bolted through the hull. On an older boat check every through-hull and valve before launching.3,41,42,60,52
  • Many cutters carry strong weather helm. Owners cured it by setting the mast plumb or moving it forward on Perry’s advice (8 in on one boat in 1982), and in 1984 Perry began redrawing the rig with the mast further forward. Rig dimensions therefore differ: measure I, J, P and E on your boat before ordering sails or standing rigging.33,25,40,34,12
  • No owner’s manual from Ta Yang itself is online, and the old tayanaworld.com address now carries unrelated content. The Tayana Owners Group has the dealer’s Operations and Maintenance Manual in five parts, a brochure and every TOG News from 1979 to 2004 with a subject index — often the quickest way to find a fix that another owner has already worked out.47,61,50,62,63

Videos & how-tos

Links to YouTube, nothing embedded. The maker’s own channel comes first; the rest are channels we found clear and correct for this model.

On the marketplace

Looking for a part for the Tayana 37? Post a wanted ad in the app — it is free, it sits on the live map, and boaters nearby who have the part aboard can answer.

Got spares you no longer need? List them in a minute. No commission, ever.

Get the app

Sources

  1. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_34_Spring_1987.pdf
  2. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_05_July_1980.pdf
  3. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_16_September_1982.pdf
  4. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_19b_TextOnly_June_1983.pdf
  5. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_14_May_1982.pdf
  6. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_09_March_1981.pdf
  7. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_37d_Winter_1987.pdf
  8. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Manual/Manual4.pdf
  9. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Manual/Manual5.pdf
  10. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_03_April_1980.pdf
  11. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_04_May_1980.pdf
  12. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Manual/Manual2.pdf
  13. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_42_Spring_1989.pdf
  14. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_45_Winter_1989.pdf
  15. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_47a_Summer_1990.pdf
  16. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2076%20Fall%2097.pdf
  17. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2080%20Fall%2098.pdf
  18. web.archive.org/web/20170721204253/http://www.tayanaworld.com:80/upload/Files/20120413015…
  19. web.archive.org/web/20180403174731/http://www.yanmarmarine.com/theme/yanmarportal/Uploade…
  20. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Brochure.pdf
  21. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_07_Nov_1980.pdf
  22. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Manual/Manual3.pdf
  23. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2078%20Spring%2098.pdf
  24. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2079%20Summer%2098.pdf
  25. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_17_Nov_1982%20.pdf
  26. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_26_Spring_1985.pdf
  27. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_57_Winter_1992.pdf
  28. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2060%20Fall%2093.pdf
  29. web.archive.org/web/20120504065736/http://www.tayanaworld.com:80/Yachts_Specification.asp…
  30. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_06__Sept_1980.pdf
  31. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_08_Jan_1981.pdf
  32. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_10_June_1981.pdf
  33. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_11_XX_1981.pdf
  34. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_27_Summer_1995.pdf
  35. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2069%20Winter%2095.pdf
  36. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Advertisement.pdf
  37. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_13_April_1982.pdf
  38. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_28_Fall_1985.pdf
  39. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2084%20Fall%2099.pdf
  40. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_22_March_1984%20.pdf
  41. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_23_June_1984.pdf
  42. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_43_Summer_1989.pdf
  43. web.archive.org/web/20120504045420/http://www.tayanaworld.com:80/Yachts_OverView.aspx?id=…
  44. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_21_Dec_1983.pdf
  45. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2072%20Fall%2096.pdf
  46. perryboat.com/productionboats/productionboats.html
  47. tognews.com/history.php
  48. tognews.com/links.php
  49. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Perry_on_CT-37.pdf
  50. ftp.tognews.com/ModelDocuments/T-37/Manual/Manual1.pdf
  51. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_39_Summer_1988.pdf
  52. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_53_Winter_1991.pdf
  53. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_56_Fall_1992.pdf
  54. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2059%20Summer%2093.pdf
  55. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2070%20Spring%2096.pdf
  56. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2081%20Winter%2098.pdf
  57. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_49a_Winter_1990.pdf
  58. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2061%20Winter%2093.pdf
  59. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/No%2085%20Winter%2099.pdf
  60. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/Newsletter_48a_Fall_1990.pdf
  61. tognews.com/models/t37.php
  62. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/
  63. ftp.tognews.com/Newsletters/INDEX_1-87_Summer2000.pdf

Tayana is a trademark of its owner; boatparts.app is not affiliated with it. Part numbers are quoted for identification only. Spotted an error? Write to mail@boatparts.app.