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Review of the Oday 32 by Walt Schumann

Year built 1975  
Location of boat Pensacola Fl.  
The boat is sailed on Bays, sounds, or protected salt water  
How the boat is used Multi-week coastal cruising  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 2-4  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2001  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes, and the clock did turn back after hurricane Ivan and the boat was damaged to some beyond repair. I found every replacement some kind of a compermise. I decided to rebuild the entire boat with all new rigging, frig, hot water, radar and more. I even put those catalina rear rails with seats on the back. This is a great boat with the shallow draft, center board and 46 ft mast that gets under those 50ft bridges on the intracoastal "Labodega" remains our choise.  
Gear that's been added All new mast, boom, rails, safety lines, camper enclosure, JRC radar/chart plotter, garmin chartplotter with Rayarine autohelm,Raymarine wind,radio with DSC,hot water, 25 hp Universal Desiel, keel cooler frig,electric/alchol stove, dingi davits, 6 ft teak swim platform, 2ft bow pulpit for anchor, new head and holding tank, air, remote for autohelm, rebuilt after hurricane damage with all new teak rub rails plus new midship rub rail,new hand rails,re-gel coat entire boat. all standing hardware replaced, water maker.  
Structural or complex improvements Yes many, including swim platform, bow pulpit, replaced chain plates and all standing rigging including new mast and boom (US spars). new head fixture with holding tank, thru hulls and pump, filter. rear cabin closet replaced with chart table, rudder rebuilt, new desiel, hotwater and repaired decks/bulkheads and new counter top on everything. New teak dining table.  
The boat's best features Stable, shallow draft with 7 ft centerboard, mast at 46 ft gets under those intracoastal 50 ft bridges. points well and was off shore in 6-8 ft seas and it was very stable. aft cabin was great off shore and the full size bed sleeps my 6'2" frame well. also can strech out in the cockpit and the main cabin seats are the same length at the cockpit so the cushions fit both places. forward cabin I can fit but tight. lots of storage space. big storage in the cockpit with also access to the engine and tanks. single hand easy with main behind helm. walk around room at the stern behind the cabin. The center cockpit feels safe in high seas. and with a fold down seat at the helm gives good visibility.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The Gel seal around the mast collar was a mess becaused it flashed off too fast and leaked everyware and was hard to clean up. Would not do again. very expensive for what you get. Bulkheads seperate from sides at the tabs. Appears to be from age or lifting points. Hard to repair around the tank areas. Forward hanging lockers are too narrow to get into and the Safety line stantion is bolted in the back. Had to drill holes into the back of the tray top and drill out the liner to access the screws. great engine access. former owner put in a removable hatch to access front of engine from under the gally sink.  
Sailing characterisitcs coastal to 100miles of off shore travel in the Gulf of Mexico, very good in heavy seas, tracks well and was able to trim sails and hands off for hours at time with out the use of the autohelm. A frame main with great for cruising but needs a travler for racing. 135 gen needs to be retracked less than 100% with winds over 15 kts to reduce weather helm. Loose foot sail works much better than origional. I'm adding a special winch for retrieving the roller Gen when under heavy wind. Sails 1/2 knot faster downwind with centerboard up giving advantage in some races. Have never baried the rail even in 20kt+. flys best flat so early reef recommended. Turns on a dime and will out point most boats. adjust the centerboard to move the COE aft and you can use more head sail.  
Motoring characterisitcs 25 hp WB Universal will push 7 kts which is hull speed. strong push in current. not much squat under power. lower the centerboard and it rides flater in the chop.  
Liveability Great. The aft cabin was built for underway. The aft cabin has as berthing as a 40 ft boat. Can sleep 2 couples well with the 3 cabin setup. The aft cabin is also rigged with a portable head station. We have Alch/electric stove, propane gimble single burner for underway, microwave with 1500watt inverter and seperate battery. also added new frig sysem and safety bar infront of the stove. Hand rails were also added in the cabin to improve safety with co2 detector. Great boat for long cruises.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any N/A  
Other comments Solid fiberglass and showed it strength in Hurricane Ivan, Washed up standing straight on the keel (so did her sister ship). Mostly due to the flat bottom of the box. My boat took the Hurricane on the stern with no water inside the boat. The aft cabin was a winner.  

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