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Review of the Oday 25 by Jared Levin

Year built 1980  
Location of boat Hudson River at Chelsea, NY  
The boat is sailed on Rivers  
How the boat is used Day sailing  
Normal wind strength less than 10 knots  
Average size of crew solo  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2000  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? I would definitely buy this boat again!  
Gear that's been added I have not added anything to the boat, but I have replaced the lifelines - and upgraded them to a larger diameter for a more secure grip. The original stantions easily accommodated the larger diameter lifeline cable. This winter I will be replacing the standing rigging due to kinks in the cable.  
Structural or complex improvements  
The boat's best features The best features of my boat would be the way it sails. It doesn't take much to fill the genoa and bring the boat to a comfortable glide. With it's high freeboard, wide sidedecks, and broad cockpit, the 25 gives you a wonderful view of the water. The cabin is the largest I have seen in a 25 foot boat. I am 5'8" and need to crouch but an inch to move throughout the cabin. The O'Day also has a FLAT wide floor throughout. No odd angled floor sections. My model has a slide-out port berth that turns into a double in the main cabin. This makes a very comfortable place to spread out and settle in. I do overnights and find the layout and proportions good. Nothing invades logical open areas, and things slide and fold away the way it would seem they should. In short: its a roomy, clean design.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The location of the adjustable genoa blocks on the last three feet of the deck at the sheer line has proven frustrating. If the swiveling block is not twisted just right, the line will fold over itself on the winch and cam. You then have to point up, slack the sail and undo the knot. I have considered raising the winches but I just can't imagine that Hunt would have made a design mistake like this. I've only had the boat for a year, once I have a few more hours sailing the boat, I'll make a decision on this. The only other thing I'd question is the height of the lifelines. They seem high, if there were two lines it would make sense, but there is only one per side. This is a tradeoff, what seems too high and makes boarding from a launch a nightmare, is quickly appreciated once aboard. I guess two pelican hooks should solve this.  
Sailing characterisitcs I have a 150% roller furling/reefing genoa. In light winds, say up to 10 knots, the boat is fine. I find that once there is enough wind to push the boat over appreciably, it takes little more before I need to ease out or slack the main entirely. (The boat sails beautifully with just the genoa.) She sails well in light winds, and I have not experienced a need for a large puff to get me moving. With a little breeze she will gently "lift" into a nice motion. In strong winds, 15+ with gusts up to 20, with the main dumped and the genoa correctly shaped, I have had solid water surge onto the midships deck. The high cockpit combing directed nearly all of the water back into the Hudson. In these conditions, with the main set, the boat will heel over fast, roll up hard, stall, fall right off and repeat this motion. As the boat heels over, very little of the rudder is left in the water. This combined with significant weather helm, when the main has any shape at all, can cause you to roll up fast with little control to stop it. The trade-off is in heavy winds the main can cause severe weather helm. Without the weather helm, the center of force moves forward and in a good gust you will heel severely. My understanding is that this is the inherent safety of "some" weather helm. In short: she sails nicely.  
Motoring characterisitcs I replaced my motor this summer with a Honda 9.9 4-stroke outboard with Power Thrust. Power Thurst gives you a flatter prop with four blades. This has proven to be more than enough to buck against a combined current and ebbing tide on the Hudson. Due to trouble with the original Mercury motor, I temporarily had a 1973 6hp Evinrude on the boat. In glassy water this was fine. But with heavy winds and 1-2 foot swells rolling through my mooring field, this was severely inadequate. I know the boat is rated to handle up to 15 hp, but 9.9 seems to be more than enough. I think the rule is that for displacement running at theoretical hull speed, most hulls need 1 hp. per 500 lbs. of displacement. Based on this, my boat at 4,100 lbs., would need at least 8 hp. So the 9.9 buys me about 25% "headroom" on power.  
Liveability I have spent weekends on the boat and find it comfortable for that. I plan to take a longer trip with the boat next year. As I mentioned earlier, its a roomy boat.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) [builder]  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any  
Other comments Find a good one and have fun!  

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