Oday Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Oday Daysailer by Steve Tocco

Year built	1987
Location of boat	Michigan
The boat is sailed on	The Great Lakes
How the boat is used	Day sailing
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	1993
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	Yes. The boat is very roomy and comfortable. It has lots of ballast and is very stable even at anchor. The cubby and large cubby opening makes it easy to stow a ton of stuff--bags, coolers, extra clothing, snorkeling gear, collapsable furniture, you name it. In a word, I'd describe the Daysailor III as "versatile."
Gear that's been added	I've done quite a few minor modifications to my Daysailor III. 1) My boat didn't have a door for the cubby so I crafted a blue canvass covering that snaps on over the opening. The blue canvass matches the multi-color blue sail and hull striping. 2) I added a boom vang to help in downwind points of sail. 3) I installed a higher quality cleat for the jib furling line. 4)The centerboard is cumbersome and heavy so I installed a cam cleat on the centerboard housing (just fore of the centerboard cleat). I use this cleat to quickly hold the centerboard line just before securing it to the actual cleat. 5) I added a wind vane to the top of the mast
Structural or complex improvements	I haven't made any structural changes to my boat beyond the minor modifications listed above.
The boat's best features	The best features of the DS III are its stability, roomy cockpit and spacious cubby storage. The furling points on the main sail are a great feature making it much more enjoyable to sail in heavier air. The self bailing cockpit, while fairly "low tech", works well too.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Like seemingly 90% of my fellow Daysailor owners, my boat has a very bad problem with water leakage in the bildge (between the deck and the hull). I've tried to seal the centerboard pivot area and the transom plug to no avail. I drain gallons and gallons of water from the boat every time I pull it out of the water. It's a real nagging problem that I wish I could solve. Please email me if you've had any luck solving this one.I don't like the centerboard system at all--it's heavy and cumbersome. The centerboard rope runs through a series of pulleys right in the middle of the cubby opening and cubby floor. I understand that newer DS III models have a metal lever to raise and lower the centerboard--it's probably much better than the rope system on my boat.One story I'd like to pass along to everyone relates to the centerboard. One time I pulled the boat up on shore and some rocks got lodged in the centerboard opening making it impossible to lower the centerboard. The wind conditions required me to close-haul back to my destination, which was impossible without the centerboard. Thankfully I had a motor. The lessons learned: 1) don't pull the boat up on shore and 2) have a motor handy.
Sailing characterisitcs	I believe the DS III is strictly a fair weather boat. I've sailed my boat all over the Michigan area--Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Grand Traverse Bay, Lake St. Clair and Higgins Lake but only in wind less than 20 mph. Occasionally I'll go out in 20+ wind but only with some help or if the main is reefed. Even so, in my opinion, wind in excess of 20-25 mph puts too much strain on the boat and rigging. The DS III handles well in deep water and yet, with the centerboard up, you can sail in as shallow as 18 inches as if it were a canoe.
Motoring characterisitcs	I have a 4 horse power motor on the transom. It comes in handy. For me, I wouldn't want to be without the motor.
Liveability	The only example of "liveability" with my boat would be the time a friend and I got stuck in a rain squall (no thunder or lighting). We anchored in some shallow water, crawled into the cubby and waited the rain out. It wasn't the most comfortable spot in the world but at least we remained dry.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	[builder]
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	I bought my boat from a private owner.
Other comments	As I get older, I'm growing a little weary of rigging, launching and trailering the boat every time I want to go sailing so I may eventually get into something bigger.Regardless, I've had some of the best times of my life sailing on my Daysailor III. I wouldn't trade those memories for anything in the world.

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