Oday Owner Reviews

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Review of the Oday 34 by John Tracy

Year built 1982  
Location of boat Clayton, NY 1000 Islands  
The boat is sailed on The Great Lakes  
How the boat is used Weekends and longer  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 2-4  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2003  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Absolutely. Smart looking boat, sails really well. We have the deep keel. Great space.  
Gear that's been added Autopilot - best investment for any boat I've owned. New head plumbing. Motor mounts, dripless shaft seal and new shaft. New CD player that already crapt out. Checked power/wiring to it, so guessing the unit is shot (after the 1 yr warranty expired).  
Structural or complex improvements New teak swim platform. Great for swimming and boarding from the dinghy. It's semi-circular with a boarding ladder that stows underneath. I was worried about affecting the asthetics, but it is of the right size and shape to be unobtrusive and blends in with the lines nicely (according to unsolicited compliments). Maybe this winter I'll put together an article with pics to share for those interested. Repainted boot and cove stripe with navy blue interthane 2-part epoxy. Easy cosmetic upgrade that really spruced her up. Hull gel coat in great shape - just clean and wax her each spring. Most of what is left to do is cosmetic - need to buff out the deck and remove the varnish drips in various places on the deck that the prior owner left me. I'm about 3/4 of the way stripping weathered cetol off the bright work. Wish list when time and money allow: add a dodger-bimini enclosure. Replace rub rail -previous owner must have mashed the midships against pilings repeatedly cracking the white channel that accepts the black rubber insert in a couple of places. Material cost is aroud $700 bucks, but research suggests to me that I should pay the $1000 or so of labor to not deal with the headache of installing it myself.  
The boat's best features Smart looking boat, just enough teak to add some class. Sails really well. We have the deep keel. Great space. The spars are robust  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. Holding tank is too small. The laminate counter tops and nav desk are dated, but that can be remedied.  
Sailing characterisitcs Sails really well. We have the deep keel. She's forgiving but not sluggish. Shoulders in and excellerates in a good breeze. I've gotten her up to 9 knots (momentarly) flying down-wind wing and wing in a stiff breeze. GPS verified! Beating into 10-15 knots of wind you can get her to 5.5 to 6 knots at a comfortable heel angle. Anything above and you'll want to reef/furl accordingly to keep her on her feet.  
Motoring characterisitcs Hard pull to port in reverse, but what sailboat doesn't. Works to my advantage when I'm coming into a port-to dock. Leaving the dock I take an after spring from the bow to a cleat on the dock about midship. Give it forward left rudder to kick the stern out and then reverse with hard right rudder. Pulls to port until you get some flow over the rudder and then it corrects. Motor pushes her to 5.5 comfortably when not to breezy. The diesel has been very reliable and burns less than a gallon an hour. Burn 3/4 tank per season!  
Liveability Great layout, lots of space. Good size head, too. Need more holding tank capacity. We can do 3 or 4 days between pumpout if it's just the wife and baby. If we have guests, we can do 2-3 days at best before having to. We avoid mexican food while onboard.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) [builder]  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any RCR Yachts in Rochester, NY. They did a fine job.  
Other comments It's not a Hinkley, Hans Christian or Swan, but it's a nice, seaworthy boat that is affordable.  

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