Age 80, O'Day 26 CB, great loop

[jmczzz]

i am an 80 yr old that has decided i would not spend my last days watching day time TV. So i bought a new to me '85 O'Day 26 CB. will cruise the great loop, intercoastal waterways and inland rivers. as long as i can. It is a good boat for this even many think it is too small. I am just one person and a single hand sailor so i think it is just right. it is only 30 inch draft board up. and 34 foot air draft. I had a near new Tohatsu 25 " shaft 9.8 4 stroke with 4 blade high torque prop I put on it. Boat has roller furl also. I t seems like perfect to me. I just bought an ipad and downloaded AquaMap app. and the inland and coastal charts. i still am getting use to her and putting my regs numbers on. I am still figuring out how to put the headsail on the roller furl as i never had anything but hank on before on severl boats from 30 ' to 22'. I am also still checking out how to get it out of the marina and creek into the ICW at Tuckerton New Jersey. It is aready a great fun adventure. i am bare foot, with sore muscles that have not been used in a while, and having a great time. Good bye shore people and all your BS and disfunction. jimmy

 

[kappykaplan]

I am still figuring out how to put the headsail on the roller furl

The jib should have a luff tape that you feed into the track or foil on the furler. It's difficult to accomplish single-handed.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

I am still figuring out how to put the headsail on the roller furl

As @kappykaplan said, but also to make life even easier, go to a big box hardware store and get an aerosol can of dry lubrication spray silicone lubricant. Failing that, you could pay a fortune for a can of McLube at a marine store which is the same thing.

 

[jon hansen]

you go, jimmy. have a great adventure

 

[Davidasailor26]

Sounds like a fun plan to me. Make a great adventure of it.

You’ll be cutting it close on bridge heights below Atlantic City, so you might not be able to stay on the NJ ICW for long. A couple of bridges in that stretch are charted at 35’, so that’s borderline depending on tide, antenna height, etc. After that you should be fine on height and depth for a good long way.

As @kappykaplan said, but also to make life even easier, go to a big box hardware store and get an aerosol can of dry lubrication spray silicone lubricant. Failing that, you could pay a fortune for a can of McLube at a marine store which is the same thing.

For future passers-by of the thread - McLube is Krytox based, which is a different compound than silicone. Not to say that they wouldn’t be equally effective for some uses, but they aren’t technically the same. (And personally I prefer McLube for a sail track, for not needing to worry about silicone overspray.)

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

McLube is Krytox based, which is a different compound than silicone.

C'mon, at the end of the day they're all just soft soap sales . McLube doesn't admit to anything I can find for components.

I had both for a while:

They're identical in every way in sail tracks and no staining. I bought the cheaper Permatex when I was almost out of McLube. Couldn't face the steep price of McLube again.

I can't make out the pricing on Amazon but I remember paying less than $15.00 a few years ago.

PS. Just did a check on McLube and it looks like their price is now a fraction of what it used to be:

I guess the other spray silicone suppliers were slaughtering them on pricing.

Flip a coin and use either.

 

[Davidasailor26]

McLube doesn't admit to anything I can find for components.

From the Jamestown Distributor site for McLube ( https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/product/product-detail/551 ) - “McLube Sailkote is specially formulated with Dupont Krytox”. And from DuPont’s page on Krytox ( Frequently Asked Questions About Krytox™ Lubricants ) - “Krytox™ oils and greases do not contain any silicones, and no silicone is used in the manufacturing process.”

If silicone works for your sail tracks then by all means go for it. Your boat, your choice, as they say.

 

[jmczzz]

Great bunch of salty guys here. Thanks for the positive vibes as they say. i am a little confused by conflicting specs on the mast height. the seller said it was a little over 35. sailboat data said 34. The seller who i do not trust to be accurate liked to say the boat was a "rare special model, not a regular 26 CB" but so far i find no separate specs for O'Day 26 CB.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

“McLube Sailkote is specially formulated with Dupont Krytox”.

Saw the same thing. This statement is from Jamestown Distributors and NOT McLube, so we're pretty much back to zero.

Given a wild guess, I'd suspect McLube Sailkote is no more than a PTFE lubricant with a volatile carrier.

Silicone or PTFE seem to provide similar desirable lubricating properties for sail tracks.

As I say, "Flip a coin." As you paraphrase @Stu Jackson , "Your boat, your choice."

 

[jviss]

As I say, "Flip a coin." As you paraphrase @Stu Jackson , "Your boat, your choice."

Silicone on wood surfaces will prevent it from ever being refinished properly. Two things NOT ALLOWED on my boat: silicone and Simple Green.

 

[jmczzz]

good points, thanks

 

[Will Gilmore]

am an 80 yr old that has decided i would not spend my last days watching day time TV. So i bought a new to me '85 O'Day 26 CB. will cruise the great loop,

Awesome, and welcome aboard.

Way back, when we were all young and someone asked, "What would you do if the doctors told you, 'you only have a year to live'?"

I always responded, "I'd do something that takes more than a year to complete. I'd sail all around the World."

Not sure my family would let me get away with that, but it's a great plan. I'm living through you, so keep posting.

-Will

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Silicone on wood surfaces will prevent it from ever being refinished properly.

Oh @jviss , you're completely missing the point. And possibly being a little pedantic as well .

The silicone, in this case, is used to lube the foresail track, It will never get near any woodwork unless you're raising the foresail while being three sheets to the wind . I strongly suspect a PTFE dry lubricant with high volatiles would have the same effect and require the same degree of inebriation to spread it all over your boat.

Two things NOT ALLOWED on my boat: silicone and Simple Green.

I'm faaaaaaar more worried about getting diesel fuel in my underwear drawer than silicone on my woodwork but that doesn't mean I don't allow diesel fuel on my boat.

This should suffice.

 

[Johnb]

We recently did a 8 week 7 state trailer trip and one outstanding thing was the friendliness helpfulness and kindness of strangers. There is no place better to go on an adventure. Good luck.

 

[jmczzz]

I appreciate all points of view. The cons are important to avoid mistakes. thanks to all. jimmy

 

[jmczzz]

your seven-state trip must have been enjoyable. I hope to enjoy my trip as much.

 

[jviss]

Oh @jviss , you're completely missing the point. And possibly being a little pedantic as well .

The silicone, in this case, is used to lube the foresail track, It will never get near any woodwork unless you're raising the foresail while being three sheets to the wind . I strongly suspect a PTFE dry lubricant with high volatiles would have the same effect and require the same degree of inebriation to spread it all over your boat.




I'm faaaaaaar more worried about getting diesel fuel in my underwear drawer than silicone on my woodwork but that doesn't mean I don't allow diesel fuel on my boat.

View attachment 206088

This should suffice.

As someone who has some fine woodworking experience, with classical guitar building and repair, and gun stock making, refinishing, and repair, I can tell you in no uncertain terms that silicone, even in trace amounts, is death to these processes. Suit yourself, but that's my position.

 

[Project_Mayhem]

Hell yeah! That's awesome to hear that your doing a great loop, especially at that age. Please do keep us updated on the trip!

PS - There's a great loop association. Based on their presentation at a boat show, I would definitely sign up if I did this trip

 

[WindGypsy]

i am an 80 yr old that has decided i would not spend my last days watching day time TV. So i bought a new to me '85 O'Day 26 CB. will cruise the great loop, intercoastal waterways and inland rivers. as long as i can. It is a good boat for this even many think it is too small. I am just one person and a single hand sailor so i think it is just right. it is only 30 inch draft board up. and 34 foot air draft. I had a near new Tohatsu 25 " shaft 9.8 4 stroke with 4 blade high torque prop I put on it. Boat has roller furl also. I t seems like perfect to me. I just bought an ipad and downloaded AquaMap app. and the inland and coastal charts. i still am getting use to her and putting my regs numbers on. I am still figuring out how to put the headsail on the roller furl as i never had anything but hank on before on severl boats from 30 ' to 22'. I am also still checking out how to get it out of the marina and creek into the ICW at Tuckerton New Jersey. It is aready a great fun adventure. i am bare foot, with sore muscles that have not been used in a while, and having a great time. Good bye shore people and all your BS and disfunction. jimmy

I LOVE IT!! Daytime TV is completely overrated!! Enjoy every moment!! Fair Winds & Following Seas!

 

[Ward H]

@jmczzz
After the middle of next week I'm available to help install your jib on your furler.
If you want crew to do a test run out the creek just let me know. I'm good friends with one of the Tuckerton to LBI Ferry captains. I can talk to him about the best track to the ICW if you like.
PM me your contact info if you'd like to talk.