O'Day 272
- Thread starter Doug Abercrombie
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O'Day built a 272 LE which has wheel steering and a diesel inboard, and they also built a 272 with an outboard on the transom and tiller steering with a transom mount rudder. Both had wing keels. I sailed one of these up from Cape Cod to Bristol RI years ago. I think the LE is about 500 lbs heavier than the outboard powered model. I remember sleeping on the Port quarter birth with my feet toward the stern that night, and my feet was higher than my head. I had to turn around the other way to get a comfortable night's sleep. The boat sailed pretty well and motored great with the 15 HP Yamaha on the transom bracket. I'm not too partial to the way the halyards and all the control lines are set up. Everything is within reach in the cockpit. It's a nice boat, but I would favor an O'Day 28 over the 272. The woodwork in the cabin of this boat is beautiful though and I liked the fact that this boat has a shallow draft for the type of anchoring that I love to do. I don't know but maybe I'm old fashioned. I like doing everything at the mast when it comes to sail handling and reefing. This is just my 2 cents on these boats.
That's the Limited Edition model, the good one. It's possible that the 272 LE's quarter births will sleep very comfortable due to the weight of the engine and wheel steering in the stern. Some guys claim that the hulls on wing keel boats have a tendency to pound when sailing in rough waters. I really don't know about that. A friend of mine bought a 272 at a good price. It sailed pretty decent that day with the winds that we had, but the next day the winds weren't all that great and we wound up having to motor the boat most of the way toward Newport RI to our final destination in Mount Hope Bay. I loved the spacious cabin and the shoal draft of this boat. In fact, I prefer an outboard rudder with tiller steering and the outboard engine wasn't much of a hassle on this boat. I just don't like all the halyards and control lines led into the cockpit, but that's me. Someone else might like it. It does have it's advantages I guess. I hope that I was of some help to you Doug. Good luck!
Joe
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My name is Rick Sencer and I bought a 1986 Oday 272 about four years ago. It seems apparent that there are some very good features of this model that make it one of only a few models that are difficult to beat. They are priced right and hold their value too.
These boats are very simple and offer a very nice roomy interior as well as a decent amount of room in the cockpit for the size. Also, these boats are great to use in shallow waters because of the under 3" draft. I own a standard model with an outboard and tiller. It turns on a dime. I'm not sure if you'd like the steering wheel or the tiller steering better.
I found many replacement parts from Rudy at D&R Marine Products in Mass. He knows many of the ins and outs of these boats since he used to work with the company.
There seem to be many of the same problems when searching for these boats. If you are still looking at them, make sure that the top deck sides where the stantion poles go through the fiberglass are sealed well. Many of these boats had a problems with leaks there and they can be fixed. I am still learning about sailing as I ran Formula and other poweer boats while growing up and never had a sailboat before. I wish you the best of luck in your search!
Hi Doug,
My name is Rick Sencer and I bought a 1986 Oday 272 about four years ago. It seems apparent that there are some very good features of this model that make it one of only a few models that are difficult to beat. They are priced right and hold their value too.
These boats are very simple and offer a very nice roomy interior as well as a decent amount of room in the cockpit for the size. Also, these boats are great to use in shallow waters because of the under 3" draft. I own a standard model with an outboard and tiller. It turns on a dime. I'm not sure if you'd like the steering wheel or the tiller steering better.
I found many replacement parts from Rudy at D&R Marine Products in Mass. He knows many of the ins and outs of these boats since he used to work with the company.
There seem to be many of the same problems when searching for these boats. If you are still looking at them, make sure that the top deck sides where the stantion poles go through the fiberglass are sealed well. Many of these boats had a problems with leaks there and they can be fixed. I am still learning about sailing as I ran Formula and other poweer boats while growing up and never had a sailboat before. I wish you the best of luck in your search!
We bought our 272 LE new in 1986...We've never had a great reason to sell and move on to a larger boat...now as we are in our 60's we're rather glad we're still sailing this boat.....We've taken good care of her and she has always taken care of us....We live in Wichita, Ks. and sail at a 10,000 acre lake 18 miles west of Wichita. Our club has approx. 250 families....The O'Days in our club are still some of the most handsome boats at our club. Our 272 LE with the grey hull is strill striking. We cook on her nearly every weekend. We sleep on her nearly every weekend. We sail her almost every weekend. Currently we have a Doyle Stack-pak
main and still the original 130 roller furling headsail. We use to reef the main often and have sailed in very substantial winds (40 knots) with when we were younger....with a reefed main and rooler furling she is a very steady boat to weather and does not pound much at all- I believe the wing on the bottom of the keel keeps
her steadier to weather so she does not pound... Last evening we enjoyed drinks with friends in the cockpit
and they marveled at the size of the cabin below. We installed a 12,000 btu Mermaid air conditioner two years ago. What a hell of an undertaking... Oh, I started to talk about the Doyle stack pak main. It has been an incredible enhancement to our sailing....I'm not a lover of extreme roach in a sail but I did have Doyle cut a bit of roac in the main.....When the wind picks up now, I mostly just sail in heavy air with the
Doyle mainsail. The boat tacks fine without a headsail, and the Stack pak main is just an incredible addition.
We love our 272 LE. We have many O'Days at our club, and the 302's and 272's seem to be some of the
often sailed boats....and they are striking looking. As for negatives...here is the only one we've found. The boat is tippier at the slip when boarding than most boats.....I think there are two things that allow this. 1), the freeboard, though well disguised is higher than some boats so when you step on the boat, your foot is higher than say on a Catalina 27. Also, I think the 2 ft. 11 inch draft allows it to turn more. An interesting sidelight, several times at our club, we've had bad storms that heeled boats over so far that they rub-rail will catch on the dock and damage one or the other. The 272 though a little tippy, does not heel over that far in damaging winds.....I think that too maybe is because of the wing on the keel....The Erickson 28 across the dock from us (tall rig) has heeled over so far that it frequently has a torn up rub-rail damaged by the slip boards...even though covered with rubber for protection....just kind of interesting - it'll heel over when sailing to a point, and then just locks in and says, this is fun today...a great little sailing boat.
Patrick in Wichita...
main and still the original 130 roller furling headsail. We use to reef the main often and have sailed in very substantial winds (40 knots) with when we were younger....with a reefed main and rooler furling she is a very steady boat to weather and does not pound much at all- I believe the wing on the bottom of the keel keeps
her steadier to weather so she does not pound... Last evening we enjoyed drinks with friends in the cockpit
and they marveled at the size of the cabin below. We installed a 12,000 btu Mermaid air conditioner two years ago. What a hell of an undertaking... Oh, I started to talk about the Doyle stack pak main. It has been an incredible enhancement to our sailing....I'm not a lover of extreme roach in a sail but I did have Doyle cut a bit of roac in the main.....When the wind picks up now, I mostly just sail in heavy air with the
Doyle mainsail. The boat tacks fine without a headsail, and the Stack pak main is just an incredible addition.
We love our 272 LE. We have many O'Days at our club, and the 302's and 272's seem to be some of the
often sailed boats....and they are striking looking. As for negatives...here is the only one we've found. The boat is tippier at the slip when boarding than most boats.....I think there are two things that allow this. 1), the freeboard, though well disguised is higher than some boats so when you step on the boat, your foot is higher than say on a Catalina 27. Also, I think the 2 ft. 11 inch draft allows it to turn more. An interesting sidelight, several times at our club, we've had bad storms that heeled boats over so far that they rub-rail will catch on the dock and damage one or the other. The 272 though a little tippy, does not heel over that far in damaging winds.....I think that too maybe is because of the wing on the keel....The Erickson 28 across the dock from us (tall rig) has heeled over so far that it frequently has a torn up rub-rail damaged by the slip boards...even though covered with rubber for protection....just kind of interesting - it'll heel over when sailing to a point, and then just locks in and says, this is fun today...a great little sailing boat.
Patrick in Wichita...
272 responses are great. Thanks!
I've gone ahead and made the deal and will take posession next week. This is really a great source of information and greatly helped me in making my decision. Thanks to Rick and Pat,too!! I hope they can see this post.
The boat has been out of the water for two years and needs lots of TLC but mostly just getting the pine straw off her and a good cleaning. I sailed a 27' Pearson Renegade for 6-7 years racing and cruising and am just blown away by how roomy this boat appears to be. It probably won't perform as well as the Pearson but at this point (66 years old) if I feel a need to go racing I'll crew w/ some one else!
I live in Lillian, AL on Perdido Bay just across from Pensacola, FL with some of the prettiest cruising grounds around and unless this horrible oil thing messes it all up I look forward to selling my 20' O'Day and getting back to some real sailing. It would be fun to keep in touch and thanks again for the responses........
Doug Abercrombie
Thanks Joe!
I've gone ahead and made the deal and will take posession next week. This is really a great source of information and greatly helped me in making my decision. Thanks to Rick and Pat,too!! I hope they can see this post.
The boat has been out of the water for two years and needs lots of TLC but mostly just getting the pine straw off her and a good cleaning. I sailed a 27' Pearson Renegade for 6-7 years racing and cruising and am just blown away by how roomy this boat appears to be. It probably won't perform as well as the Pearson but at this point (66 years old) if I feel a need to go racing I'll crew w/ some one else!
I live in Lillian, AL on Perdido Bay just across from Pensacola, FL with some of the prettiest cruising grounds around and unless this horrible oil thing messes it all up I look forward to selling my 20' O'Day and getting back to some real sailing. It would be fun to keep in touch and thanks again for the responses........
Doug Abercrombie
Hi Doug,
I'm the same age and I have no interest in speed on the water anymore. I'm more interested in a cozy little boat that can anchor in shallow coves and also get me to where I want to go. I have a friend named Norman Hooben who lives in Ozark Al. He also has a condo on Cape Cod Ma. He and his wife generally head over to Panama City Marina now and then. He's owned a Mac 26 and he's into RVs right now, but I suspect he'll be getting back into sailing some time soon.
I think that you're really going to enjoy the O'Day 272. My friend Rudy Nickerson in Assonet Ma. has all the parts to O'Days and is very knowledgeable about them. So if you need anything, he's the "go to guy."
http://www.drmarine.com/ Rudy bought all the molds when O'Day went out of business years ago, plus all the parts. Good luck Doug and have a great sailing season!
Regards,
Joe
Still waiting for delivery
Thanks again, Joe.
There were some slight complacations with the delivery scheduled for Friday but all is well and my "new" boat could arrive today or tomorrow. I've added DR Marine to my favorites and will need his services. May I use you name when taliking with Rudy?
I've spent time at the city marina in Panama City. We used to go every year in July. Scollop season opens July 1st so we'd go to St Joseph bay, a little further east to an anchorage called Eagle Harbour for a couple of days, then get back to Panama City for the wonderful Fourth of July fireworks. We really have some great sailing grounds here, I hope this oil mess doesn't screw it up too badly.
I'll get some "before" pictures of the 272 as soon as it gets here.
Thanks again,
Doug
Thanks again, Joe.
There were some slight complacations with the delivery scheduled for Friday but all is well and my "new" boat could arrive today or tomorrow. I've added DR Marine to my favorites and will need his services. May I use you name when taliking with Rudy?
I've spent time at the city marina in Panama City. We used to go every year in July. Scollop season opens July 1st so we'd go to St Joseph bay, a little further east to an anchorage called Eagle Harbour for a couple of days, then get back to Panama City for the wonderful Fourth of July fireworks. We really have some great sailing grounds here, I hope this oil mess doesn't screw it up too badly.
I'll get some "before" pictures of the 272 as soon as it gets here.
Thanks again,
Doug
Hi Doug,
By all means, feel free to use my name when talking to Rudy. We have one Boater's World and about four West Marines within 20 miles of my home, but I've found Rudy's prices cheaper than theirs. Not only that, but just his knowledge alone of these boats, is well worth the visit whenever I need something. I look forward to seeing pictures of the boat. I think that the most fun of owning a boat is the changes and modifications that you can do on them. I've done at least thirty of them on my boat through the years and I'm always looking for new ideas. Good luck!
Joe
Loved mine
If you're able to find a 272 in good condition at a good price, I'd say go for it.
Pete
s/v EmmieLou (O-322)
Little Silver, NJ
I owned a 272LE for 6 seasons, and she was a delightful first boat for me. The shoal draft was ideal for the waters I usually sailed in, and the accommodations worked quite well for my family of 3 humans and 2 small dogs.
If you're able to find a 272 in good condition at a good price, I'd say go for it.
Pete
s/v EmmieLou (O-322)
Little Silver, NJ
Question for Pat (Oday 272LE) if I may. Would you happen to have any photos or details regarding air conditioning installation in your boat ? I have a Catalina 27 and currently use portable AC but considering a built in type. - Thanks.
The issue on the 272 is the shallow bilge and my inability to run 6 inch ducts to the main salon. I could run 4 inch but not 6 inch...I think the Catalina 27 would be easier. I did not want to drill holes thru the athwartship stringers that give the hull it's strength; and so I didn't I went thru the vanity on the port side and the hanging locker on starboard.....If I knew at the beginning what I know now, I would probably have installed the AC in the lazarette...
I did take pictures to send to Wright Marine. I'll look for them in the morning.
Pat
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