Hello all, the 272 keeps popping up on my acquisition radar because it checks a few important boxes - wheel steering, really shallow shoal draft (without swing or centerboard, one less thing to maintain); and available/affordable here in Chesapeake region. But I'm on the fence whether the boat is big enough for me - I am strictly a social sailor and want to take out friends and family. My kids are elementary school age - I think a light air near shore cruise with four adults and four kids (all under ten) would be very feasible, thoughts? How about ditching the kids and taking out a group of adults for a reefed main sail sunset cruise around the harbor? Cramped but doable? Or should I really be aiming for a Catalina 30 and competitors? Keep in mind I am the Dad who has no problem ordering my kids out of the cockpit when needed (just like my Dad, ha)- Thanks for thoughts!
Oday 272 question- Social Sailor?
- Thread starter RodneyBD
- Start date
I think it would be a fine boat for that.. Diesel better because 27 feet is a big boat for an outboard. I'm not sure you'll find the cockpit of the C30 much bigger. Plus, not everyone has to sit in the cockpit on a sailboat. I encourage guests for 'spread out'. But the time the cruise is over, at least one couple has commandeered the foredeck. I doubt that you will every have to reef that mainsail, all of 132 sqr feet on a 27 foot boat. Thats a very small mainsail.
I had a 272.. A bit tender ( winged shoal keel) . That 3 extra feet on the 30 will seem like 10 if you got the 272 and then tried 30.. Gotta believe in that Bay there are multiple place to charter/rent a boat. Nothing like pretend ownership for a week(+/-) to weigh the differences. That 272 may be just the ticket, but you should KNOW what you want and what you don't want...
For sure the 30 will be a bigger boat over all. My point is that the cockpit will not be that much bigger. At this length most builders (including Catalina) are focused on INTERIOR room, which makes cockpit growth lag behind interior space as the LOA grows. But for sure, if there is an opportunity to go look at both, he should do so.
I'm not familiar with an O'Day 272, but I do know that there is a world of difference between my Starwind 27 and a Catalina 30. 3 adults in the cockpit is a crowd on my boat. One sits behind the wheel, and if 2 are sitting across from each other in front of the wheel, there is no room for one persons feet! One person basically has to lounge with feet on the bridge deck. Overall, I think the wheel steering helps with room in the cockpit, but there would be differing opinions on that point, too!
So, I'd say it depends on the cockpit of the 272. I know that the Catalina 30 is a very roomy boat for 30' both in the saloon and in the cockpit. A 27' boat will have a pretty small cockpit if the cabin is a decent size. All boats have to compromise somewhere. You can find a 27' boat with a spacious cockpit, but it may not have much room in the cabin.
So, I'd say it depends on the cockpit of the 272. I know that the Catalina 30 is a very roomy boat for 30' both in the saloon and in the cockpit. A 27' boat will have a pretty small cockpit if the cabin is a decent size. All boats have to compromise somewhere. You can find a 27' boat with a spacious cockpit, but it may not have much room in the cabin.
Chiming back in.... I replaced the 272 with an Oday 28.. What's that ? Only a foot different... Hardly... That '28 had the volume of a '30. Great beam and much roomier cockpit. Pressure HOT and Cold shower, good galley. I've had a crowd on board to motor to watch fireworks.
We had a 272. It started with tiller steering, and I converted it to wheel. For room in the cockpit while sailing, the wheel was better, especially if you build a helm seat. The tiller described a wide arc, and you stuck it in someone’s chest every time you tacked. It also had less mechanical advantage than the wheel, so it required a little more strength, but with balancing the sails, it was finger-tip-light.
For sitting at anchor or tied up, the wheel can be removed, but if you do not remove it, the tiller is easier to get out of the way while sitting around.
With the shoal-draft, wing keel, the boat is tender, so if you or your partner or guests are skittish about heeling, you may not like the 272. I think it is about sail management. Reef early and often, and you won’t wash the windows!
For the interior, I preferred the midships head/ hanging locker in the 272 to the closet head in the aft quarter of the Catalina 28. The closet was miniscule, and I am all of 5’8” and 160 lbs. We actually removed all the cabinetry in the 272 head / hanging locker. It made a lot more room to use hanging bags and organizers.
The V berth in the 272 was plenty big. We converted the salon into a single, queen-size bed. It was wonderful. The quarter berth in the 272 was also pretty big, but we never slept there.
We changed to water system to a foot-pump at the galley operated off a 13 gallon bladder.
We added an inverter / charger and smart plug shore power to ours.
The stock 272 traveler is a pin stop traveler. We changed that out to a flat track Garhauer with line controls. I built risers for the flat traveler to clear the slider. We also changed the mainsheet control to a 4:1 led aft right off the traveler car. The stock arrangement has it led forward to a stand-up block and then aft to the clutches.
The transom-hung rudder was carefree. It was pretty well balanced.
We had an 9.9 Yamaha 4 stroke on our 272. I would consider it fine for lake sailing, but I do not know that it is big enough for any current. I think a 15 horse would be better. The diesel will give you more power and directed thrust, but it takes room in the boat, and adds complexity. We could lift our motor off and store it or have it serviced. The Yamaha was an excellent, worry free motor. We kept a 6 gallon tank under the starboard, aft, cockpit settee. We also added remote throttle, so there was no diving over the transom to adjust the throttle or change the gear- things the diesel owner would never encounter.
The outboard will cause the boat to list only slightly to the side of the motor while at the dock. It is balanced by the batteries and water tank somewhat when the tank is full of water.
The 272 sailed nicely. It would sail at 7 knots, but not really more unless way overpowered or surfing, and then only for a moment or two. She had no bad habits, did not slap or pound or roll or wallow excessively. We could balance her sails, and she would hold her course with either the tiller clutch (When we had the tiller) or the wheel lock set. We had roller furling, so balancing was easy. We did have a single reef point in the main. It was adequate, and we rarely used it. She is not an overpowered vessel.
With the shoal keel, she will rock and roll while tied up and while stepping on and off the gunwales.
The cockpit could seat 6 pretty well, but there are lots of feet and toes to step on while tacking. It helps if two people can tack the genoa, so no one has to move. It would not be impossible to rig the boat for single-handing at the helm. My family is light and fit, so 6 of us probably tipped the scales around 825-840. The boat seemed well behaved with that load.
One nice feature was that we owned a trailer, and with the shoal-draft, wing keel, the 272 is quite trailerable. Her mast is easily stepped with a gin-pole or A-frame. Thus, we could take her home and work on her in the off season.
Well, there you go. Those are my observations. Overall, I would recommend her as a sailboat. We enjoyed her. She was a carefree vessel once we got her set up how we wanted. She is/was a fine member of the community. She made us proud, and she received many compliments as a stand-out example of a proud boat. If you buy one, I think she will do the same for you.
Thanks, Andrew
For sitting at anchor or tied up, the wheel can be removed, but if you do not remove it, the tiller is easier to get out of the way while sitting around.
With the shoal-draft, wing keel, the boat is tender, so if you or your partner or guests are skittish about heeling, you may not like the 272. I think it is about sail management. Reef early and often, and you won’t wash the windows!
For the interior, I preferred the midships head/ hanging locker in the 272 to the closet head in the aft quarter of the Catalina 28. The closet was miniscule, and I am all of 5’8” and 160 lbs. We actually removed all the cabinetry in the 272 head / hanging locker. It made a lot more room to use hanging bags and organizers.
The V berth in the 272 was plenty big. We converted the salon into a single, queen-size bed. It was wonderful. The quarter berth in the 272 was also pretty big, but we never slept there.
We changed to water system to a foot-pump at the galley operated off a 13 gallon bladder.
We added an inverter / charger and smart plug shore power to ours.
The stock 272 traveler is a pin stop traveler. We changed that out to a flat track Garhauer with line controls. I built risers for the flat traveler to clear the slider. We also changed the mainsheet control to a 4:1 led aft right off the traveler car. The stock arrangement has it led forward to a stand-up block and then aft to the clutches.
The transom-hung rudder was carefree. It was pretty well balanced.
We had an 9.9 Yamaha 4 stroke on our 272. I would consider it fine for lake sailing, but I do not know that it is big enough for any current. I think a 15 horse would be better. The diesel will give you more power and directed thrust, but it takes room in the boat, and adds complexity. We could lift our motor off and store it or have it serviced. The Yamaha was an excellent, worry free motor. We kept a 6 gallon tank under the starboard, aft, cockpit settee. We also added remote throttle, so there was no diving over the transom to adjust the throttle or change the gear- things the diesel owner would never encounter.
The outboard will cause the boat to list only slightly to the side of the motor while at the dock. It is balanced by the batteries and water tank somewhat when the tank is full of water.
The 272 sailed nicely. It would sail at 7 knots, but not really more unless way overpowered or surfing, and then only for a moment or two. She had no bad habits, did not slap or pound or roll or wallow excessively. We could balance her sails, and she would hold her course with either the tiller clutch (When we had the tiller) or the wheel lock set. We had roller furling, so balancing was easy. We did have a single reef point in the main. It was adequate, and we rarely used it. She is not an overpowered vessel.
With the shoal keel, she will rock and roll while tied up and while stepping on and off the gunwales.
The cockpit could seat 6 pretty well, but there are lots of feet and toes to step on while tacking. It helps if two people can tack the genoa, so no one has to move. It would not be impossible to rig the boat for single-handing at the helm. My family is light and fit, so 6 of us probably tipped the scales around 825-840. The boat seemed well behaved with that load.
One nice feature was that we owned a trailer, and with the shoal-draft, wing keel, the 272 is quite trailerable. Her mast is easily stepped with a gin-pole or A-frame. Thus, we could take her home and work on her in the off season.
Well, there you go. Those are my observations. Overall, I would recommend her as a sailboat. We enjoyed her. She was a carefree vessel once we got her set up how we wanted. She is/was a fine member of the community. She made us proud, and she received many compliments as a stand-out example of a proud boat. If you buy one, I think she will do the same for you.
Thanks, Andrew
Super helpful comments everyone, I am very appreciative! Although the 272 seems like it could get the job done, may have to conduct some dock tours and find a Cat 28 and O'Day 28 (if they have shoal draft versions) for comparison... as for sailing, no doubt any of them work for me... if it's blowing more than 15 knots I'm not even headed out to the bay, just the 1.5 nautical miles around the corner to the nearest anchorage/swimming spot, etc. I'll be the guy with multiple stand up paddle boards and kids jumping off the foredeck, etc. Thanks again!
Mine too. Draft was 3'8" with a fixed keel. I believe older models had centerboards. The interior volume was great for a 28' boat. Had all of the"big boat" amenities like wheel steering, diesel engine, hot/cold pressure water. The head is midships and quite well sized, as Andrew described of the 272. The 28's are older than the 272's, and generally may have more core sogginess that Jackdaw and others caution against on O'Day's, so be on the lookout for that. On the 28 the upper and aft lower shrouds go to tie rods to the pan, not pulling on chainplates in wood bulkheads. That is generally a plus as the mast doesn't need to rely on rotten wood to stay up. It can lead to oil canning on the hull if the rig is overtightened. Other places to check for softness are under the steering pedestal, near the jib tracks, and around the stanchions. Sailing wise it's a very stable platform, not tender at all. Never rounded up once in all the years I sailed it (often over trimmed and over-canvassed).
My O'28 was a keel stepped boat. And as you note, the cabin bulkhead on the 272 IS the anchor point for the upper shroud.. 2nd subsequent owner of my 272 suffered a near dismasting when the port upper failed at the bulkhead.