37 O'day water leak forward of the keel

[Joseph May]

Does any one know how the Keel is attatched to the O'day 37? I have located two bolts in a floor panel in the aft cabin but find no other keel bolts. Is the keel attatched by the fibre glass or another method? I have a leak just forward of the keel and need to know how to repair this leak? I suspect the leak was caused by setting too much weight on the keel when the boat was hauled. Would this type of repair require removal of the keel and resetting the keel or would laminating some fiberglass over the leaking area seal it? Does this indicate structural damage that might cause further leakage under way?

 

[Tom]

Bolts

Joe, I don't know if this will help much, I have a n O'day 34 and have I believe 6 bolts holding my keel. There are two bolts just aft of the mast and then four more under the floor boards in the saloon. Good luck with your leak, I have a continuing problem with my keel leaking. I'll have the keel pulled this winter and rebedded, hopefully that'll solve the problem.

 

[Peter J. Brennan]

What year is the boat?

To repeat: What year is the boat? Most O'Day 37s have an encapsulated keel -- the keel form and the hull are one piece and the interior of the keel form is filled with lead. However, for a couple of years when the price of lead soared, O'Day made these boats with attached iron keels.The bolts under a small panel in the aft cabin support the shaft log and have nothing to do with the keel.It is possible that a grounding or other uneven stress may have cracked the fiberglass keel shell at the point where it fairs into the hull. I suggest that you scrape the paint off to bare fiberglass over the area and see if you can find a hairline crack.