Howdy All!

[Zoomie]

Howdy All!
Brand new guy here. I live in SC and work in NC. I'm a DOD air traffic controller and fly to and from work and flight instruct on the side. I've also been in the military since 1982 (AF/ANG}. I have been crawling thru the forums and have read the first 140 pages or so of the "Ask an Oday owner" forum and the first twenty or so of the day sailor forum. Does anyone have a comprehensive pre-purchase checklist for the O'Day 222? I have crawled all over the boat I'm considering but really need some help. The boat I'm looking at seems to have been used but not abused. The gel coat looks fine and original,(just needs a good buffing) the rigging isn't frayed or damaged. The bilge appears to be very dry/clean. No leak type stains in the cabin, Sails appear fine but could stand cleaning(no holes tears loose stitching etc.) Cabin Cushions look original but not torn, just faded. Teak brightwork looks pretty rough but usable, silver and showing pretty serious erosion. The only gelcoat issues I see is near the forward edge of the cockpit seating just prior to entering the cabin, it's kind of a drain trough (a few cracks in the gelcoat). The boat has a shoal keel. the keel board appears to be in fine shape as does the rudder/tiller, bottom etc. it has an older Honda outboard which appears to start/operate trouble free and was recently serviced with newly replaced plastic fuel tank and fuel lines. It has a new battery. All the electric stuff works as well as the ancillary items(sink etc). Lines all appear usable/near new. Not alot of extras come with it but the price seems right.
I am trying to remain emotionally detached from this purchase but I'm having a tough time of it. the only thing I haven't figured out yet is a trailer. I guess I'll have to build/modify one if I can get the boat at the right price!
I really like this little fliver! Help me...

 

[Joe11688]

Ahoy there, Zoomie!
You didn't mention what year this boat is. I have a 1986 that I bought new in the Boston Boat Show. The 84s didn't have a tension bar down in the cabin, so I'm told. This bar is made of 1" stainless steel and connects to the post near the galley sink and bolts to the mast Tabernacle. It really isn't a big thing, and if this boat doesn't have one, one can be made up and added. These boats are kind of scarce because they didn't manufacture a lot of them. The only real bug that I can point out on these boats is the rudder blade. I've gone through two of them so far and the one I have now is solid and still kicking. The company that made these rudder blades made them in two pieces and glued them and pumped them with foam. They had a habit of opening up at the seam and breaking. The blades on some of the larger O'Day boats were built the same way and they suffered the same demise after a while. Outside of that, those little stress cracks near the companionway are quite common on most sailboats, even mine has them. They're a great little boat and they will sail with just the mainsail up, as easy as a smaller daysailer. I've got to where I can sail mine right up to our dock, and pick up my mooring under sail. Check out my mods on the "Owner Photo Album" under "Trinkka" on this site. As for the trailer; These boats came with a single axle Load-Rite Roller trailer in my area. Believe it or not, my boat would practically fly off this trailer similar to a powerboat in waters up to the wheel hubs. This may sound incredible with a boat in which the keel hangs down about a foot, but it's true. I used to tow it with a Delta 88 Olds back then and it was the perfect set up for trailer sailing. I did that for eight years. Then I joined a yacht club, rented a mooring, and did bottom paint on her. The Load-Rite finally bit the dust, so I bought a Long Mfg. tandem Aluminum boat trailer with 24" bunk extension brackets. I didn't need the main bunk in the center of the cross members because it was too high. I used two pressure treated planks sandwiched together, for the keel to sit on. I didn't use the winch that came with it. I had a new Fulton 2800 Lbs winch from my old trailer, plus a double wheel adjustable tongue jack that I swapped over to the new trailer. My Long Mfg. trailer is good for a 23' boat and has a capacity of 4600 Lbs. It's good enough for getting her to the club and back a couple of times a year. If you plan on doing some trailering, these boats have strong hulls and can take a complete roller trailer. In fact, the Long dealer in your area could set up a roller trailer for your boat at an additional cost. Otherwise, a bunk trailer will suffice for this boat. This about all I can tell you about these boats. I was never too fond of the cheap extrusions on the spars, such as the cast aluminum tabernacle with the sheave at the bottom for the Jib halyard. So I changed that years ago. I have Z Spar with internal halyards and control lines in the boom. The boat you're looking at may have external halyards. If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to ask. I can only tell you about my boat. Good luck with your choice.
Joe

 

[Zoomie]

Thanks for the reply Trinkka! She's a 1985.