Mystery Hole

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Brian Schwerdt

Brian Schwerdt

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Sep 29, 2008
93
Oday 22 Oneida Lake, Syracuse, NY
I bought a 1976 O'Day 22 last fall, and there is a hole I don't understand in the keel. It is about 1" in diameter, located near the lowest point of the keel on the starboard side. Can anyone tell me what this is about?

:confused:

It's a clean hole, definitely put there intentionally. Does it need to be patched before I put in this spring? I've attached a picture of it.
 

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Sunbird22358

Sunbird22358

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Jun 2, 2004
1,952
Oday Day Sailer Wareham, MA
It appears that a previous owner drilled a hole to allow built up water to drain out of the keel while stored for the winter. YES ,you need to either put a plug in the hole or glass over it unless you are in the mood to test your boat's floatation (or bilge pump). I supect that you should also thoroughly inspect the whole keel, since I would suspect there was some kind of crack that was letting water into the keel shell over time, thus the need to drain it. I'm also concerned about what appears to be a lot of "rust" staining the outside of the keel.....the ballast in an O'DAY 22 is supposed to be lead, in the form of ingots lowered into the keel molding and then secured with resin and fiberglass. Did a former owner add more ballast (O'Day suggested maybe adding 100# inside the keel, using LEAD shot if needed) using steel shot or some other form of iron inside the keel?
 
Brian Schwerdt

Brian Schwerdt

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Sep 29, 2008
93
Oday 22 Oneida Lake, Syracuse, NY
Thanks for the info. This concurs with what others have told me (always best to get a second opinion). Is the keel sealed from the cabin, or would this hole really allow water inside? I will definitely be glassing this hole as soon as it gets a little warmer.

As for the rust look, I will contact the previous owner about what was done. Curiousity got the better of me, and I just ran outside with a measuring tape. If I'm measuring correctly, it seems that the top of the brown area is about where the bottom of the keel should be (assuming that the waterline is the bottom of the stripe on the topsides, and the draft for this model is 23"). In other words, it appears as though somebody added ballast directly to the bottom of the keel, and then glassed around that. I don't think this is what the manufacturer had in mind.

I'm quickly discovering one of the joys of fixing up an old boat is just figuring out what previous owners did to the thing.
 
Sunbird22358

Sunbird22358

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Jun 2, 2004
1,952
Oday Day Sailer Wareham, MA
As far as I know...the keel is not sealed off from the inside of the hull, per se. However, if your keel truly is deeper than "stock", then maybe a previous owner added a hollow shell to the bottom of the keel and the hole is to let water into the shell for ballast, sort-of do-it-yourself water-ballast? If so, and the boat was in fresh water....that might explain the "rust". My gut feeling is that if you poured a cup or two of water into the bilge through the access hole in the cabin sole that O'Day supposedly installed for bailing out the keel, and the water doesn't drain out through the hole in the keel.....maybe this was to let water in as ballast?
as always, "your mileage may vary"
 
J

jackhartjr

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Dec 9, 2006
694
Oday 22 Hickory, NC
Brian, I will be very interested in what you find out here. Can you post a photo from a little further back, in other words stand back 3 or 4 feet from where the first photo was taken.
I will then compare it to my 75 Oday 22. I assume yours is shoal draft with no centerboard?
Thanks
Jack
 
Brian Schwerdt

Brian Schwerdt

.
Sep 29, 2008
93
Oday 22 Oneida Lake, Syracuse, NY
After contacting the seller (not the PO, but a used "dealer"), he tells me that the PO drilled the hole to drain the keel, and used a boat plug...I can't seem to find a place that sells such a plug, anyone have any ideas?

I am also told that the keel had a crack so the PO covered it with plywood and then glassed it over, and never repainted, thus the "rust" color...neither ballast nor draft was increased...is this an acceptable method of repair here? If not, what do I do to make it right? Obviously it needs a fresh coat of bottom paint. I'm still left wondering... :confused:

Jack, the boat is a fixed (no centerboard) shoal draft keel, same as yours. Unfortunately I can't get a better picture b/c the boat is wrapped in its tarp. I looked around and don't already have one. Maybe this weekend when the weather warms up (supposed to be 40s in syracuse! woo hoo!!:dance:)
 
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