oday 23 flaking hull/centerboard

[Lisa]

I have recently purchased a lovely 1973 oday 23. She is perfect in everyway above water, but underwater - it's a different story. Her center board is stuck. She has a lot of growth on her hull and my first thought was to take a swim and clean off the marine growth. I have tried- but there is an awful lot underneath and up into the trunk of the keel and is taking a while. When I was in the water yesterday - I was scraping up in the trunk and flakes of "something" fell out. It appears that the keel is flaking where the centerboard sits. Can this be right? Why would that happen?My questions are: What is the keel made of? What is the centerboard made of? If it is in fact the keel that is flaking - is this possible? And what's the solution? What are the dimensions of the centerboard? Where are the joints/cable located? I am nervous about poking around in there too much and damaging the joints/cable. Lastly - I've read that people have managed to get their centerboard down by putting a wire around the board and pulling it down, or pushing it with a rod through the cabin. I think if I persevered a little I will be able to get the board down - but just don't want to create a bigger problem for myself.Any insights, and or pictures of the center board would be much appreciated.Thanks, Lisa

 

[Fabio]

problems with centerboard

I got the same problem, bought a Oday 23 and the center board is stuck too.I got some pic at:http://oday23camilas.nafoto.netuser: oday23camilaspw: almeida

 

[Shoestring]

centerboard issue

Lisa, I have a 74 23 O'day, With convertible top.The Stub keel is made of cast iron, and the big flakes you are digging out are rust from the keel. I would say keep digging and poking untill you get most of it out, and then your centerboard will probably work.It will sail ok with the board up, but better down. Mine had a hole at the trailing edge of the board about a quarter of the way down, and a cable passed through it to to lift it. Good luck!

 

[Keith]

Centerboard is Fiberglass

I also have a 1973 23, and agree with the previous posts about the keel and freeing up the centerboard. I have found that I can clear mud or debris from the keel slot using a sturdy 1/4" hooked rod in a sawing motion on both sides of the centerboard. With the mud out, there is plenty of room and it drops every time.The only way to keep iron keels from rusting is to sandblast and barrier coat next time it is out of the water.I had to replace my centerboard 2 years ago; got a replacement from D&R Marine. The centerboard is fiberglass...a heavy fiberglass shell wrapped around a lead/wood core. The board weighs about 50 lbs. It has a 1 3/8"hole through the top end for a bushing that fits the 1" SS pivot pin that is a friction fit through the cast iron keel. It has a 1/4" hole in the trailing edge for a deep-throat narrow shackle from the 22 soft wire pendant used to raise/lower the board. Hope this is helpful.

 

[Keith]

Dimensions

You also asked for dimensions. The centerboard is 15" wide and about 56" long (length varies because it has a clipped top end to allow for pivoting and an off-square bottom cut for perfomance. The thickness is 1" in the middle area, but is is aerodynamically shaped so the leading and trailing edges are sharp to reduce turbulence in the water. I agree that trying to push at this with a rod from above could either damage the pendant tube (inside your table post) through the hull or the board edge itself.