O'day 39 project boat

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
This project refurbishing an O'day 39 has been in progress from nearly two years. All work was suspended for year one due to my daughters wedding.
This allowed me to do some planning.
The project got off to a rocky start when the crane operator miscalculated the load and dropped the boat. Fortunately the drop was back onto the air ride trailer. Preventing a total disaster. Things have improved since.
I plan to launch sometime this fall.

A quick run down:
Install new holding tanks/hose done
New engine soundproofing done
Strip bottom and barrier coat stripping done bottom paint coming
Add refrigeration Maybe this year
Refinish interior In progress
Repair deck cracks coming
Polish gelcoat coming
Paint non-skid coming
Toe rail replacement coming
LOTS and LOTS of details
 
Last edited:
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
These are the aluminum bolts there were holding my steering system together. Edson uses aluminum bolts to attach the pedestal base to the floor of the cockpit and attach the pulleys (that lead the cables to the rudder) to the underside of the cockpit floor. The pedestal is bonded to the floor so it remains solid even with these bolts removed but the pulleys under the floor just drop down rendering the steering inoperable.
I discovered them when I tried to remove the pedestal to strip and repaint it. I broke one off by hand. Two were completely corroded through. My guess I had one bolt strong enough to hold the pulley plate on. I broke that with a wrench so I think I had another year or two before it would fail. This corrosion was inside the floor so the slot head and the nut on the underside looked fine. You must get a wrench on the nuts to check them.
Here is what I think happened:
The seal under the pedestal was leaking. Not bad enough to notice maybe only if the cockpit filled when the scuppers clogged. This saturated the core and likely the core rotting. I see two deck cracks so I think the core is bad. I'd say the leak was on the port side of the pedestal since the two weakest bolts and the deck cracks were on that side.
The aluminum bolts have been sitting in rotted core for years.
The biggest concern is that you can't check this without getting access the the nuts under the floor since the counter sunk slot heads will not turn because the bolts are bonded in.
I understand that Edson is concerned about dissimilar metals but this is far to critical not to use stainless with an insulating sleeve and washers. Some time around 1990 they changed from a counter sunk slot head to hex heads. This would give you a chance to check them from above. They might even be stainless.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Pedestal bolt corrective action

I purchased four bolts for $12.00 each plus $16.00 shipping. They better come with nuts like the web photo shows or I'm paying Edson a visit.
I plan to treat this like any through deck fitting by trimming back the core around each hole, fill with epoxy, and redrill . What do we think about greasing or waxing the bolt to protect it from moisture?
I'm placing the photo in my maintenance log to give the next owner a head's up.
Next project is the Richie compass dome. Completely crazed. The replacement is $48. Very easy replacement but they want me to place the dampening fluid under vacuum prior to filling the compass (prevents bubbles from forming). I've not yet figured out a way to place a vacuum on a gallon of odorless mineral spirits. Any ideas?
The shift and throttle levers. They are soiled and degraded by UV. Stainless replacement is several hundred dollars. My buddy says he has some bronze out of which he can forge new ones. He's a black smith and an employee of Harken. Obviously,he's on top of my Christmas gift list. What do you think of using Bronze for a control lever? I would need to clearcoat it or possibly chrome plate it since re-chroming all winches is coming up on my to do list.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
I'm waiting on the compass dome and the pedestal bolts from Richie and Edson. They are both pretty slow but their customer service is great. Real people that actually know something. So in the mean time I'm pulling the oil soaked foam soundproofing out of the engine compartment. The material had been soaked with oil for some time. I test ran the engine for an hour last week so I'm comfortable that what ever sprayed the oil on the sound barrier has been repaired since.
I'm replacing the foam because there are new technologies out there that perform much better and the old material will allow me to test some products for others to use to clean theirs. Yes, I believe it is possible to clean the open cell foam.
Addressing the sound barrier is important at this time since I will be installing a Zantrex Pro XM1800 inverter on the starboard wall of the engine room. Please forward any comment suggestions ETC. The unit is still in the box so if I'm making a mistake tell me now when I can send it back.

Back to the foam.
The photos attached are pieces from the lower port wall. The dark areas are totally soaked with oil. These pieces left an oil smear on the parking lot. You could actually wring a few drops out a the bottom edge where the oil had slowly migrated over time. Now how to remove the oil.
Pressure washers would be disastrous,
wiping or washing foam would be impossible.
I'm going to test a product I have been testing for other Engine and parts cleaning purposes the past few months. I intend to sell this in my commercial venture but I'll show you what to look for so you can find a similar product locally.
The only possible method I see is to use a water soluble degreaser ,water and a shop vac. This degreaser of course must not have a flash point (VERY VERY IMPORTANT) The one I've been testing is soy based. Why soy?
They use it in parts washers.
It's very effective cleaning motors and windings as well as a general parts cleaner/degreaser.
It has excellent solvency. Cuts oil and grease very well.
No-toxic
Ozone friendly
100% biodegradable.

Hard to believe a parts cleaner/degreaser that will not catch fire , not caustic, no VOC, and (do I dare say) you can drink! Please don't.

This is one of the Snap solvents. Snap is the EPA's Significant New Alternatives Policy. Trying to save our ozone but lets not get into that.

The key is that it works in many applications so I'll try it here.

Here is how I'll test. I'll weigh the oil soaked test piece prior to cleaning . Spray on the degreaser, use some kind of a ball or roller to get it into the foam. Add water and then wet vac everything out repeat a few times and then weigh again. I'll then place the foam in some real nasty high alkaline Butyl cleaner at an elevated temperature and let it soak squeeze it out repeat until the rinse runs clean. This should give us an idea as to how well the soy degreaser/vacuum process works.

back in an hour or so.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Well that was easy. The Soy degreaser worked well but I added a step and used a biodegradable surfactant for the last step.
Here is a link to a soybased degreaser very similar to the one I am testing. http://www.renewablelube.com/pdf/2L-Bio-Parts CleanerDegreaser Soy Based.pdf you can use laundry detergent in place of the surfactant.
Here is what I did. I cut a 6"x6" piece from the bottom edge that had the most oil. See photo I could squeeze oil out. It weighed 2 and 1/8 ounces.
I then sprayed it with Soy degreaser then water then worked it in a bit with a golf ball followed by wet vac with a clear tube so I could see what was coming up. I did this twice. I then sprayed the surfactant followed by water golf ball and then vacuum. It now looks clean and smells clean. I will not bother to put it in the nasty stuff, the scale will not detect a difference. It's that clean. It now weighs 2 ounces but it is still moist.

You my try looking for the a soy degreaser at your auto parts store.

Now does anyone know anything about soundproofing?
 

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Aug 20, 2010
1,399
Oday 27 Oak Orchard
Hey! That's no fair having that easily duplicated non skid deck. Boy Todd now I'm jealous.
 
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Joe, I'll have my share of headaches when I redo my non-skid (next spring). Fortunately I'll have an expert to rely on. In the mean time , the pedestal rebuild is complete.
New aluminum bolts to hold it down ,a new compass dome, bearing inspection, lubrication and a new coat of paint. Turned out well. I'm glad I did not remove it and send it to Edson. Saved a ton of money.
Replacing the odorless mineral spirits in the dome is very easy. You must cool the liquid to the lowest temperature you plan to be sailing in. Otherwise you get a bubble when is get cold. Richie uses a vacuum chamber but a freezer works well. Another tip is to place a mark where due north is so you can see if it has changed when you re-install.
For more stuff on Panta Rhei http://prhei.blogspot.com/
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
I recruited my wife to remove years of oil and dirt from the interior teak. It seems the previous owners never removed the old just added more oil.

She used TSP and water (Trisodium Phosphate) . The TSP and oil saponify just like lye and oil to make soap.
She first applies the TSP solution and lets it sit a few minutes. She then reapplies and follows with a stiff brush. This loosens everything up and she then wipes off the gunk with a paper towel.

This gets 98% of it . I will follow up with a MEK wipe to make the wood look like it just left the lumber yard.

I follow that with a one step brightener and two coats of gloss varnish and finally Epifanes rubbed effect finish.
I did the doors and drawers this winter . Results are on the right
 

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Jan 27, 2008
3,045
ODay 35 Beaufort, NC
Looks great Panta Rei. I've been using Formby's Tung Oil on my interior teak. Gives the same look as varnish but so much easier to apply. Just rub it on with a rag. Has some varnish in it. Holds up really well with minimal work. Keep up the great work.
 
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
I'm putting an inverter in the engine room so I want it as cool as possible. I'm adding new sound down sound proofing which will not help keep things cool. I looking at a 240 cfm fan 4" hose My question is were do send the exhaust? The stern?
 
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
I intend to install a walker airsep on my Universal 5444(Kabota) V-1902 engine. I'm also installing new Sound down soundproofing and intend to seal up the engine room as much as possible.

The Walker Airsep I intend to install is designed for gen sets and small sailboat auxiliaries up to 350 CFM. Walker Engineering - Product Detail The engine is showing it's age. I'm hoping this will help with any leaks and blowby. I have spent weeks cleaning the oil that seems to be everywhere in the engine room. I have read great things about the Airseps keeping engine rooms spotless.

I googled how to calculate cfm for engines and got many formulations and calculations all offering results often magnitudes apart. Some use fuel consumption and the air fuel ratio others go with volumetric efficiency yet others seem to take into account everything including the rotational spin of the earth.
I found a slick chart that looks impressive and if the author spent half as much time in with the formula as he did with the graphics it should be most accurate. The answer I got was 90 CFM for the 44 HP engine. It seems a bit low.
Engine room ventilation , Based on this result and some overkill I intend to use 4" vent hose with two intakes at 4" and one powered exhaust at 4". 240 CFM fan.

Inputs:
HP 44
No. of Cylinders 4
Bore X Stroke 3.3X3.25
Displacement Cu. In. 115
Max RPM 3000
Compression Ratio 21.1
Rotational speed of the earth 1 rpd
Don't know fuel consumption/hr.

I checked in at the Cruiser Forums in the Engine and propulsion forum. They seem to think I'm close. They made a good point about bringing fresh air in from the cabin not outside to keep out salt laden air. I'm still not sold on that idea. I like keeping the engine room completely separate from the cabin and from my Paint engineer days I know the marine layer (salt laden air) is generally 50 to 100 feet thick on the water. I don't think cabin air is any better. Of course I'll need to prevent water from coming in. I'll be in the great lakes for a few years anyway and I have just repainted the engine with Eastwood's rush encapsulator since it had a few rust spots. It's great rust protection. Eastwood is a car restoration / body shop supply. http://www.eastwood.com/ Joe, you would love some of the tools they have. The Rust encapsulator is the best in the business. Ordinarily you first use their rust converter but their tech guys say to use just the encapsolator on engines. I don't know if they are worried about the acid effecting components or something in the formula can't take the heat. I should have asked. More comments welcome.

Photos of the engine room coming in a week or two when the sound down is installed.
 
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
The sound down sound proofing is installed. Very easy instillation costing about $500 for the 39 which has a rather large engine compartment. I did not remove the engine as there was plenty of room once I removed the filters, fuel pump and other accessories from the walls.
Next step is mount the a new heat exchanger in a better location (previous location was suspended over the transmission by nothing more than the hoses attached).
The new location will be running for and aft on the starboard side of the transmission.
Following that is wiring the Xantrex inverter now installed high on the wall also on the starboard side.
And Finally installing the Walker AirSep that should silence the intake , filter the intake air and put a negative pressure in the crankcase preventing any leaks and keep the engine compartment clean.

This all should be a days work. Photos when complete.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Just received the Walker Airsep. It looks beautiful. The photo may not show it but it is a super high gloss metallic black. Car show quality.
I hope to install everything next week.
Heater hose for heat exchanger is bright blue. 00 battery cable for inverter is Bright red and Black.
I will likely go back and touch up a few places on the engine where my paint job was not perfect so it does not distract from this thing.
Photos coming next week.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Finally some photos

I ordered red and blue silicone heater hose for the heat exchanger/engine coolant. Red for the engine coolant Blue for sea/lake water. Unfortunately Stylin Motors is having a rough time . They charged my credit card but never delivered. I reordered from another company this time all blue (only Stylin does red when they get around to it). Anyway, you will notice there are no coolant hoses in the photos.
What I did manage to do is:
Clean the engine compartment
Paint the engine
Install sound proofing
Install a new heat Exchanger (less hoses)
Install a Xantrex XM 1800 inverter
Add a battery switch for the inverter.
Install a Walker Air Sep.

Sorry the full shot of the engine compartment is a bit blurry. Cell phone photo. The outside shot is my landlord's shop. My frends give me a bad time for having a boat 60 miles from the nearest water. Lot's of Noah jokes. What they fail to notice is this little shop run by two brothers does some of the best stainless weldments I have ever seen. Just steps away. Milk parlors in Wisconsin barns are all made of stainless. Therefore most welders in Wisconsin are competent tig welders. Handy!

I fired up the Xantrex on only the cranking battery and ran my shop vac most of the day. I'm very happy with it. I think it was $300 or so. I highly recommend it. It also has a very accurate digital volt meter. I will remotely mount the display next to the circuit breakers at the nav station. Blue sea Digital voltmeters are nearly $200. Buy this for the voltmeters and get the 1800 watt inverter for $100.
I purchased the Walker Air Sep because everything in the engine compartment had a layer of oil on it. The air sep creates a vacuum in engine crankcase. Small oil leaks stop and no blow-by gets out the intake. I'll find out how it does next fall. The Air sep also reduces the intake sound .
Painting the engine made things look a lot better and pointed me to a very small fuel leak I had not noticed.
Sound Down sound proofing makes the hole boat sound and feel solid. I placed it under all hatches in the cockpit. Regardless if the sound improves , the feel of the cockpit was worth it.
 

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Last edited:
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Silicone heater hose has arrived

Maybe this is a bit overkill but I figure my guests on board will feel better believing this engine will get them back home should the magic of the sails mysteriously fail. The better the engine compartment looks the more likely they will feel at ease. The pictures show $100 worth of hose. It's likely twice as expensive as black heater hose. I will be using this after the raw water pump and in the engine loop. I will not be using it prior to the raw water pump since I understand that the pump can collapse the hose upon a partial blockage of the inlet since it does not have wire reinforcement.
This is not the wrapped reinforced hose that is sold by the inch. I just don't see the need. It's just heater hose with silicone lining. Please correct me If I'm making a mistake. Stylin motors sent me a nice letter apologizing for the delay. www.siliconehose.com turned out to be a bit cheaper but Stylin has more product.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Welding plastic water tanks

Engine compartment is just about complete. I need to tie down some cables and hose clamp the hoses I installed. I'll likely add an elbow or two so I can trim a few inches off the hoses before putting on the hose clamps.
I installed the heat exchanger along the starboard engine mount rail back near the transmission. The previous location was suspended by the hoses attached to it just above the drive shaft.

The next project is to weld up a crack in each of the 55 gallon water tanks. The cracks are down in the baffle in the center of each tank. My guess is that the tanks were not winterized and the frozen water caused the cracks.
I purchased a plastic welder that looks very similar to a wood burning tool or a soldering iron. I'll take some photos when I do the work. I've watched a few videos on repairing plastic Kayaks. I hope all goes well. If not it will be two new tanks.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Welding polyethylene water tanks

Welding the water tanks was rather simple. I have some welding background that might have helped a bit but I think it's safe to say anyone should be able to do it.
The key is to get everything up to temperature and keep a puddle formed.
I consumed a lot of filler rod. somewhere around 30 to 40.
The photos do not show it but these are big fillets.
I'm a bit premature saying it's complete since I won't test this for leaks until spring but from the way the Polyethylene flowed I feel good about the welds. The port side hole was much larger so I used the stainless screen that came with the kit. The screen made it very easy to bridge large gaps.
The shape of the tool is designed more for welding Kayaks than a sharp v like the tank baffle but it made a sound weld just not a very pretty one.
I threw out the two leaking holding tanks. Had I know it was this easy I think I would have taken the effort to clean and weld them.
 

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Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
Removing years of teak oil and soil

You may want to refer to a past link where I have photos of the oil removal process. Together my wife and I spend 15 hours removing the oil and soil. Again TSP and water worked the best. The interior is down to bare wood. I'll follow up with a MEK wipe and a two part Peroxide bleach which lightens the natural color of the wood. I will also use Oxalic acid to remove a few black rings and spots. I understand that the black spots may be caused by a reaction of water and the tanic acid that may be in the wood. (any help would be appreciated here). I have little background in wood finishing.
I'm really looking forward to the day I work inside the boat and do not come home covered in something. The day is coming soon since the engine compartment is clean and soon the interior will be as well.


I went on a long trip out east and met a few Oday owners. One was our famous 25 years after , the other was an owner of an O'day 39 who has owned the boat since it left the show room. It's impeccably maintained and modified to be a true Blue water boat. All connections to the tabbing was thru bolted replacing the self tapping screws, extra bulkheads behind the settees (more for storage than strength), Over-sized cockpit drains, Over sized winches, Lee cloths installed in the salon. Lots of storage improvements. A fiberglass curb with solid attachment point for the Dodger to fend off big greenies and more. It was nice to see what a properly maintained boat could look like at 30 years. The hull number was one number higher than my hull so both boats were once setting side by side during manufacturing. The two boats are a lesson in maintenance.

I'll likely not finish the interior until spring when the weather warms up. I intend to focus on replacing all light fixtures and installing the head liner.
 
Nov 3, 2010
564
Oday 39 Lake mills WI
I purchased new lighting for the boat. I will not install them until spring but I wanted check the installation before I started finishing the woodwork.

I have 5 of the original lamps. (see photo) I would be happy to send them to anyone who needs them for the cost of shipping. They all work but need a bit of clean-up. I also have the original surface mount lights. They have some pitting.
 

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Oct 20, 2008
142
Oday 222 USA
place a vacuum on a gallon of odorless mineral spirits

I purchased four bolts for $12.00 each plus $16.00 shipping. They better come with nuts like the web photo shows or I'm paying Edson a visit.
I plan to treat this like any through deck fitting by trimming back the core around each hole, fill with epoxy, and redrill . What do we think about greasing or waxing the bolt to protect it from moisture?
I'm placing the photo in my maintenance log to give the next owner a head's up.
Next project is the Richie compass dome. Completely crazed. The replacement is $48. Very easy replacement but they want me to place the dampening fluid under vacuum prior to filling the compass (prevents bubbles from forming). I've not yet figured out a way to place a vacuum on a gallon of odorless mineral spirits. Any ideas?
The shift and throttle levers. They are soiled and degraded by UV. Stainless replacement is several hundred dollars. My buddy says he has some bronze out of which he can forge new ones. He's a black smith and an employee of Harken. Obviously,he's on top of my Christmas gift list. What do you think of using Bronze for a control lever? I would need to clearcoat it or possibly chrome plate it since re-chroming all winches is coming up on my to do list.
Panta Rei: To degas the mineral spirits you need a Büchner flask. Place the mineral spirits in flask, cork the top, and hook up the side port to a vacuum source. Apply vacuum until no bubbles are observed in liquid (wear eye protection)
 
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