Pattern for flooring available?

Nov 25, 2013
14
Oday Daysailer I Lakeville, NY
Greetings all!
I am trying to gather resources and information so I can get working on our DS1, which is in need of much TLC and parts. I'm hoping to start once this cold snap breaks!
The first issue I'm reaching out to the world is in regards to woodwork. The boat was missing it's floorboards and the cockpit trim was stripped off before I purchased it, otherwise I'd have templates to go by.
Visiting my local lumber yard, I was shown some old, leftover mahogany flooring (3" x 3/4", tongue & groove) that will be perfect for the trim, @ $1/ft. There's not enough to do much with a house, but plenty for my needs.
My question is two-fold:
1) I've see photos of the removable flooring from a daysailer, but I'd love to have a pattern for the original design. Are there any resources available for that, or should I ask the next seller of a DS1 in my area to let me come take measurements/photos/drawings?
2) I'm under the impression that the original floors were teak. Is mahogany a reasonable substitute for this application (well sealed and stainless fasteners, etc.) or should I just drop the cash for a marine grade plywood sheet? (~$100 for a 3/4" 4x8 sheet) If the flooring wasn't so cheap, I wouldn't even consider stick-building the floors... Unless I do some serious fiberglass work and update the hardware, this will never be an attractive craft.

Thoughts and comments?
 
Jun 2, 2004
1,941
Oday Day Sailer Wareham, MA
The floorboards on the DS I were mahogany as standard and teak was optional. Well, sealed and varnished, mahogany is fine and in fact whole boats were built using quality mahogany as planking, as well as many houses lately have had decks and porches that are mahogany planked.

Oroginal floorboards were around 1/2" thick, for patterns, as well as patterns for the cockpit coamings, talking to another DS I owner that has them will be best. I'll include a photo below of their basic shape. My boat is a DS II so I don't have floorboards.
I've added a few other pictures, including the page from the 1968 Brochure and price list. I added a zoom-in of the text after seeing the page was hard to read.
 

Attachments

Nov 9, 2012
2,500
Oday 192 Lake Nockamixon
Making floorboards from scratch would be a PITA, but could be done using cardboard to create a template. Sure, it would be easier to trace someone else's floorboards...
 
Nov 25, 2013
14
Oday Daysailer I Lakeville, NY
Sunbird-
Thanks for the images- I thought I had found every picture for the DS1 available... obviously not! It sounds like my material source will work just fine for the project. I will be stalking Craigslist for the next complete DS1 for sale- I'll need to pattern the cockpit trim as well.

Brian-
Yes, I've done the cardboard/tagboard pattern approach for things in the past- always easier to trim your pattern with a pair of scissors than start hacking away at an expensive chunk of material. I need to make a few customizations with the boards: I have an aftermarket mast and clearance for my bilge pump to consider.

I do appreciate the responses. I promise to document this daysailer rehab and share it with the community. I have quite a laundry list of repairs and replacements, from straightening the mast and adding a spinnaker halyard, to fabricating a roller furling stay, something like lazy jacks, and a decent vang.
The goal is to cruise and camp with family or solo.
 
Nov 9, 2012
2,500
Oday 192 Lake Nockamixon
Thoughts on spinnaker halyards

RocketDogs, just a thought, I am replacing my spin halyard cleat with a swiveling cam cleat similar to a Harken H291


(I'm actually using a Viadana equivalent from www.sailcare.com) This replaces a horn cleat on the mast mounted above the boom, which makes for a major PITA for asym takedowns while single handed. With the new cleat, I will easily be able to stand in the companionway, grab halyard, jerk up to let run free, and start stuffing into the cabin. I will then reload the turtle in the cabin (I launch from a turtle, and not while racing, so I don't have to worry about a quick relaunch.) Note that your halyard should be mounted no more than 6-12" above the upper hounds for fractional rig. I have no idea why a PO mounted mine at the mast head. Can't get a proper hoist and control the tack - considering the asym luff is cut to go only to the hounds as god intended… Also, asyms sail closer to the wind than symmetricals, and are thus known to have higher side loads on the mast.

I would like to replace my jib and main halyard cleats with these swiveling cams, but I have to decide what I'm going to do storing the extra coils of halyard once the sails are hoisted. I like to keep my halyards at the mast, not run aft. On a Daysailor, you'd keep halyards at the mast, too, I suspect.