question about hull strength

[David Bradford]

I have a question for the collective wisdom of the board. I'm looking at a 1979 O'Day 28, and I noticed that the hull is not perfectly fair all along it's length. About mid-ships (on the port side, but I could not see the starboard side) there is an area were the hull "dips in" a little. Actually, it could be an area that is slightly proud - maybe a bulkhead is behind it - and only makes the surrounding area appear to dip in. I would say we're talking about 1/4" out of fair over about a 1'1/2 - 2 foot area. So, does this indicate the hull is not thick enough, or at least stiff enough? Or, is this the sort of thing you see on a 20+ year old boat, and I should not infer anything one way or the other? Otherwise, the boat seems like it's in fine shape, other than a couple of spots where the deck is soft - but those are literally only 4 inches or so in diameter.

 

[David C. Hirtle]

I owned a 28' for over ten years. Initially I was "interested" in a slight depression amid-ships. This depression appeared more obvious when the mast was up and the shrouds tightened. I had a surveyor look at it once and his conclusion was the same as mine: the shrouds are molded into the hull and the hull does not have any linear support causing the hull to "dent." He was not concerned, there were no stress cracks, and therefore, I was not concerned. The boat served us well...even servived a trip down and back the ICW to Florida. If everything else is good...sail on!