O'Day Corner

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Comment by John on August 8, 2016 at 9:41am

On my 1984 Oday 30 there are teak spacers between my center deck cleats and the deck.  They are about 1.5" to 2" spacers that are rotting fairly badly.  I'm thinking I will have to reproduce them myself to replace them.  The problem I have is that I don't know what their original specifications were.  Does anyone have a picture of these?  Or can steer me in a direction for help.

Comment by Sterling Brown on October 31, 2015 at 8:01pm

Most marine hardware stores carry ss fasteners. That includes West. I know that Ace Hardware carries them here in NJ. But their ss may not be the highest grade.

Comment by John on October 31, 2015 at 5:48pm

Thanks for the advice guys.  I'll have to find someone who carries 6" stainless steel bolts.  Any ideas.  Local hardware stores are a bust.

Comment by LHOgden on October 31, 2015 at 1:58pm

I agree with Sterling.  To avoid the hardware problem you could use Life Caulk sealant.  Don't use 5200.  If you do you will have to destroy the rails to ever get them off again.

Comment by Sterling Brown on October 31, 2015 at 10:58am

John -- Do not use those bolts. They will rust. Use only stainless steel or bronze or silicon bronze. If the bolts are too long, you can cut them shorter with a hacksaw. Then you may have to clean the threads. But you probably have enough room up in there for a bolt that is longer than the original. Don't use standard carbon steel bolts or screws or nutsanywhere on your boat.

Comment by John on October 31, 2015 at 9:54am

Well I managed to replace the calking under my top side hand rails.  I used butyl tape and that presented me with an unexpected problem.  The butyl tape is a little thicker than the old silicone calk that was previously used so after reinstalling the rail, I found that some of the bolts were no longer long enough to install the nut.  On one I had to countersink the underside hole more so it would reach.  I stripped the threads on one of the bolts trying to get it back in, so I had to go to the hardware store to find a 6" long 5/16" bolt.  Not easy to find, but I discovered that they make long bolts for handing light fixtures through drywall. I didn't need the drywall spring nuts, but found 3/8" nuts that worked. They worked perfectly.  The other issue I ran into was the size of the bung plugs.  They were not the standard 3/8" or 1/2" plugs that are available at West Marine.  I'm going to Harbor Freight today to see if I can find a 7/16" plug cutter so I can make my own.  Sailing is such a learning experience!

Comment by LHOgden on October 4, 2015 at 8:08pm

Good luck !

Comment by John on October 4, 2015 at 5:50pm

Thanks Lynn.  The blocks do line up with the bung holes on the top side rails.  Looks like I'm going to have to just start taking it a part to see what I have.

John

Comment by LHOgden on October 4, 2015 at 2:44pm

Even though I owned an 1980 O'Day 30, I can't answer that question.  However, a builder that screws in hand rails on a 30 foot cruiser would be asking for liability claims.  I don't believe O'Day would have done that.  I don't recall the rubber blocks, but the nuts could be embedded there in.  Does the placement of the blocks line up with the bung holes on the top side rails?  They may be through bolted to each other.  Sorry I'm unable to supply a definitive answer and only a couple ideas.  If the rails aren't loose, you could consider calking around them, but that always seems to end up being an unattractive mess.  Someone needs to invent a quick curing, expanding sealant that has the viscosity of water that can be injected to follow the path of the water (if you can find the source) then expand and cure to solve leak problems.  Let me know the results.

Lynn

Comment by John on October 4, 2015 at 8:27am

Thanks Lynn,

My Oday is an '84 Oday 30.  It does have one or two white caps on the cabin overhead, but it also has an interior handrail that is mounted on black rubber blocks.  I removed a bung from one of the interior handrails and there seems to be a screw.  Is that screw just to mount the interior handrail to the rubber block?  Are the nuts for the through hull bolts in the rubber block?

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