Buying used boats can be a gamble if you don’t know what to look for. The good thing about buying an old Rhodes is that they’re practically indestructible and just about anything can be fixed. Use this list as a guide next time you look at a used boat. None of these problems are deal breakers, but can be useful as bargaining chips.

1. Soft Ribs
2. Bottom Condition
3. Keel
4. Structural Stability Around The Chain Plates
5. Rub Rail
6. Dryness In The Tanks
7. Rudder & Tiller
8. Mast, Boom & Spinnaker Pole
9. Race Readiness
10. Trailer

Tuning Guide

The Mast
Sail Trim
Heavy Air Techniques
Other Helpful Hints

These guidelines have been compiled based on years of experience and experimentation and may not necessarily work for all boats in all situations.

Thanks to Norm Cressy for his assistance compiling these guidelines!

Top 10 Things To Look For When Buying an Old O'Day

1. Soft Ribs - All O’Days eventually need new ribs, and if the boat you’re looking at hasn’t had a rib job, it probably needs one or will in the near future. If the floor boards are out of the boat, visually inspect the ribs for softness and flexibility. If the boards are still in, try pushing or stepping on them or the mast step timber. If the ribs are soft, there will be play. Other indicators include a crack along the keel flange where the keel meets the bottom of the boat, or an indentation or depression in the bottom where the boat is resting on the cradle.

2. Bottom Condition - If the boat has been raced recently, chances are that the bottom is in pretty good shape, meaning that it’s fair and smooth. Old O’Days tend to have a void aft of the keel, so the absence of one is a pretty good indicator that a previous owner faired the bottom. The presence of gentle athwartship ripples or depressions is also common, and can suggest the presence of soft ribs with over-tightened keel bolts, or possibly that a previous owner replaced the ribs one-at-a-time with the keel still attached. Don’t worry about these, as half of the boats you’ll race against have the same problem. If the boat hasn’t been raced or has been sitting in a back yard, there’s a good chance it will have a rough skin of multiple coats of bottom paints, all of which will have to be stripped prior to racing.

38. Keel - As with the bottom, if the boat has been raced recently, the keel should be in pretty good shape. Ideally, you’d like it fair and smooth from the bulb to the flange, little or no rust, centered, hanging plum, and aiming forward - but don’t count on it. Don’t be surprised to find rust (all Rhodes’ keels rust), pock marks of erosion, and cracks along the keel flange. It also shouldn’t surprise you to find bizarre asymmetries in the keel’s orientation to the rest of the boat, particularly around the trailing edge relative to the skeg. On the one hand, don’t worry about it, it’s common. On the other, there may be a keel job in your future. One other thing - if you plan to dry sail, look for a plate and lifting ring straddling the aft-most keel bolts. If there is none, or if the existing one needs to be replaced, you’ll have to install one, which means loosening those bolts (often easier said than done as the entire bolt turns) and, in turn, almost certainly causing a crack in the fairing compound around the keel flange.

4. Structural Stability Around The Chain Plates - Check all five chain plates (including back stay) for looseness, and don’t be surprised if you find some. It’s not uncommon in older boats. A lot of O’Day owners fix this by through-bolting them with stainless bolts.

5. Rub Rail - The rub rail covers the seam where the deck is glassed to the hull. Ideally, you’d like the rail firmly attached and stiff. Check for looseness by trying to wiggle it. If it’s loose, look underneath. It could be either a weakening in the joint between the deck and the hull, or possibly the rail detaching from the joint. If it’s a weakness in the joint, and depending on the extent of it, you might be able to fix it in an afternoon with a little epoxy. If the rail is detaching, you’ll probably need some professional assistance, as typically, the entire rail needs to come off and glued back on. Don’t worry about hairline cracking around the rub rail. It’s most likely cosmetic crazing in the gelcoat.

6. Dryness In The Tanks - The O’Day has three flotation tanks; one under each seat and the third forward. Each of these tanks is filled with Styrofoam strips for flotation, which due to the drainage plugs located in the bilge, are fairly water-logged and heavy. While not uncommon, you’ll want to inspect the tanks, and if they are indeed wet, you should plan on replacing the foam with a closed cell foam which won’t absorb moisture (Home Depot - $3.50 a sheet). If the tanks don’t have access ports, add that to the list. Additionally, some people glass over the small drain holes, which are no longer necessary after you’ve cut access ports.

7. Rudder & Tiller - There are three things to look for in the steering system. The first and most important is the rudder itself. You’ll want to inspect it for warps in the shape, for weight and for the condition of the surface. Racing rudders are relatively light-weight and have a smooth, wet-sanded surface. If the rudder doesn’t conform to that description, buy the boat assuming that you’ll eventually need to invest in a rudder. Also important is the fit between the pintels and gudgeons. The goal is tightness and minimal play in the steering system. If the pintels are loose in the gudgeons, you’ll need to replace those too. Finally, attach the tiller to the rudder and check for play. Again, the goal is tightness.

8. Mast, Boom & Spinnaker Pole - If you’re looking at an old O’Day, chances are that mast is tapered and has jumper struts, which is fine. Look for metal fatigue around the intermediate sheave box where the jib halyard comes out. You may also want to check whether the halyards are rope or wire, that the sheaves turn easily and that the rigging is presentable and includes functioning turnbuckles. You may also want to confirm that there is a bale or track on the mast for the spinnaker pole. None of this is critical as you can replace sheaves and halyards and attach a bale. The boom should have an internal purchase system for the outhaul, two independently attached mainsheet blocks and be rigged for a boom vang. Look for metal fatigue around the boom vang as that’s where booms typically break. Don’t worry too much about the condition of the pole as they are inexpensive to replace.

9. Race Readiness - Old O’Days come in a variety of states, from pure cruising to race-ready circa 1960, to race-ready by today’s standards. No matter how the boat is rigged, you’ll end up changing it to suit your preference. Ideally, you’d like to see a traveller, adjustable back stay, adjustable jib tracks, jib halyard fine-tune adjustment rigging and twing lines. Additionally, you’d like all of the associated lines led in a logical and uncluttered way. Unless the boat has been raced recently, it will most likely have none or very little of the above. Don’t under-estimate the cost of adding hardware; it isn’t cheap. On the other hand, you’ll enjoy getting to know the folks at Marine Exchange.

10. Trailer - A trailer is a trailer, right? Well, not always. Here’s what to look for. Does the trailer have a cradle or poppets? Poppets are jack stands welded to the trailer, and can be useful if you work on the bottom. Is the trailer wired so that the lights work? Are the tires bald? Is the trailer rusted? Would you be willing to drag a boat to Chicago on it?

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Tuning Guide

The Mast

Before Stepping the Mast

1. Clean and lubricate turn-buckles.
2. Check your mast step location fore and aft with a tape measure; run the tape from the intersection of the center of the transom and the deck to the aft edge of the mast step. This dimension should be 12 feet, 6 inches.
3. Measure forestay so that it measures pin to pin 19 feet, 8 inches.

Tuning the Mast

1. Center mast with upper shrouds, check it by measuring to port and starboard chainplate with a tape measure.
2. Tension uppers and lowers for existing wind conditions. We use a Loos Tension Gauge, Model A, for consistent settings.
3. Tension uppers to 150 lbs. Tension lowers equally to 80 lbs. Sighting up aft face of the mast to check for straightness. It is essential that the mast is straight.

Shroud Tension

Wind Speed (Knots)	0-4	4-8	9-14	15+
Lowers	80	80	110	110
Uppers	110	110	150	200

An increase in overall rig tension results in greater headstay tension.

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Sail Trim

It is important to mark all your shrouds, sheets, tracks, outhaul, etc. Keep records of your set-ups, the conditions you sail in and how your speed is. It is essential to be able to duplicate settings from race to race and to know exactly how the boat was set up when you were going fast. Check to make sure the soft end of the battens are inserted first.

Mainsail

1. Trim the mainsheet hard enough to make the top batten parallel to the boom. Once the boat has accelerated and you want to point higher, trim harder and cock the top batten slightly to weather. If the mainsheet is too tight (evidenced by top batten hooking way to weather) you will stall the main and slow down.
2. Set the traveler car up to the inner edge of the windward seat so that the boom is on or just below center line. As the breeze increases, gradually drop the traveler to de-power the main.
3. Use the outhaul for balance. Adjusting the outhaul changes the depth of the lower 1/3 of the main which affects helm, speed and pointing.

Outhaul Tension

Wind Speed (Knots)	0 - 5	6 - 10	11 - 14	15 +
Amount of Tension	eased 1 1/2"	eased 1"	eased 1/2"	maximum

Cunningham

Used to position draft in the main. Your goal should be to keep the maximum draft point 50% back in the sail. We use no cunningham up to 10 knots, enough to remove most of the wrinkles 11-15 knots and progressively tighter in higher winds to remove all wrinkles.

Boom Vang

Upwind the vang is lose in most conditions, off the wind, however, we apply the vang just enough to make the top batten parallel to the boom. Be careful! Rhodes 19 booms are not that strong, so in a breeze, watch how much the boom is bending.

1. Luff tension is one of the most critical parts of the boat. In 0-10 knots we sail with medium wrinkles in the luff, 11+ set luff progressively smoother. If you feel you are not getting enough power in chop, try easing halyard tension.
2. Jib Leads — In every upwind breeze condition, the jib lead should be positioned so that the jib luff breaks evenly when you luff up slowly into the wind. Moving the lead forward will make the jib break quicker down low while moving the lead aft makes the luff break quicker up top.
3. Telltales — Keep both windward and leeward yarns streaming aft

Pulling on the backstay has two effects:

1. First, as the mast bends, the upper half of the main flattens and the leech opens up - which relieves helm and heeling
2. Second, it makes the forestay tighter which flattens the entry of the jib and eases its leech, thus increasing pointed ability and reducing heeling. Whenever adjusting the backstay, you should also adjust the mainsheet.

Settings

Wind Speed (Knots)	0 - 6	7 -10	11-15	16-18	19+
Tension	none	1/4	1/2	3/4	max

Heavy Air Techniques (above 18 knots of wind)

• Sheet mainsheet and jib hard
• When the breeze gets above 20knots, the traveler should be dropped to leeward full-time while playing the mainsheet
• Outhaul should be maxed out and the vang should be on hard
• Cunningham should also be on hard
• Backstay between 1/2 and maximum playing it in the waves and puffs to twist off the mainsail
• If you have some chop, it is all right to have some wrinkles in the luff of the jib. However, you'll probably need to tighten the jib luff and move jib leads aft. If you get to the point where you have heavy weather helm and you are doing all of the above, move the jib lead even further aft and ease the jib sheet to put some twist in the upper third of the sail and apply more backstay.
• If still overpowered, then feather the boat through bad waves.

The objective in 18+ knots of wind: keep the boat flat and punching through waves.

1. Set the top batten parallel to the boom
2. Ease Cunningham, Outhaul and Backstay
3. Raise Spinnaker Pole until Spinnaker Clews are level
4. Trim the Spinnaker so there is 6 - 12" of curl in the luff
5. Keep the Pole perpendicular to the apparent wind
6. While reaching, keep your speed up by heading higher in the light spots or choppy water. Head off only in the puffs and don't sail unnecessarily high early in the leg.
7. On the runs, jibe in the windshifts to stay on the headed tack

1. When in doubt, let it out
2. Shim mast tightly where it goes through the deck
3. Keep keel, rudder and bottom in the best shape possible
4. Get a good start
5. Do not overstand marks or sail in another boats bad air

NOTE: These are guidelines, not gospel. What is fast for your boat may vary slightly. Remember this is only a game we are playing. Have fun and good sailing!