Sometimes things just work out for the best. Although our first O’day was for sale for quite some time it really never generated the kind of interest that would make me happy to sell her. I really wanted her to go to the kind of home that would care for the classic that she is. She has that home now.

The Fullers, in Milwaukee, did so much to help us to get ready for this trip. They humbly deny this but we would never had made it without their help. I wanted to do something special for them so I decided the first Marylee should go to their girls, Mackenzie, Hailey and Sadie.

Happy sailing girls!

1972 O’day 23 Pop-top

GENERAL INFORMATION
The O’day 23 full cabin pop-tops were built for three years, 1970-73. Approximately 280 were built. The pop-top operates much like a pop up camper. Crank the winch in the forward berth and the top lifts to give 6’ 4” of headroom. With the top down, headroom is 4’ 7”. Attach the weather curtains and the interior can be screened or zippered closed to provide warm dry protection from the rain. The boat sails very well. It has a balanced helm and feels like a much larger boat. This is perhaps due to a higher freeboard than similar and smaller boats. We have sailed it in the Apostle Islands of Lake Superior as well as our local inland lakes.

Overall length is 23’, beam is 7’ 11”, and sail area 245 square feet. Draft is 2’ with centerboard up and 5’ 5” with board down. The boat weighs approximately 3,100 pounds. It has a steel keel attached with stainless steel keel bolts to a recess in the hull.

The cockpit is 6’ long with one enormous locker and one smaller one intended for the outboard fuel tank. Inside, there is a berth forward for two, a four-seat dinette with adjustable table to make a salon berth for two more. The quarter berth has been converted to storage and utility space. The galley has a sink, space for a propane or alcohol stove, and an icebox. The cushions are original. There is generous storage below all the berths and salon seats.

We are the third owner. The boat was originally purchased in Dallas, Texas in 1972 for $6,000. It was moved to Chicago and then back to San Antonio, Texas. It sat in the owner’s driveway for several years before a neighbor bought it. The new owner stored all the sails, cushions and rigging inside for the next seventeen years and the boat did not see water until I purchased her in 2003.

RENOVATION 2003-2004
After sailing for the first season in 2003 it was determined that the boat was sound and handled very well. It was well balanced and required little effort even in a stiff wind. The gel coat was very dull and could not be brought back. There were numerous hairline cracks on deck and the hardware was very outdated. It was time to bring this boat back to life.

Finishes –
• Bottom was sanded and given three coats of Micron CSC ablative bottom paint.
• Hull and boot stripe were sanded, primed and painted with Awlgrip polyurethane.
• Deck cracks were filled and sanded. Areas of delamination were drilled and epoxied. Non-skid was sanded, filled with epoxy and repainted with Awlgrip and nonskid particles. Entire deck was repainted with Awlgrip polyurethane. There was no wet or rotted core in the decks.
• Areas of wet core and rotted balsa core in the cabin top were removed and replaced with Divinycell closed foam core and epoxied in place. Additional core was installed in cabin sides to facilitate installation of new ports.
• Cabin top and sides lined with gray indoor-outdoor carpet.

Hardware and Trim–
• All old hardware was removed. New hardware was installed and sealed by over drilling the size of all holes, removing exposed core and filling with epoxy. New holes then were drilled and hardware was installed in a bed of polysulfide.
• Four new cleats installed, 2 forward and 2 aft.
• Chainplates rebedded.
• Stemhead fitting rebedded.
• Three Garhauer rope clutches installed to handle halyards. A double clutch to starboard for main sail and spinnaker and a single to port for the jib.
• Two Harken cam clutches for topping lift and reefing line (reefing line not yet installed).
• New deck organizers and turning blocks (Viadana) for lines led aft.

• Harken swivel cam cleat for mainsheet.
• Original Marinium winches were rebuilt.
• Six new Vetus aluminum opening ports with screens installed in newly created cabin sides in place of existing and badly leaking ports.
• All teak trim removed, refinished with Cetol and rebedded with polysulfide.
• New Tops in Quality stainless steel bow pulpit and stern rail added along with two lifeline stanchions each side. All deck penetrations made through solid epoxy and bedded in polysulfide.

Rigging-
• Standing rigging is all-original with the exception of the forestay, which was replaced in 2003.
• Main and jib halyards replaced with Sta-set X low stretch line.
• Topping lift, jib sheets and mainsheet replaced with Sta-set.
• Garhauer boom vang installed.
• Masthead fitting completely rebuilt with new sheaves with oiled bronze bushings.

Sails-
• Both the main and the jib are original. Since they were stored indoors for more than 17 years they are still in pretty good condition.
• The hanked on jib is 100%.
• The main was cleaned and processed by Sailcare in the winter of 2003. Batten pockets were repaired and new insignias sewn on.
• A symmetrical spinnaker was purchased used in the winter of 2004. A new spinnaker pole is included.

Electrical-
• There was no electrical system present when the boat was manufactured and at my time of purchase.
• Running lights were installed.
• Steaming light was installed on the mast.
• A Davis LED anchor light with photocell was installed at the masthead.
• An electrical panel was fabricated of aluminum with teak trim to house switches with indicator lights, 12-volt plug receptacles, ammeter and voltmeter.
• Four position battery switch installed.
• Custom battery box fabricated and 2-6 volt golf cart batteries installed for an amp hour capacity of approximately 220.
• Two 10-watt halogen cabin lights with switches installed in a custom fabricated cabin beam.
• A 600-watt inverter is installed.
• A new Icom VHF radio was installed with antenna.

Plumbing-
• The existing ice box and sink drain were connected to a thru hull that was mounted too high to function. The plumbing and thru hull were removed and the hole was epoxied over and sanded smooth.
• A new thru hull with seacock was installed.
• Plumbing hoses have not been replaced at this time.
• A new portable toilet was installed.

Auxiliary Power-
• The original 8 horsepower Chrysler outboard is included. It is very tired but will run well from time to time. It has no charging capability. The Honda outboard shown in the picture is not available.

Trailer-
• A custom tandem axle trailer made for this boat is included. Currently the tilt mechanism is broken. Inertia brakes have been rebuilt (all four wheels) and a new inertia receiver was added in 2003. The trailer acts more as a cradle than anything else. Launching is very easy while loading can be tricky.

Work to Done-
• Teak trim to be added around cabin top, interior
• New interior non structural bulkheads
• Insulate ice box
• Add drain line for sink and ice box
• Water tank

Over $10,000 invested and countless hours of labor was spent to bring this classic back to a better than new condition.

The words ever sailor wants to hear … “honey, I think we need a bigger boat”.

As we drove south from Bayfield, Wisconsin, the memories of the Apostle Islands were still vivid in our minds. Silently we each reflected on our vacation, sailing the islands in our O’day 23, fresh from it’s winter renovation. We had enjoyed the winds and waters of the Caribbean of the North, but things were just a little cramped on board especially when we had guests. I think Mary had bumped her head once too many times, which must have been the root cause for the bigger boat comment. I, of course, took it as an open invitation to start looking.

We talked and planned and looked. With retirement looming we started to think, “is this something we want to do fulltime?” Do we want to cruise? Blue water or coastal, weekends or live aboard? So many questions but as we would learn “too many boats!”

We looked at Ericssons, Pearsons, Hunters, Catalinas and Beneteaus. I wanted traditional with the lines, full keels and lots of teak. Mary knew what she DID NOT want! She didn’t want me to start on another project. We looked at a beautiful Tashiba 36 but we were too slow with the checkbook. We looked at a Gulfstar that looked great until you saw it in person … gross! We had lined up some Tayanas to look at along with some O’days. Mary liked the lines of the O’day 40 and ironically I had saved a website of a 40 that I often admired. Off we went on our next boat trip.

“FINS” sat on stands overlooking the ocean in Marathon, Florida. We could only surmise, as the owner was pretty tight lipped, that the boat had been renovated for cruising, an initial trip or two was taken and the family was not thrilled. A lot had been done to the boat and it appeared to be sound.

A common scenario for O’day 40 owners during that initial visit is for the woman involved to go below and fall in love with the interior. Well it happened again. I’m looking at mechanicals and such and up pops a grinning head from the cabin. “I love it, let’s buy it!” The broker could not suppress the smile.

We made an offer and we received word, over margaritas at the Clevelander on South Beach, that the owner had reluctantly accepted it. After the shock wore off we stared at each other, “Holy $%#@ now what have we done?” We could hardly sleep.

The purpose of my project was to obtain as much sail control as possible and making that control accessible from the cockpit. For other owners of pop-tops it is important to note that these improvements put a lot of strain on the cabin roof. I will be reinforcing the latch areas as they already show some signs of strain.

In this picture the main (starboard) and jib (port) halyards run to halyard lifts (Garhauer) then to deck organizers (Viadana from Sailcare) and on to Garhauer rope clutches. The jib halyard runs to a Viadana single cheek block. I have two clutches to starboard (there’s more room). One clutch is for the main halyard and the other is for the reefing line (not installed yet). The two cam cleats with fairleads (Harken) next to the companionway hatch are for the topping lift and cunningham. I have not installed the two turning blocks for these (at the mast) but they are small Viadana blocks.

I did not want to mount the clutches too far forward with their own winches. I haven’t needed to winch the halyards yet but if I do I may fabricate a roller as the halyards rub the edge of the cabin roof when using the winch.

I also replaced the mainsheet blocks and cleats. I used Garhauer 25 series blocks (in cool grey tone) and a Harken swivel base with cam cleat. It is a million times better than the original setup.

Writing the check was the easy part. Several days of trailer repairs, lights, tires and wiring, and I was ready to pull my boat home. San Antonio is twelve hundred some odd miles south of Madison, Wisconsin and it would take several days to get her home. A slow leak in one of the tires made for some interesting towing but I changed to the spare and that part was over. The mast kept trying to find new positions although it was (so I thought) tied down securely. With about a hundred miles to go the wind picked up to where I should tuck in my first reef but I was driving not sailing! I stopped to tie down the mast once again and finally made it home.

The gelcoat was buffed but never shined again. The bottom was sanded and painted. The trailer was given brakes. We were ready to sail.

Two friends and I sailed across Lake Mendota on the maiden voyage. The 23 is very stable and tracks nicely with minimal rudder. We met her namesake at the Wisconsin Union for, what else? Brats and beer! Here she sits at the dock waiting for her crew to finish lunch.

We sailed several times a week for the rest of that season. Getting the feel of the boat and sorting through future projects. Love came easily and the list of improvements grew.

I had sailed off and on as a kid with no real training. My first sail was out into the Gulf of Mexico from Sarasota, Florida. I picked up a Sunfish from the motel and convinced the manager that I knew what I was doing. I was a teenager so of course I knew everything.

I set sail and pointed out to sea. As the breeze was behind me I soon found myself a very happy speck on the horizon. Figuring that I did not need to sail to Texas on a Sunfish I turned around only to find myself pointing directly into the wind. Hmmm, what now? I learned to tack real soon thereafter. An hour or so later I was back on shore and knew that I had to do this more often.

Years passed and the pressures of family and finances kept the dream in the background. As the kids grew up I had several opportunities to take one of my sons to Sea Base in Islamorada, Florida. This is part of the High Adventure program of the Boy Scouts of America. We sailed twice in the Coral Reef Sailing program, once in August and again in December. I knew then that someday, somewhere I would have a boat and sail the seas.

A chance encounter with an old friend offered up the chance to sail across Lake Michigan in the Queen’s Cup race between Milwaukee and Muskegon. Aboard the Hunter 376, we had plenty of time for talk. I was asked if I had ever considered owning a boat. I responded, sure, I had always dreamt of these things but never could I afford it. Well it wasn’t much after returning to Milwaukee that I received an email. There was an O’day 23 in San Antonio, Texas. It was very reasonably priced and since I was going down there anyway to do some work, why not check it out. Well I did and I bought it on the spot.

The first Marylee.

The rest is history. The refit and adventures of this boat are chronicled elsewhere as is the subsequent purchase, refit and adventures of the O’day 40.