O'Day 22 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the used O'Day 22 means taking the measure of a 1972–1983 design from C. Raymond Hunt & Associates and O'Day Corp., built in 3,159 units and replaced by the O'Day 222. She is a fiberglass monohull with a stub keel and centerboard, a transom-hung rudder, and a fractional rig after 1980. The boat works as a daysailer with incidental overnight use, and the known weaknesses are concentrated in the board, cockpit, and outboard details.
Layouts on the Used Market
The 22 sleeps four: a double vee berth forward and two straight settees with a drop-leaf table in the main cabin. The head sits just aft of the bow cabin on port, with the galley beside it and a hanging locker opposite on starboard. Practical Sailor's testers found the vee berths terrible and the settees narrow but adult-sleepable, the cabinetry flimsy, and the interior a bare "Clorox bottle" of fiberglass with teak-printed Formica. The cockpit, by contrast, is a 6-1/2-foot self-bailing space with opposing brace-able seats and a secure coaming, plus quarterberth locker room below.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
A short-handed setup appears as a less-common owner upgrade rather than a factory standard, and buyers should judge any such rigging on its own merits. The original boat used an outboard motor with a separate sealed remote gas-tank well, and carried two #10 Barient sheet winches inadequate beyond a working jib with no halyard winches as standard. A conventional marine toilet with through-hull discharge and a two-burner galley stove round out the fixed equipment; any spinnaker or fractional-rig sail additions are worth checking for condition.
What to Inspect
The centerboard on these boats is difficult to maintain, and on the keel-centerboard model the rudder hangs deeper than the keel, so check the board trunk, pivot, and rudder stock for wear or binding centerboard maintenance burden. The companionway sill is low, meaning the lower hatch board must be seated to stop water below in a knockdown — verify the board and sill sealing companionway flooding path. The hose to the outboard remote gas well can be pinched in use, so trace it for kinks and the sealed well for integrity pinched fuel hose. The outboard is not within easy reach of the helm, and the mainsheet cleat 16 inches up the backstay can interfere with motor control; exercise both at the tiller. Reader reports note gelcoat voids and consistent print-through in the laminate, so survey the topsides closely.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
These boats turn up in the United States, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and Germany. Before you commit, run this short list:
- Check the centerboard trunk and rudder for play.
- Confirm the lower hatch board seals the low companionway sill.
- Trace the outboard fuel hose for pinching at the sealed well.
- Test mainsheet clearance against outboard throttle access.
- Survey gelcoat for voids and print-through patterns.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the O'Day 22. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 5 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 25 | 2 | $2,900 | — |
| May 25 | 1 | $3,000 | +3.4% |
| Aug 25 | 1 | $4,500 | +50.0% |
| Sep 25 | 1 | $680 | -84.9% |
| May 26 | 2 | $2,681 | +294.3% |
Where they're listed
O'Day 22 listings appear across 3 countries. Germany has the most listings with 1 (33.3%), followed by United Kingdom and United States.
Country view
3 listings · 3 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | $5,245 | 1 | 0 | 33.3% |
| United Kingdom | $680 | 1 | 0 | 33.3% |
| United States | $4,500 | 1 | 0 | 33.3% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
4 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catalina 22 | 23.83' | $ 6,500 | 79 | 24 |
| Rhodes 22 Continental | 22' | $ 14,950 | 19 | 5 |
| Friendship 22 | 23.95' | $ 9,208 | 15 | 4 |
| Oday 22You are here | — | $ 2,590 | 4 | 0 |