Odin 820 - capsize?

[Eric_the_unready]

A friend of mine is interested in buying a water ballasted trailer sailor called the Odin 820 - http://www.witteymarine.com/

He is worried because he has heard a rumour about the stability of that model which said that at least one example in the UK has suffered a capsize.

Does any one know if this is true? If so how, where and when did they happen?

Eric

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[Chris_Robb]

The boat you are talking about is a compromise between a speed boat and sailing boat. ie perhaps a jack of all trades master of none.

Your friend needs to understand very clearly what he wants to do with the craft. If he is looking at exciting sailing in exciting conditions - perhaps he is looking at the wrong type of boat.

I think it should perhaps be looked upon as a fair weather toy - to enjoy the beach - some overnighting - but NOT for ambitious passage making - which some other trailer sailors would be more suited.

To answer the question on capsizing - I have no knowledge of actual happenings. However the nature of water ballasting means that in the transition (in bad weather) between being a speed boat to being a sailing boat can leave it with borderline stability, and this is probably when the accidents happen. If healed beyond a certain point without the water in - then over she goes. This is obviously exacerbated by the weight of the mast - and if any crew were sitting or standing by the mast putting up sails, making it even more unstable in its unballasted mode. One awkward wave may be enough to cause disaster.

Key then to choice of boats - is what do you want to do in it.

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[DepSol]

My Father in Law was looking at a MacGregor which has had reports of people capsizing one or two but I think that was because they werent used as specified.

His seems ok and is quite roomy inside. Havent been out in it yet so cant say much but as stated they are a comprimise between sail and power so they have to be ballasted and used as per the instructions or things could go wrong. Apart from that they seem ok to me.

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<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.soltron.co.uk>the website</A>

 

[BobA]

I agree with you, i have a 26X and there is plenty of room for 3/4 people, overnighting not a problem, we sail her around the essex/suffolk rivers,she is very stable as long as you remember to follow the instructions (ballast IN when sailing and OUT when motoring), just thought i would add my ha'penneth

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[Becky]

I remember reading about this. But the boat in question was a Macgreggor. The owner had tried to sail with only a bit of the water ballast on board, and this is a very unstable situation. As other responses have said, the boat is either a sailer, with water ballast OR a motor boat with weight as reduced as possible. If you use the Odin (or MacGreggor) as she was intended, then you can experience both worlds, albeit not to the max capacity of a dedicated speed boat or yacht. But enough to be good fun. Go for it!

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