# Venture 21 vs Oday - Opinions Please



## IslandExpress (Aug 11, 2006)

Hello all,

I am starting to look for a first(ish) boat for next season. I am 21 and sailed on two wooden schooners when I was younger. I also had two summers of sailing lessons on Precision 16's.

About two months ago I bought a 12.5' Island Express sailing dinghy that needed some fiberglass work and paint. After a few times going out I thought to myself, "I need a bigger boat."

So I have seen a few venture 21 and 19-22' Odays around in the $1000-2000 range that are "sailable" but maybe less than perfect cosmetically.

I would be interested to hear opinions on these boats or something comparable. I would also like to know what they are capable of. I was hoping that once I have some more experience, I might be able to sail out to some islands a few miles off shore (I live near Boston, MA) or do a simple overnight with two people.

Any input appreciated. Thanks in advance.

~Nathaniel


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## Irwin32 (Jul 1, 2001)

No comparison, in my opinion. Forget the Venture. O'Day made a reasonably good coastal cruiser and would be my choice hands down. Ventures are poorly constructed and I am told subject to hull/deck joint leaks.


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

*Venture 21 vs. O'Day*

I agree with NOT considering the Venture/MacGregor 21 in comparison to the O'Day boat of comparable size. You better know how to refurb a sailboat if it is only costing $1K or $2K to purchase. If it seems too good to be true; 
it probably IS ! Do you anticipate trailering it or not? Better investigate the size 
and cost of a good trailer. 
Good luck


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## catamount (Sep 8, 2002)

Maybe hard to find in the Boston area, but a San Juan 21 would be worth looking for; see mine here: http://members.acadia.net/catamount/Quasar/

On the off chance you might possibly contemplate stepping up in size, consider a Paceship PY23 (particularly an earlier model made in Nova Scotia before they were bought up by AMF).

Regards,


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## camaraderie (May 22, 2002)

Ditto the o'day over the venture. 
See if there are any Catalina 22's for sale around you as well. This is a CURRENT mfr. with a class group and probably more boats than any other made in this size. Should be able to find one CLOSE in price to an O'day of a similar age/condition.


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## IslandExpress (Aug 11, 2006)

Thanks for all the advice. So I guess the Oday is a better bet. just as an example of what I was seeing between 1000-2000 check out this Mcgregor:

http://boston.craigslist.org/sob/boa/193549181.html

I can work with wood/metal/fiberglass pretty well. I have built a couple row boats and a cedar strip under glass canoe. I am just trying to strike a balance between "ready to go" and free empty shell where I can get out on the water for as cheap as possible. I found a ~1975 22' Oday that is basically a soild hull, standing rigging and decent sails for $1000 but it needs paint, interior and running rigging.

The catalina looks ideal but I haven't seen any that cheap yet. Definitely will keep a look-out. My plan would be to keep the boat in the water all season and only trailer to and from my backyard each year. I am wordering if I can get away with renting a trailer and borrowing a truck.

Anyways, if there are any more opinions out there I would be happy to hear them.

Happy sailing,

~Nathaniel


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Renting a trailer for a sailboat is generally a difficult thing to do. A sailboat trailer is often very specific to the particular model of sailboat, as there are things like keel supports and keel stops that have to be on a sailboat trailer, that aren't on a regular boat trailer. 

Catalina 22 sailboats, the MacGregor 26, and other boats in that size range are generally within the towing capacity of most full-size SUVs, if you estimate the trailer to weigh about 800-1200 lbs. 

IIRC, Catalina just came out with two new designs for their small sailboats—the 22 and 25, and they are no longer water-ballasted models.


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## 2ndimpression (Jul 5, 2006)

the Venture is a cheap made boat where the Odays will have some quality in them. You will most likely see that on the inside where they will have wood and carpet and the venture will have fiberglass. If your looking for a cheaper and bigger boat MacGregor made a 25 foot with a steel swing keel called the MacGregor 25S. There was 2 versions, one had water ballast (bad) with a center board and one had a real swing keel (good) made of steel that weighed like 600 pounds or something. Before we bought our Merit we picked up one of these boats cheap and outfitted it with bigger working winches for the jib and some better tracks. The micky mouse winches that you removed work great as halyard winches if you decide to run halyards back to the cockpit. Get rid of the heavy 10 HP Honda it should come with and put a nice lite 5 HP 2 stroke on and a few decent sails and that boat will move and it's got some room below with a pop top coach roof. We sailed ours for 2 years and were very pleased on how it handled. I think it had a PHRF of 240. It prolly is gona cost more than 1k to 2k but it is another idea for a cheaper boat. The design of the boat was good but the construction of the boat is light.


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## CharlieCobra (May 23, 2006)

All you foks dissing the V-21, shame on ya. Have ya sailed one or are ya spouting secondhand knowledge? I have a '76 V-21 that I bought for a grand. Faded? yes, poor construction? no. I've had her in moderate (18-25) winds with no reef and all up heeling at 20 and planing on the wave tops. I've had her over so far on a wild beam reach that the inclinometer was stuck at 60* for 10 minutes with no issue and the only reason I let her up was 'cause I ran outta room. She's banged hard off the dock without injury (the dock fared worse) and with a 400# steel swing keel, she's fairly decent in a blow. Mind you, she needed some TLC but she's a damned good little boat that routinely runs away from even bigger boats when the wind is up. So, unless you've owned one, don't go by what ya heard on any particular boat.


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## dsss (Mar 21, 2011)

*thank you charlycobra*

I started out with a 14 foot sunfish no lessons fast boat i then began to look for a pocket cruser i looked at all oday catalina tanzer lots and loved them all then you think money then i found a 20 foot cygnus i started to redo the boat then my brother saw me stressed out and dreaming to mutch and bought my wife and i a 21 foot venture for a wedding gift 1500 came with a trailer and 2. hp second time out i jived and ran the lines aft i can sail her my self the swing keel lets me get in to 3 feet of water to walk around and have fun iv never looked back what you want for a boat and how mutch coin you have at the time thats the boat your going to love


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## LandLocked66c (Dec 5, 2009)

Great Scott! 2006


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## Goblinfog (Jan 14, 2011)

With my Venture 222, I would smoke an Oday 22 in the club. He never beat me, Poor guy just couldn't stand it. I also beat Stilleto 27 on occasion. corrected time


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## bluekimel (Aug 4, 2012)

I would like to dispel the myth about the poor quality of the Venture 21 sailboat. I have a 1966 MacGregor Venture 21 on a trailer for the last 15 years and have sailed it through most anything you get in on shore sailing. It takes chop, swell, heal, and high wind without issue. The quality of the boat is impecable. No blistering, no weakness, and superior strength in the bow keel region and cabin top. The boat is indistructable. I decided to teach myself how to sail on it and did so doing everything you can think of wrong. I've become a very confident sailor with this boat and love it more and more every time I sail it. I've worked on a 137 foot wooden tall ship the Bill of Rights out of Oxnard, and sailed the nicer mid sized Catalina 32 and 36's, Coronado 27's, Benetau 30's, and Hunter 36's. I love my boat so much that I'd rather sail my own boat than any of those. The only draw back is the time that it takes to set up the boat for sail. But with a trailer sailer you'll have to suffice that is what saves you the hundred dollars plus a month on slip fee's. I have done all the repairs on my boat myself and know the quality of the glass construction of my Venture intimately. It's a solid boat that will sail you where ever you want to go. You're on a small boat you'll get wet. If you don't want to get we don't go near the water. Have fun and make an educated choice but don't over look the Venture 21 of any year especially the older ones. They're tanks in construction and will take anything you can dish out! 

Sincerely 
Bluekimel


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## tohbi (Mar 18, 2015)

just ran across this old message but it's a continuing question: how good are macgregor products?

i own the 39th boat roger macgregor made, a venture 21. it's a light boat, 800 lbs with 400 lbs of lead ballast for a total of 1200 lbs. unlike some boats, it's entirely hand laid fiberglass. some of the heaver boats people brag about are made with chopper guns. yes, they are heavier but not stronger than a hand laid hull.

in an effort to keep the price down, macgregor didn't use expensive hardware. owners often upgrade some of their hardware. the V21 sails a bit wet but very well, pointing higher than most. her light weight makes her easily handled. her deep swing keel makes her, although initially tender, stable and shoal draft at the same time. she's fast and a beautiful sailor.

perhaps most of all, used ones can be had for low prices, good deals for a first boat.


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## Donna_F (Nov 7, 2005)

I started sailing on a Venture 22. It was a great boat to learn on. I had no structural issues. When we moved up we gave it away and as far as I know it's still sailing. 

It's a good boat for how and where it was built to sail and beyond that, it depends on how it was maintained. I have no idea about the quality of the later boats.


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## Kirby Hopper (Jan 24, 2016)

I was looking for a San Juan 21 but they were all on the Sound (Puget) 4 hours away so picked up a local Venture 21 for $2000, a lot less than a comparable SJ 21. Interestingly it has the same handicap as an SJ 21 but when I tried to race a bunch I discovered my rigging didn't allow me to point 45 degrees to the wind, more like 50 or 55 degrees, unless were to rig her with a traveler to pull the boom to the center of the boat. I don't know if all of them are rigged like this but it was frustrating to say the least. It also did not have a downhaul, outhaul, or boom vang so flattening the main could not be done. Consequently it became unwieldy in a stiff breeze. The fore/aft balance of the sails also made it want to head upwind when healed over and drag the rudder through the water slowing it down. Other than the rigging problems I think it has an outstanding hull shape for racing. Some of the models had a heavier, longer keel which gave it a better righting moment but not mine. Also, the holes for the bolt to secure the swinging keel when down tended to leak into the cabin even with good rubber gaskets. Yeah, cheap boat, but then what can you expect for one or two grand?


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## sailordanny (Sep 27, 2015)

Started with a Venture 21, good boat. I sailed in some tough spring storms in Georgia and the boat handled it better than skipper and crew. I recommend it. I sailed it three years from a trailer on Lake Lanier, no problems. I have thought of acquiring one again as an inexpensive day sailor. MacGregors are frequently dissed by people who have not sailed them. This helps you as it holds the price down. Listen to the owners. I had to go through this when I acquired my Mac 70, the web sites with MacGregor owners speaking recommended them.
What counts is a boat and building experience. To me the lines of the Venture are slimmer and faster than the O Day.

My wife and I and child over nighted on it. No anchor just pulled up on the beach. Any boat that has you sailing will be fantastic, each has it pluses and negatives.


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