April 2002 - montgomery_boats - mailman.xmission.com

Re: M_Boats: M17 Performance
by AirEvacLen＠aol.com 25 Apr '02

25 Apr '02

In a message dated 4/23/02 7:45:43 PM US Mountain Standard Time, chonshell(a)ia4u.net writes: > Is the M17 more prone to weather, or lee helm, if either? > Neither...........If your boat is rigged correctly it should have slight weather helm when sailing on the wind..........How much depends on wind velocity and which headsail/mainsail combination you are using........For the sake of argument,. lets say close hauled, full main and 125 Genoa.........in 15 kts of wind. The tiller should be off center to weather without slowing the boat down, and the boat should round up without launching you overboard if you let go............The books say 5 degrees of weather helm is about right,,,,,,,but I've always had a difficult time holding a protractor and a beer at the same time,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,LOL. Lenny M-23 003 Sea Horse

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Mast-Step
by Honshells 25 Apr '02

25 Apr '02

Has anyone rebed their M17's (perhaps the M15's is the same) mast-step? Was it difficult to remove? What sealant did you use? Can anyone recommend any other mast-step/compression-post maintenance, other than rebedding the step for water-tightness? Thanks!

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Re: M_Boats: M17 Performance
by Saltm17＠aol.com 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Howard, I am having trouble understanding what you changed at the mast head. My masthead has a pin located at the very front, and the forestay attaches to it. There is also a pully which is used for the jib halyard. I do have the spinnaker halyard coming out of a "hole" in the mast a few inches down from the headstay (wich always seemed wrong) to me. What I don't see is where you would put the forestay if you switched it with the spinnaker halyard. Maybe I'm reading it wrong, but I just can't make sense out of it. John Edwards Miss T M17 # 372

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Re: M_Boats: (Leaking CB housing)
by s.mcclellan＠attbi.com 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Stan, I appreciate your input. I am leaking through the seam between the inner cb trunk slot wall and the cockpit sole drain. Which sounds like that's where you were leaking too. I am not sure that Connie's problem was very different, unless he was actually leaking through a hole in the slot wall itself, rather than the seam. This seems less likely, especially given Jerry M's testimony that the seam was a chronic trouble spot in the early M15s. (Connie--I sent an earlier message asking for your clarification here.) Stan, could you please clarify -- where did you apply the layers of fiberglass/epoxy -- to the outside of the trunk liner (inside the cabin under the cockpit)? Or was it on the inside of the centerboard slot (from underneath the boat)? -- Steve McClellan M15 #152 Chicago Area

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Re: M_Boats: (no subject)
by Conbert H Benneck 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Hi Steve, I presume that you have located your leak and that it is at the aft end of the centerboard trunk / cockpit molding joint, which is where I found my leak to be. I localized the leak by pressurizing the cabin of the boat using my shop vac. I made styrofoam hatch boards and sealed the edges with duct tape. The vacuum hose (in the blow mode) was inserted into a hole in the styrofoam. Then I let the vac run for a few minutes to build up pressure inside the boat, before painting the inside of the C/B area with a detergent solution. The result was that the leak area was blowing bubbles. Voila, that's the exact spot! You are correct about it being "difficult" to reach. The first thing you have to remove is the teak board that is over the C/B drain slot to give you more access to the area. That is easily done: just drill out the teak plugs, then with the screw holes clear, put in a long Philips No 2 screwdriver and remove the screws holding the teak board in place. Now with a bit more access room, you can probably look at, but can't reach the aft corner. The only way to get access is to cut out a portion of the aft end of the C/B slot. Then you have working space! Save the piece / pieces. You'll want to epoxy them back in place when you are finished repairing the leak. At that point I used a DREMEL grinder to open up the leaking joint area; and then mixed up an epoxy/filler mixture (WEST products) and forced the mixture into the opened slot. I also made sure that I covered the adjacent areas as well. With the leak area repaired, I then gave it another pressure test with the shop vac; painting the repaired area with detergent suds; and this time there were no more bubbles. Then you just epoxy your cut out pieces back in place: replace the teak board; put in new teak plugs; and refinish the teak plug surfaces. I just used a toothpick and spread a bit of epoxy over the surface. My boat has been bone dry ever since; the way it should be! Connie M15 #400 LEPPO ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

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Re: M_Boats: (no subject)
by s.mcclellan＠attbi.com 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Thanks for your description of your centerboard leak fix, Connie. A couple of quick followup questions: Removing the Teak plate covering the cockpit drain hole was purely for observational purposes, right? From your description it sounds like you did not actually gain access to the area through there, but rather through the cutout at the back of the cb slot liner, right? The cutout you mention: this was actually cutting away a portion of the liner that covers the inner cb slot, right? This would have been accomplished from inside the cabin, more or less underneath the cockpit sole, correct? About how big of an area did you cut away? About how far down from the underside of the cockpit sole? Did your cutout extend around to the sides of the slot liner at all? Out of curiosity, about how far down from the cockpit sole (and about how far down from the inner slot / sole joint) would you say the original leak occurred? (mine is in that joint itself) Once again- 'preciate your time, Connie. -- Steve McClellan M15 #152 Chicago Area

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Re: M_Boats: new M15 owner
by Conbert H Benneck 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Hi Charless Welcome to the fold. I made the modification to the starboard sail locker - cutting out the shallow locker to gain access to the additional storage space down below. If you have some reasonable skills, it isn't too hard to do. The more difficult job was building supports for the sail locker insert to rest on. I wanted to eat my cake and have it too! Now I can put small stuff in the lift out shallow sail locker, while storing things like my swim ladder; bimini top; extra cockpit cushions in the now accessible space. I have left the styrofoam logs in place under the cockpit sole. One recommendation: put hasps on your sail locker lids to keep them from opening. The main idea is to keep water out of the boat in the event of a knock-down; sail locker lids that are not fastened down are an invitation to disaster. Connie M15 #400 LEPPO Glastonbury, CT ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

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Re: M_Boats: new M15 owner
by Wilsometer＠aol.com 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

In a message dated 4/23/02 7:49:06 PM, cwfowlkes(a)imt.net writes: << I was lucky to purchase a 1985 M15 with Ivory hull with Green trim last week when I was in California. It is in great shape but I am making "improvements" such as removing the bow pulpit which I did not feel I needed. As soon as the weather warms I will fill the holes; it snowed a little today in Bozeman.>> Might I suggest that you wait on removing the bow pulpit until you have sailed the boat in a variety of conditions?! I cannot imagine trying to do a headsail change or anchoring without mine. There is precious little in the way of places to hold on to up there, and the motion of the M15 is lively to say the least. Some of us have added a stern rail, stanchions, and lifelines as well. At very least, you might want to hang on to the pulpit in case you change your mind. <<I plan to refinish the aluminum cheeks as soon as I can find some Zinc Chromate primer in my little town. Think I will put some anti-seizing compound on the bolts when I put it back together, that is if I can remember where all the parts go!>> You might want to consider powder coating the cheeks. The finish is more scratch resistant, and looks great. <<There were about five loose blocks of Styrofoam in this space, each about the size of a shoe box. Is this extra floatation needed?>> The M15's positive flotation relies on Styrofoam both fore and aft. On my 1991 M15, the area under the cockpit sole, as well as a portion under the starboard locker/lazzarette is filled with large foam blocks. The forward locker under the v-berth is also filled, and the lid is screwed down. There is a certain number of cubic feet of foam required to maintain this positive flotation, but I cannot remember what that number is. Perhaps someone else on this list will chime in with the exact amount. <<After some minor rigging changes and painting the trailer and finding some new tires I should be ready to head for the water.>> I would suggest going with radial tires in lieu of the bias ply trailer tires. I switched to 12" Goodyear Tiempo radials on my otherwise stock 'Trail-Rite' trailer, and have been very happy I did so. Make sure to have them balanced. <<We DO have some lakes in Montana but they are frozen part of the year. I have trailed other boats to Puget Sound, Baja, and the Florida Keys. Am not sure what we will do with the M15 but it sure is cute!>> Cute, but quite capable. My wife and I have trailed our M15 to British Columbia for three week cruises in the Gulf Islands, Desolation Sound, and Princess Louisa. As far as I am concerned, the only real limiting factor of the M15 is comfort in poor weather. <<Thanks to the encouragement of several members of this group. Charless Fowlkes Bozeman, MT >> Congratulations, and good luck! Scott Grometer M15 #478 "bebe"

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Tongue Weight
by Honshells 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Does anyone know the tongue weight for an older M17 and Trailrite trailer? Would a rear-wheel-drive truck with 3,500 lbs towing capacity be sufficient to pull the M17 in most conditions?

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Re: M_Boats: Mast Crutch
by Conbert H Benneck 24 Apr '02

24 Apr '02

Hi Giles, When I got my M15, I had a S/S tube with a leather padded "U" at the top in the cabin. The mast support was an old piece of weathered 2 x 4 that was fastened to the gudgeons. When I tried to raise the mast the first time, I found that the mast angle was too small: i.e., with the mast bottom in the deck bracket, I couldn't put the bolt through the hole because I had to raise the aft end of the mast higher to get the bottom end lower into the mast fitting while clearing the front edge of the companionway hatch. I solved my problem by building a new aft mast support. At the top of the support I epoxyied a tube which held the S/S mast support tube, thereby raising the aft end of the mast to the rigging position. The new support ( elegant in shape and clear varnished - as befits an M15) fits into the gudgeons and carries the mast while boat is stored or on the road. Then, when rigging, I lift up the aft end of the mast and slide the tube in place, raising the mast by about 30 to 36 inches, at the stern. The forward end of the mast then fits nicely into the cheeks and I can put in the bolt. The mast is now well clear of the forward edge of the companionway hatch. My system works very nicely, and I have no recommendations for any modifications or improvement. Connie M15 #400 LEPPO ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

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