September 2004 - montgomery_boats - mailman.xmission.com

Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by chbenneck＠juno.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

Hi Gordon, Glad you enjoy my reminiscences! The advantage of old age is that you have covered lots of miles; the disadvantage is that you are no longer capable of doing what you did at that time. All you have are memories: photos; and many a chuckle at the problems that were encountered. Example: We were going from Rotterdam to Paris via inland waterways (Netherlands, Belgium and France) in a 25 footer with a 10 HP SAAB diesel and a variable pitch propeller. We tied up for the night in front of a lock ( the lock keepers stop working at 7 PM and start again at 0600 the next morning - French Army Veterans running a lock.) The next morning, at about 0600 we fired up the diesel in our boat, went through the lock, and then into a tunnel. As we came out of the tunnel we were at the center of a small French town. At that point the Admirable said, XXYY"""" I left the boat hook on the lock wall. I'll go back and get it. I tied up in the middle of town, at the main square, while the Admirable jogged back through the tunnel to the lock and retrieved the forgotten boat hook. As she came jogging back out of the tunnel, the sun had risen. It had gotten noticeably warmer. She was perspiring. The town market had been set up and everyone was there buying fresh vegetables, cheese, meat, bread.... So, she grabbed her sweater and pulled it over her head............................ and there she was, just like the old ads from ""I dreamt I was there in my Maiden Form Brassiere" Ooops! ...........To the amusement of the towns people (she looked cute! This was back in '64) So, red faced she climbed back on board the boat; the diesel fired up and went chug, chug, and I pushed the prop pitch into "forward" and we departed. (You don't know what heaven is until you live with an engine that has a variable pitch prop) Connie

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Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by chbenneck＠juno.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

Hi Bill, The Admirable complained that I was always upside down somewhere in the boat fixing something - tools all over the place. You know, I wanted answers to all the minor things, like: What's in the bottom of the fuel tank? fuel or water and dirt? Is the fuel filter clean (and I added a second filter to the system)? It needed TLC: all hinges squeaked The mast collar leaked Things needed rebedding But I had expected this and was prepared to fix it all. The best part however, was that when the boat was sold - for the same DM amount as I had bought if for - the dollar / DM exchange rate had changed massively in my favor. The result was that storage costs, insurance, and the hull Allgrip repainting were more than covered. As you said, a free 5 week Danish Islands cruise in your own boat............ Interesting tidbits: Danish harbors obviously, are the center of town. You moor bow to the dock, and get off the ship via the bow. But that would be difficult except for some smart person that said, why does the bow pulpit have to go all around the bow? Make a center passage for easy climbing in and out, (and for lifting the folding bicycles to the dock) and close it with a cable and pelican hook while underway. Works beautifully! The docks have toilets and hot showers for the visitors; and the Harbor Master comes around about 7 PM to collect your dockage fee for the night. Being in the center of town also means that while the Admirable is making breakfast, you walk to the nearest bakery and buy lovely, fresh out of the oven, Danish pastry. ...............or go to a local restaurant for dinner. Girl watching, always excellent in Denmark, can be rather startling at times. We were anchored at a beach and the children were swimming. I noticed a lovely young woman lying on a big towel in a Bikini. Suddenly she got up, took off the Bikini and went swimming.............. When she come back out, she dried herself off; put on the Bikini and lay back down on the towel.................! Lovely scenery in Denmark! Oh, and in the town of Aeroskobing, on the island of Aero, there is a museum filled with hundreds of ships in bottles, all made by one man; his life's work................... schooners, brigs, barquentine, full rigged ships, yachts, tugs, ...an incredible sight. Each model is set in the bottle with scenery behind it. Waves, lighthouses, seagulls. Worth a trip just to see that. Connie Connie

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Re: M_Boats: Hess Fest Update
by Saltm17＠aol.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

I'll be there John Edwards

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Re: M_Boats: whisker pole camera mount
by Saltm17＠aol.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

In a message dated 8/30/2004 10:41:34 PM Eastern Daylight Time, htmills(a)bright.net writes: http://bbs.trailersailor.com/forums/trailersailor/index.cgi/read/357332 Way to go Tod!

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Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by chbenneck＠juno.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

Hi Jerry, Thanks for the compliment. I think we all learn the hard way. In '84 I was on a business trip to Germany; bought the German "Die YACHT" magazine. I found an ad for the big brother of our Tripp-Lentsch 29 - a Northeast 38, (another Bill Tripp design done at about the same time as the Bermuda 40 that Hinkley built) that a sailing club in Hamburg wanted to sell. My son and I went and had a very brief external look of a big boat in a shelter. I made a ridiculous offer. It was accepted. So for 50,000 DM, in those days at the then current exchange rate $15,000, I became the owner of a 38 foot boat. Newly overhauled Volvo diesel engine New stainless steel fuel tank 10 bags of sails - all checked out and repaired by a sail maker. pots and pans utensils engine spare parts: shrouds; wheel steering cables; fittings tools inflatable dinghy (that had a leak) full instrumentation - radio, depth sounder, log We picked up the boat the following summer in Hamburg, and took it on a 5 week cruise through the Danish islands, to find out what sort of problems I had acquired................. The intent was, find out the problems; decide on what needed fixing; and the following year go back to Hamburg, pick up the repaired boat and then sail the boat back to the USA. However, after sailing it for five weeks my Admirable and I came to a conclusion: It obviously had a lot more cabin space - but for us two, totally unnecessary. It had two pull out berths in the main cabin plus two outboard berths, but what do you do with them? Use them to throw a hat on them or a chart? Yes, it had a three burner stove with oven, and you could stand in front of it and work in the galley. On the T-L 29 you had to rest one knee on the Stbd berth or on the P berth to cook or wash dishes. So, after our Denmark cruise, when we were home again contemplating our navels, we came to the conclusion that the 38' was just too big for us. The crew was out of the house............. If I dropped the main and it didn't hit the boom crutch, there was no way the Admirable could pick up the boom - about a 17' long solid spruce roller furling boom - and drop it in the boom crutch. Too heavy. So while a long slog to windward in a 38' was a much softer and easier ride for the crew, the weight of the ship became a big minus point. We weren't getting younger: and our children, the former crew, were off doing their own things............. So, though we had a great sail for five weeks, we decided to sell it again and stick with our T-L 29. The moral of the story - don't be over boated - even if it is cheap and it is hard to resist! Smaller is definitely better................ Connie

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Re: M_Boats: New 150% Genny
by LUDLOWD2＠aol.com 03 Sep '04

03 Sep '04

Well the new 150% genny arrived from Elliott-Pattison and I rushed down to the yacht club, raised the mast and ran her up. Much to my dismay, she was 3" too long. I measured the location for the new fairleads and played with the shape. I shipped it back and after a few weeks it came back perfect. Thanks Harry, great work as usual. The red color (not tanbark) is particularly pretty. While waiting, I rigged a set of fairleads and clam cleats on the combings about 2'-5" forward of the stern. There are the Bimini brackets that I have to work around. After the weekend chores I dropped her in the water and motored out in the bay. The forecast was light and variable but hey, its a "drifter" isn't it. I cleared the channel marker into deep water, dropped the centerboard and raised the new genny. Close hauled in light air it wants to backwind the main if you're not careful but a definate improvement. A little lee helm. I rigged the traveller and it helped. Maybe a barberhauler. The only glitch was the new fairleads were in the wrong place. They needed to be about 4" back from the cabin wall on the combings. There were eyes there for the Bimini straps so I hooked a caribiner clip into each and sheeted the genny there, back to the new clamcleat. I turned around and ran wing-and-wing with the genny poled out. The back fairleads work well in the rear position on a run. Great in light air. I ran her into the beach to joined Sweety for lunch at the yacht club then jumped in again. Try that in your big boat! The wind freshen and the Genny realy began to perform. Harry said the M-15 could take 10-12 knot winds with a 150 with no problem and I hit 10 in the gusts. She was approaching hull speed when I looked behind and a fleet of "fish" class dinghys were roaring past me, pointing higher. Shucks! I trimmed her down but as fast as a Monty is, she is no match for dinghys with twice the sail area and three times the keel. As we say down here, "Scarlett, tomorrow another day!" I turned and headed back to the club. A Morgan 32 passed and the skipper shouted, "pretty little boat!". Speed isn't everything. Fair winds Don Ludlow - M15 # 620 "Sweet Dream"

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Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by chbenneck＠juno.com 02 Sep '04

02 Sep '04

Hi Bill Thanks for the kind words.............. Over the years I've found that true happiness is having something that fits your requirements as best as can be found, and damn the cost. The pleasure you get from using a superb tool (boat, car, etc.) each time you use it, far outweighs what it originally cost. The cost is long forgotten, but the pleasure of it's use remains. My parents bought a Hobart three speed mixer back in the early '30. It had been doing faithful duty, mixing cake batter, shredding veggies, grinding meat; till about '77. Then I totally overhauled it, and my daughter is still enjoying a wonderful machine, today. When my wife started making gingerbread houses and holding workshops, I went to Hobart and tried to buy her a new machine. To buy one you almost have to break down the Hobart office door and yell, "I want an N50 Mixer!" Hobart's answer is not, "Oh we'd be pleased to sell you one, but rather; a sharp intake of breath and then, ............but they are expensive! We only sell them to Home Economics Classes at Universities." After almost hauling the man behind the counter over the counter and slapping him on both cheeks, I told him I WANT ONE, and I never asked you how expensive they were. Finally I got the new machine and it has been doing yeoman service ever since. I guess the moral is, buy the best and enjoy it every time you use it. The Montgomery is in the same category. It may be small, but the design is elegant; you have excellent storage; and it has great performance! (and makes the big boat owners jealous because we can sail at any time we want to, and anywhere we want; they can't..............) Connie

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Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by chbenneck＠juno.com 01 Sep '04

01 Sep '04

Bill Apropos - having the most fun............. We were in a Marina in Essex, NY on Lake Chaplain on a small, just fitting for an M15, finger pier. Moored along the seawall was about a 50' sailboat, whose bow pulpit was close to our boat. The owner of the "big" boat watched us wistfully, as we went sailing, with the 2 HP Honda backing us out and taking us to the harbor entrance. Then it was up with the sails and away we went.................. Coming back we sailed into our slip. He couldn't do anything without his crew; and no crew - no sailing! One day we were chatting, he on his bow pulpit, we lounging in the cockpit. He wanted to know what kind of a boat it was (he could have hung the M15 on his davits as a dinghy!), and when I told him and invited him aboard, his eyes lit up. Where can I buy one he asked? He wanted to keep it at his house on a lake north of Montreal (he was from Montreal), so that when he came home from work during the week in summer he could jump into the M15 and go for an evening sail. Small is beautiful.............! Connie

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Hess Fest
by Rick Langer 01 Sep '04

01 Sep '04

Would someone please help the uninitiated here? I've been reading bits and pieces about the Hess Fest and the rally/cruise for the Montgomery boats. Is this only a gathering for us M owners or is there some larger event of which we would be a smaller contingent? I've searched the web, but only found a thread of this list started by Doug. Thanks, First year owner, Rick Langer M-15 #337 "Sialia"

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Re: M_Boats: Working, working, cruising, cruising - long
by BILLAMICASR＠aol.com 01 Sep '04

01 Sep '04

Hi Connie... Maybe we need a new slogan. "You meet the nicest people with a Montgomery" When I was richer (years ago) and had lots of spendy toys I almost felt I needed to keep on buying to keep up the image that I was having a good time. Sort of felt like I was one step ahead of the other chaps. Then as the years came on I found that having a good time was an attitude not a bankroll. Of course now I'm less richer, but I find I'm happiest with the little and simplier things of life. Took a long time to get there and no one could have told me how to do it. Would have been nice to learn same at 20 instead of 50, however... beter late than never. Thanks for the post. That's the kind of words we all need to be reminded we're heading in the right direction. Imagine that, a dollar wealthy person, envious of our little sailboats. How Cool! Bill

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