Hi Carol, As Rich suggests Hoopers has a great reputation for fixing this problem . But please be aware that the problem may not be just a rusty c/b mine when i got it out of the keel was perfect no rust at all. Water had gotten into the iron ballast within the keel cavity and it had rusted causing the c/b case to be pressed squeezed against the c/b at the same time the rusting was pushing the outer sides of keel out causing a visible bowing . to check for this just use a 12 in. ruler held upright against the keel you will see the bulge near the center , check both sides . Again Hoopers has the expertize to fix this problem but it's not cheap. But a lot of these boats are 40 yrs old and showing problems and need a knowledgeable person to check them out at the very least to assure that the c/b works properly. I'm wishing you well on this . happy sailing . doug h. ooFrom: Carol uBarber <carollynbarber@gmail.cost m> To:ry_boats@mailman.xmission.com Sent: Tuesday, July 30, 2013 8:52 AM Subject: M_Boats: New Member Question Re: Centerboard on my M-17 I have a 1981 M-17 and the centerboard will not drop because it has rusted in place. After having taken it to two different marinas here in Michigan, with no luck from either of them on getting it down, I'm getting a little frustrated. One of them suggested contacting someone who owns a sandblaster. Does anyone have any advise? Thanks! Carol B