Seems like I read on this site a while back where some fellow found a way to use some sort of chemically impregnated cloth pads which he simply pressed against the hull. These loosened the paint so it became a simple matter to scrape off the paint. I will be doing this soon myself somehow and have done it already on my first M-17. It is not a fun job so I am very interested in a better way to do this! Tom B. On Sun, Jun 2, 2013 at 11:31 PM, Robert Hall <bert.hall@rogers.com> wrote:
Hi, Your attempt to remove the present bottom coat will be a night mare however you attack it . You will need over a gallon of soya stripper to get started, several scrapers, lots of old clothes and endless patience and ground cover under the boat. I just did mine and if I had known the agro would never have started, hours of scraping and wire wheel grinding along the wrinkles. Getting the boat off the trailer is easy if you have two 4 by 4 timbers two feet longer than your trailer is wide and enough cement blocks to build 4" towers", two at the front and two at the back on either side of the widest point of the trailer. The timbers become your cross members to hold the boat up and are laid across bow and stern between the towers. Make your constructions about a foot forward of the transom and a foot aft of the bow. The towers will be approximately the height that you will put the boat, so acquire an adequate number of blocks. Now you jack the stern of the boat up off the trailer high enough to pass the timber between the towers under the stern and then do the same at the bow. Fill 4 strong plastic bags with sand and place one on either side of the boat on the timbers to hold the hull upright so it cannot rock. The boat is now trim and horizontal, resting on 2 timbers which are themselves resting on your four cement block towers. In jacking up the boat you may have to do it back a bit, forward a bit and repeat the process a couple of times till you reach the desired height. the type of jack will largely decide this. Get the boat up high enough to let the centre board down all the way and take the opportunity to renew the lowering line and to service the board. All that remains is to draw the trailer out and you are in business. Reverse the process to put the boat back on the trailer. If you have plenty of timbers you can build your towers from stacked sections about 18 inches long. Finally if you thoroughly search the Monty site you will find illustrations of what I have described. Better luck with that bottom coat than I had. Expect to find hull damage that the bottom coat has disguised. RTH.
To: montgomery_boats@mailman.**xmission.com<montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Subject: M_Boats: Three Montgomery 15 Questions
I always appreciate the perspectives, stories, and information provided by this discussion group. They are invaluable. I find I have three questions about my 1986 Montgomery 15:
1. One of the plastic ends to my whisker pole (or is it a spinnaker pole?) broke. Both ends used to attach to both the mast and sail by fastening or snapping. The pole is fixed length. I tried replacing the broken end with a spike but found the pole would fall out of the sail, at least when used with the spinnaker. The pole isn't handy at the moment, but I think it is about one inch in diameter. I haven't been able to find replacement ends or even figure out what new pole would be a good replacement. I did find old discussion in the group that seemed to indicate that a Forespar 4-to-8 foot adjustable pole worked for a Montgomery 15. Can anyone tell me where I could get a replacement pole end (ideally) or (if I can't get a new end somewhere) a new pole and what particular models of ends and poles and what sources I should consider?
2. In what I think is unrelated to my new spike-end on my whisker pole, I notice my spinnaker has a 3 to 4 inch horizontal rip in its body about 2/3rds the way to the top. The cloth of the spinnaker seems to otherwise be in good shape. Who could I contact for this repair? Note the nearest sail loft is a 5 hour drive away so I will almost certainly have to ship it somewhere.
3. When I bought my boat it had what I think is called ablative bottom paint. Since I store the boat on the trailer and typically sail in mountain lakes, this paint has been little else than a nuisance. It is a nuisance because every time I touch it I come away blue. Also, it is uneven and worn away from parts of the bottom and on one side doesn't even follow the water line very well. This makes it sound worse than it is, but you can probably see why I want to repaint the bottom. My general plan is to paint the bottom back to a cream color similar to the above water portion of the hull, probably with a new red strip at water line to hide the uneven boundary between old and new bottom paint. This may be my fall and winter boat project this year and I'll plan to figure out the exact process and paints when I get closer to starting. The question I have now has to do with how to lift the boat off the trailer bunks for the preparation and painting process. I understand the boat weighs about 750 pounds and can be lifted from the shroud chain plates with balancing lines to the bow and stern. I don't have access to stands. The nearest boat lift and yard is a 5 hour drive away. I would like to allow myself 2 weeks to a month to complete the process. What great suggestions does the group have to lift the boat to paint it?
Thanks very much for any and all responses!
David Grah Bishop California