On 3/21/2022 3:53 PM, abkeeton via montgomery_boats wrote:
Hello,I bought the Montgomery 15 many years ago. I have stored it in the garage and never sailed it.Recently, I decided to put the boat up for sale. I discovered that a previous owner had cut the inside of the starboard locker so he could lift it out to access storage underneath. I have since seen postings on this. Some people think it's a good idea to put the anchor in there.No one I have spoken with can understand why someone would cut the fiberglass and it's killing potential sales.Should I have the locker restored?Please respond to my email address.Thanks much,Ann Keeton Sent from Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
Hi Ann, When I bought my used M15 #400, it had the pan on the starboard side. I took one look at all the inaccessible storage space below that pan and put on my thinking cap. I'm a long time boat owner and an engineer. I carefully cut around the middle of the flat surface of the pan and removed the pan. I added a rope loop at each end of the pan for easy removal; and installed supports for the pan. I put sealed foam strips on the inside of the sail locker lids so that they were water tight. I also added lock hasps so that the sail locker lids couldn't open in the case of a knock-down. Now I had the best of both worlds: The pan for small stuff - car keys; the sail locker and companionway locks; a screwdriver and pliers; spare parts; sail stops; etc. By lifting out the pan I could now easily store my Bimini top; cockpit cushions; extra PFDs; boat hook / paddle; and the bare boom during winter storage. On the port side I had 2 anchors plus chain and rodes; extra outboard fuel; cleaning materials; fenders; fender board; mooring lines. With full access to the bottom of the boat on both the port and starboard sides, your boat is far better than boats with that ridiculous pan. If the person who did the modification did a good job, you have increased the value of the M15. Ciao, Connie ex M15 #400 LEPPO ex Northeast 38 RHE ex Tripp-Lentsch 29 FUN TOO (26 years - sailing all over Europe and US East Coast)