Jerry, I think you are trying to herd cats! *LOL* A lot of good ideas here from everyone, not the least of which is towability/tow vehicle, which almost seems like the first decision: Towable with a smaller vehicle VS something that requires a larger one. My old S10 was clearly overloaded pulling my M17, so I now have a GMC Sierra 1500. Towing with a smaller vehicle is always nice, but my own sailing habits point towards a 17'-20' boat. The 17 just has sitting headroom, but a slightly larger boat might allow that seat to become a little more luxurious. I agree with the aluminum toe rails: sailed boats with and without and the extra utility and the reduced maintenance is nice. With the price differential, it could at least be an option. I swapped my wooden companionway strips out for aluminum and am pleased with the change. Personally, I like wood IF it is something like the drop boards that you can take in the house to varnish. If it is bolted to the boat; no thanks (unless it is on someone else's boat!) M17 cockpit is perfectly proportioned. A new boat could benefit from having it slightly higher and with sole sloping a wee bit more to improve drainage when loaded. With a cockpit full of people, water tends to pool at the stern and when anchored during a cruise, I find that water often collects at the front of the well after a shower which I get to drain by standing as far aft as I can. Drains could go through transom, keeping things above WL and eliminating hoses/thru-hulls. My Q'berth (galley model) is used solely for stowage + seat. Kickup rudder would be desirable. The narrow side decks of the 17 are fine. Enough room for foot while holding handrail. (handrail could be non-wood, perhaps a stainless tube resting on bosses molded into the deck) Consideration for a nylon rain fly over the fwd half of cockpit + companionway and a bimini would be good, plus ability to have a tent/integral screen over fwd hatch (planned attachment points, perhaps not with the fittings, but with smooth, coreless spots where hardware could be added. Details such as no coring in places where hardware is intended (either standard or optional) would be nice. Details in the molds, such as those and things like settee seatback ridges might save labor later (adding wood fiddles). Recesses for instruments/stowage, in cockpit & cabin both? I've been keeping as much stuff as possible in boxes aboard, which improves packing/unpacking time (just remove a box with 5 items rather than removing 5 items). Modularization. Annie Westlund, who spends summers on her little boats (first a Potter, now a Slipper), keeps a claw anchor on a roller at the bow and runs the rode along the deck to the cockpit, where she launches/retrieves. I like the concept but dislike chain rubbing along the side deck. Maybe something could be designed in? Dunno. I keep my anchor/rode in a milk crate under the cockpit. For some reason, under the v-berth always seems damp. (water from the porta pot fresh water was a source, so I quit filling it and instead pour from jugs). It has never been bone dry. So I keep clothes, etc, ATOP the berth. Lapstrakes: They are okay and certainly visually eye-catching, but do make maintenance a bit harder. I would have to think layup labor would be greater with them. Fg/lead c/b concept works for me. Lead ballast. Tod Mills M17 #408, 1987 galley model BuscaBrisas