Chris, The M-boats have a round bottom. On the plus side, it minimizes wetted surface and drag, which increases speed. On the negative side, it makes the boat tippy, initially. The more the boat tips, the more the ballast helps to stabilize it. As you suggested, if you have more mast & sail than a stock M15, the weight and windage would contribute to how easily your boat heels. After a few years I removed the foam from Storm Petrel. The foam reduced storage space and, as it banged around, contributed tiny foam balls to the bilges and whatever happened to be stored there. The convenience is a trade off against the peace of mind in having an unsinkable boat. Since I'd never had any water come in, other than rain or spills, weighing the likelihood of sinking against convenience, I dumped the foam. Another contributing factor is that fact that the main hatch is the only "hole" in my M15. Both cockpit lockers are shallow and sealed. Most boats that sink do so because problems with thru hull fittings other openings, and I don't have any of those. Bill Riker M15 - #184 Storm Petrel -----Original Message----- From: montgomery_boats-bounces@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:montgomery_boats-bounces@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Chris Smith Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2009 1:29 PM To: doug_kelch@yahoo.com; For and about Montgomery Sailboats Subject: M_Boats: tipping and floatation I've got a couple questions for y'all: 1) My M15 is fantastically maneuverable, but seems awfully tippy. If I'm not on the sheets a gust can push me over or at least give a good scare to passengers. I kinda figure that it's because I've got too much mast, as I put all the parts together from scratch (got the hull only to begin with - for $25!) but I'd like to know if anyone else experiences this. I've made every mistake once, including a knockdown with passengers which could have been scary, but turned out to be kinda fun (this could be hindsight...) 2) I've got a lot of Styrofoam underneath the cockpit and in the bow locker under the cushion. I noticed that another M15 has lots of it in the same place (not under the cockpit, though) - I believe it was SCRED. I figured it was from when they must have floated it up from the bottom of some TX harbor, but perhaps not? I haven't removed it because I haven't needed the space, but it would be handy to have it. Is my M15 likely to sink!? 3) Finally, anyone have advice on pulling out the centerboard? Is it cast iron or are there differences between manufacture dates? I believe mine is either an '81 or '82. I'd like to pull it out, examine it and see if I should clean it up or do any other work on it... Thanks, Chris M15 Persephone _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats Remember, there is no privacy on the Internet!