Hi David, Welcome to the clan. As for the shortened tiller, ............wrong! wrong, .......wrong! The get the M15 to sail at her best, you have to keep the transom out of the water. To do that, you have to sit forward in the cockpit - not aft! Weight has to be centered to keep from dragging the transom. I built a tiller extension for my standard length tiller so that: I could sit all the way forward in the cockpit (I sail by myself mostly) the tiller extension end was raised to a comfortable height for this sailing position - not hitting your knees. A big improvement! To test the idea, tie any sort of extension to your tiller using bungee cords; Velcro straps; and see what it does for ease of steering and better boat balance. Connie M15 #400