Chesley, welcome to the group. This is a great forum. You can ask any question and you can get any amount of replies...most of them accurate and informative. There is a huge amount of knowledge for the "wrinkle" boats. You have a craft that will always bring you home. Just don't site on the top rail as a counter weight. I did that once, never again since I single hand. What was I thinking??? On your rudder, it is definitely not right. The rudder was the first thing that I restored when I got the Monty home to Sacramento. When I got my M-15 several years ago the bungee cord was not functional. I installed a new cord (real pain) . Then I tightened it up to the limit of my strength and it works fine now. Have someone send you detailed photos of their setup. This is safety issue so get it fixed soon. The only way I knew to set mine up was to duplicate the existing arrangement. I had to use a set of ViseGrips to pull on the bungee then keep it stretch in order to put in a stop knot. That worked for me. Power: what are you using for power ? Is the prop completely out of the water while underway? I have a 3.5 hp Nissan (same as Mercury and others, different branding). It is too much weight and more power than I need for launch and docking control. The weight of my Nissan is 47 pounds but it was the smallest I could find in my region (four stroke). I don't know the East Coast conditions but you may not need that much power. Also, never carry your engine attached while trailering. This was discussed by the group a couple of years ago. The consensus was that it is not worth the risk of transom damage. Is your CB in good shape? That was the next thing I had to restore. Mine was a corroded mess...had to have a new CB put in with the old one extracted by a sailing shop. I then tackled the trailer. But that is another (expensive) story... Fair Winds, Larry with my Monty - Old 189 - 1981 M-15 -----Original Message----- From: montgomery_boats-bounces@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:montgomery_boats-bounces@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Chesley Sugg Sent: Sunday, August 18, 2013 1:46 PM To: For and about Montgomery Sailboats Subject: M_Boats: intro Hello All, I'm Chesley Sugg from Raleigh, NC. I'm coming from about 20 years of power boating. Mainly a small trawler. I just lost joy in motoring around and decided that I need to pull some strings to keep things interesting. I just purchased M-15 #153. It's kept at Blackbeard Sailing Club on the Neuse River down in New Bern, NC. It's been my great luck to have been able to contact Mike Murphy, a M15 owner who lives in New Bern. Mike has been MORE that gracious in his help. If all, or even most, of M boat owners are that way, I have found a wonderful home. Thanks Mike! I can relate to the overpowering of the boat. When I first sailed her, now named "Mouse", It was blowing at least 12 with gust to 17. The boat scared me. I used the standard jib and had no reefing capability. Man, I could barely control the boat. I had a huge amount of Lee helm. I could only tack by backing the jib. The rig was set up very lose. Since them, Mike has helped to adjust the rig and I'm added reefing lines. It's going well but I have a problem that I hope someone can help with. My rudder assembly had no way to raise the rudder. I have replicated Mike's internal raising system with a 13" rod (hole to hole) and two fittings as per his rudder. I can only get the rudder to raise to about 45 deg. The rod then hits the upper pintle bolt and won't go further. Is this normal? Thanks for such a useful forum. I hope to be here for a time to come. Best, Chesley Sugg M-15 "Mouse"