Tom, Congratulations on your new M-15! We sailed our M-15 #407 for many years and recently sold her after purchasing a fixer-upper M-17 #410. The CB on our 15 never had any problems, but we wrestled big-time with the CB in our 17. IT was stuck-hard from day 1. The CB's in the 15 & 17's are the same starting with 17's built around 1988 (about hull #40x). Prior to 1988 17's had a much heavier cast iron CB.

From our CB replacement here are some things we learned that might help you. These are all - Best I Know -, your boat is a much earlier model and maybe different.

- The CB is a fiberglass-lead-fiberglass sandwich and weighs about 40 lbs. And as I mentioned, it is the same fiberglass CB that is used in both M-15's and 1988 and newer M-17's. - If you try to pound the board down working from the top inside the cockpit, be VERY VERY gentle. The board can be easily damaged pounding from the top. - The CB should wiggle from side-to-side within the keel cavity, with apx.1 /8 inch play on either side. - To try and free a stuck CB; raise the stern of your boat, using something protective, clamp a pair of vise grips around the lower-aft end of the CB (clamp as high as possible); protecting the aft end of the keel cavity with wood or something similar, leverage the vise grips against the aft end of the keel cavity to try and the board down and free it. If you can move it all you are in good shape, as every little bit it comes down give you a bit more to grab onto. If you can get the board down then you can check it for damage. If you loose the not in the pendant you can lower it even lower and see some-what up into the keel cavity. - With the boat fully rested on the trailer, the CB should still wiggle freely within the keel cavity. The weight of the boat should not rest on the CB forcing it up into the keel cavity (this is what damaged our CB beyond repair). - I would discourage anything but the gentlest of tools when trying to work along the sides of the stuck CB. Any damage to the fiberglass of either the CB or interior keel cavity could allow water to penetrate, potentially causing something much worse than a stuck CB. - If worse-comes-to-worse and you have to replace the CB, that is not such a bad thing, well-worth the money and effort to keep your 15 fully functional. You can buy a new CB from Bob Eeg (reasonably priced, and comes with rope and new pivot pin) and can be installed it in an afternoon, or so, maybe a full day.... Most of the time required is in jacking up and supporting the boat some you can move it back off it's trailer, you will need to move the trailer forward a bit to allow the CB to swing all the way down. In our case our old CB had the full weight of our 17 resting on it while on the trailer. This caused the CB to bottom-out in the keel trunk, crack, twist, and swell badly. Even so, I was able to remove it using the above mentioned vise grip method (Jerry Montgomery gave me the idea). Once the old CB is out, there is not much room to work inside the keel cavity. But with a brush on a long handle you can clean this area and inspect for any damage. Also, this is a great time to check the keel joint. There is a join that runs along the bottom interior of the keel cavity. It would be a really good idea while the CB is out to fill-in, patch/fix any area that is not quite right. Any water getting up into this area could again have serious consequences. (Thanks to Scott Grommeter for giving me this advise!) Also, - The patch material over the pivot pin is normal, It is meant to keep water out of the pivot pin area. If I can be of any help, please let me know. Randy Graves M17 #410 ________________________________ From: montgomery_boats-bounces+randyg=cite.nic.edu@mailman.xmission.com on behalf of thauser@att.net Sent: Wed 11/2/2005 7:43 AM To: For and about Montgomery Sailboats; montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: M_Boats: Centerboard treatment Hello, Folks: I don't know if my emails are getting to the interested parties. I recently purchased Kestrel, an M-15 #145 (circa 1981), in Monterey, CA. and brought her to Park City, UT. She has spent all her life in salt water and has been dry-docked for the past 5 years. Anyway, the keel won't drop. We sail in fresh water and I was hoping one or two days would flush the cavity out. I have tried pressure spray, WD-40, and selected nautical language, but it won't budge. It could be "cemented" into the cavity by the salt water and the pressue from sitting on the trailer roller for 5 years. Can't find a sailboat repair shop locally to raise her up and off the trailer. If I can jack the boat a couple of inches off the trailer, I may be able to run a small cable up and over the top of the keel from underneath. I have looked at the photos on the Monty website. I can't find out if the keel is fiberglass filled with lead shot or if it is some other material. I can see the pivot where the pin was once removed and replaced, then the hole was patched over. Any suggestions would be appreciated, especially some way to free it without removing it completely from the keel cavity. Thank you all. Tom Hauser thauser@utah.gov or thauser@att.net _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats

Tom, Has anyone mentioned that the CB may be stuck on the halyard knot? If you recover the boat with the CB down, the trailer will push the CB up and the knot will wedge between the CB and housing. I have had it remain stuck even when I launched again. Try raising the boat on the trailer so the CB has about an inch of free play, then tug on the halyard and see if the CB drops. If you have a trailrite trailer, you can place supports under the forward part of the keel and lower the tongue to get a little space under the CB. Loading and launching the boat with the CB free can be a big deal on a Trailrite. If the CB is not secured when you launch, the CB will drop and hook on the trailer frame, leaving you wondering why you can not get the boat off the trailer. If the CB is not securely raised when you recover the boat, it can get stuck on the knot or drop and cause problems if you have to reposition the boat on the trailer. I have found that some sort of trailer guides or posts that help position the boat on the trailer are essential. Securing the CB is first on my checklist for launch and recovery, and I always remove the rudder. Hope this helps. Bob Becker M15 #208 1982 On Nov 2, 2005, at 7:43 AM, thauser@att.net wrote:

Hello, Folks:

I don't know if my emails are getting to the interested parties. I recently purchased Kestrel, an M-15 #145 (circa 1981), in Monterey, CA. and brought her to Park City, UT. She has spent all her life in salt water and has been dry-docked for the past 5 years. Anyway, the keel won't drop. We sail in fresh water and I was hoping one or two days would flush the cavity out. I have tried pressure spray, WD-40, and selected nautical language, but it won't budge. It could be "cemented" into the cavity by the salt water and the pressue from sitting on the trailer roller for 5 years.

Can't find a sailboat repair shop locally to raise her up and off the trailer. If I can jack the boat a couple of inches off the trailer, I may be able to run a small cable up and over the top of the keel from underneath. I have looked at the photos on the Monty website.

I can't find out if the keel is fiberglass filled with lead shot or if it is some other material. I can see the pivot where the pin was once removed and replaced, then the hole was patched over.

Any suggestions would be appreciated, especially some way to free it without removing it completely from the keel cavity.

Thank you all.

Tom Hauser thauser@utah.gov or thauser@att.net _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats