May 2002 - montgomery_boats - mailman.xmission.com

Re: M_Boats: John Harris's First Sail on the MSOG
by Conbert H Benneck 01 May '02

01 May '02

Hi John, FWIW, I have a Forespar tiller holder on my M15, with the box installed in the cockpit sidewall on the Stbd side, which holds the knob end of the tiller holder. I find it makes a great autopilot. You hook it up and by twisting the tubes, and extending or shortening them, you can fine tune the course. I haven't used it for any great distances, but I find it very handy, singlehanding, for keeping the bow in the wind while I lower the main and furl it. The M15, as you now know is very trim sensitive, so the tiller holder will only hold course as long as you don't change the weight distribution from your initially set condition. Move down below to get a beer, and the course changes. But it still works well enough so that you can call it the poor man's autopilot. It provides a hand on the tiller when you have to do something else for a few minutes. With the Admirable snoozing on one side of the cockpit, and I sitting on the other, the tiller holder has held a reasonably good course, hard on the wind, all the way across Lake Champlain in the Essex, NY area (3 NM). A line - with adjustment toggle - around the tiller, fastened to one cockpit coaming, with a bungee cord from the tiller to the opposite cockpit coaming, is also a very good solution. I have used this approach in the MICRO, the ComPac16 and in the M15. It works as well as the Forespar unit at almost zero cost. The advantage of the Forespar unit for me is that when I leave the boat at the marina dock for the week, the tiller (and rudder) are firmly constrained against waves caused by water skiing outboards and PWCs. The line / bungee approach only holds the tiller firmly in one direction of travel. My Bolger MICRO was a blast to sail. The only reason I had to give it up was because of growing problems (aging is terrible - the mind is young but the body says hey wait a minute....) stepping the mast. I could carry it, no problem; but trying to hold it at a 70 degree angle to get the heel in the forward compartment mast step became too much of a chore. That's how I finally landed with the M15, and have been totally happy sailor since then. Connie M15 #400 LEPPO ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

1 0

John Harris's First Sail on the MSOG
by Doug King 01 May '02

01 May '02

Hah! Finally, I got a story up before someone suggested it. John sent photos, too, with some interesting headsail details. See the story under Trip Stuff -> Trip Accounts -> First Sail, or go to http://msog.org/trippics/johnharris/first_sail.cfm. Just so I don't get pre-emptively struck again, I talked with John a long while ago. He's been taking pictures of his M-15 refurbishment and will be sending them along with stories as his time allows. John, Please check the captions and see if they're accurate, and I'm wondering, in the third shot, is that a vang or an adjustable preventer to the boom on the left side of the pic (the red line)? Difficult to tell from the shot, and I don't mind showing my ignorance. Doug ------------------------------------------ Doug King M-17 #404 "Vixen" Montgomery Sailboats Owners Group Web site: http://msog.org Email: mailto:msog@msog.org

2 1

(no subject)
by LBarkhuff＠cs.com 01 May '02

01 May '02

Who can tell me how to unsubscribe to the list. Tried majordomo(a)lists.xmission.com, but it says unknown list for montgomery_boats. Larry B.

3 2

Tongue Weight / Towing
by Harvey Hochstetter 01 May '02

01 May '02

Just a few thoughts on the tongue weight comments. I have run across the truck scales with my 99 Subaru Outback and my M-15 on the Trailrite trailer that it came with. Boat and trailer came in at 1400 pounds, with very little in the boat; the sail bag, a paddle, boat hook, cushions, life jackets, porta-pottie, sheets and docking lines. The OB, trailer spare tire, and the ground tackle kit were al in the back of the car. With the trailer unhooked from the car, I can lift the hitch enough to readily move the trailer wherever I want to. I would guess the tongue weight to be only 60 - 80 pounds. I will have to weigh it when I get home to check. The Outback is rated to pull 2000 pounds and the hitch is rated at 250/2500 (tongue weight/trailer weight), and on the road it doesn't even know the boat is back there. The car was purchased with pulling the boat as a goal. I consulted with my mechanic re the auto VS manual transmission question. His recommendation was to go with the Auto Transmission because it is kinder to the engine, and with an accessory transmission cooler and regular maintenance it should last for many years. My preference was for the standard transmission which in my Toyota Tercel 4WD wagon has lasted for 475,000+ miles, with out a new clutch, trans, or engine, however, I trust my mechanic's opinion. The Outback is a 4 cylinder, I wish it was a 6, but it still gets about 22 - 24 mpg and seems to run easy with Pelican in tow. I wish I had a transmission temp gauge but Subaru did see fit to have an idiot light that will come on if the trans heats up. Guess we will know how well it works and how right the mechanic is when I get a few hundred thousand miles on the combination. The Outback is a bit low, and when retrieving the boat, it usually comes just an inch shy of getting tight to the rubber vee on the winch post. It sits solid on the bunks and doesn't appear to have moved when I get home. I'm thinking maybe I need to move the winch post aft to meet the boat where it usually sits. The trailer does not have a tongue extension and that is coming soon and will probably help with getting the boat farther up on the trailer. This is my limited experience, ( except for my 475K miles on my Toyota ), and hopefully it might help someone else along the decision path. Harvey & Deena H M-15 #348 Pelican Walla Walla, WA

3 2

Re: M_Boats: something new learned...and spinnaker
by Jslubliner＠aol.com 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

Todd, it's just a matter of what kind of sailing you do. Most of my stuff is limited to club racing or day sailing with my wife and/or a group of friends. In the former, I rarely join the spinnaker fleet anymore (too much work: fun-to-buck-ratio) and in the latter, it's too many strings for the pick-up crew to mess with. Most of them would rather hold an extra beer. All this is personal. When we do mess with the spinnaker, I use the 3/4 oz chute as it is slightly bigger, I can keep it up longer as the wind grows and it is pink and purple - really striking. The 1/2 oz is kinda like tissue paper and it's white. Each of us has their style. I have only had the 1/2 oz chute up a few times in the last few years. John & Coyote in Tucson

1 0

RE: M_Boats: towing "Really"
by Smith, Tom 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

We towed our M15 to the bay area two years ago for the Cruiser Challenge in Oakland with a '91 4WD Toyota. It's a 5-speed, but I kept it in 4th so as not to lug the engine. It won't leap long hills in a single bound, but if you're patient, you'll get there. Tom Smith and Jane Van Winkle M15/345 -- Chukar Sandpoint, Idaho -----Original Message----- From: rc2222(a)postoffice.pacbell.net [mailto:rc2222@postoffice.pacbell.net] Sent: Friday, April 26, 2002 7:43 AM To: Montgomery Boats Subject: M_Boats: towing "Really" Regarding manual vs. automatic on a small truck: How would a small truck with manual transmission perform vs one with an automatic when towing my M15 from the San Francisco Bay area to the Sierra Nevadas, up and down steep grades at elevations over 10,000 feet on hot summer days? Purchasing a small used truck with a manual transmission is significantly less expensive than one with an automatic. Past postings on this list had convinced me to go with an automatic but now I'm beginning to think otherwise. I need some good advice for mountain towing with a small truck. Thanks, Rich Cottrell M15 "Really" Menlo Park _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats

6 12

M-boats: tongue weight/towing
by Harvey Wilson 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

Hi harvey.. >>With the tongue extension comes a spare tire mount and tire. Maybe that with the boat forward will make up my 140 pounds. I like that idea better than trying to shake it all into place in the parking lot.<< I've also seen the outboard mounted up front, near the winch. Harvey/Ga M-17 Stargazer #294

1 0

M17 Galley Model
by Harvey Wilson 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

Hi Howard.. Stargazer's water tank is under the cockpit. IIRC, capacity is 6 gallons. Harvey/Ga M-17 Stargazer #294

1 0

Re: M_Boats: Tongue Weight
by Sandyal55＠aol.com 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

In a message dated 04/29/2002 12:30:10 AM !!!First Boot!!!, chonshell(a)ia4u.net writes: > 4-cylinder Tacoma has the same towing capacity as the > 6-cylinder. I'm not an expert on Toyotas but it's possible that the 4 cyl has the same torque as the 6. Toyota's 6 has a bad rep for torque. It's a high revving motor that doesn't like being lugged. It develops it's HP at higher RPM's. The 4 has a longer stroke and develops torque at lower RPM's. The dealer should have engine specs to see before buying. Sandy

3 3

Yard Sale
by Jslubliner＠aol.com 30 Apr '02

30 Apr '02

Just to announce that with Doug's help, I have posted a bunch of M-17 extras on the web site in the "for sale" section. I purchased a new Mylar Main and Mylar 150 this year. After looking at the pile of sailbags here at the house, I realized I have a bunch of extras in usable to reasonably decent condition which I will probably not use again. These are for a tall rig 17 and are the kind you would either use to supplement your sail locker or fill in some invenetory blanks. The two mains would be great for backups. I also have accumulated 3 outboards. Information is located on the web site, so check them out and if interested, please contact me directly. John and "Coyote" M17FD #69

3 2