On 3/19/02 5:45 AM, "Cal Spooner" <cspooner@mn.rr.com> wrote:
At 12:34 PM -0800 3/18/02, Jerry Mongomery wrote:
Hi Don- A 1975 17 should be one of the keel/centerboard ones, with a cast iron centerboard if my memory serves me correctly. Correct me if I am wrong.
Sounds like a corner of the board broke off, probably from years of corrosion. Without seeing the board I would say that the only choice other than replacing it would be to have the broken part welded back on, assuming that there is enough sound iron left. Also, your welder should know this, but be sure that the board is heated enough so that it will not develop cracks from differential expansion caused by heat from the welding.
One more thing, make sure that the "keeper" tang on the upper aft corner is intact, and riding on the pin in the keel when the board is in its down position. When sailing, it is important that the board hangs on this tang rather than on the pennant. Good luck.
Jerry
I may be mistaken, but the advise I've seen on this list is contrary to the above statement.... that you don't want the board all the way down with it's weight on the pin, but to take it all the way down and then pull it up 2" and knot it there so it hangs pretty much from the pennant. I'll take Jerry's advise anytime, but am confused... any comments?
I think the magic words are "older M17 with cast iron CB". These things weight about 170# and have a pivot pin forward, and a stopper pin aft. The CB has a tang that fits and rests on the stopper pin. This is in contrast to the M15's and maybe the newer M17's with fiberglass boards and no stopper pin. If the CB is dropped all the way down, it binds in the trunk and will create leverage that will break the board. So to prevent those from dropping, a stopper knot is tied into the pennant to only let it down far enough to function, but not far enough to bind on anything. Howard