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 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Donald Andrew Miller" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, March 18, 2002 7:20 AM Subject: M_Boats: centerboard problems > Hi all, > > Pretty new Montgomery 17 owner here. I brought the boat to Florida and am plannig to sail out of > Tarpon Springs for the next month. However, yesterday, when I tried to lower the centerboard, the > rope ripped a section of the board out, and the centerboard crashed into full down position, where > it's been ever since. I dove down to have a look, and the section of the board above the rope > hole was just ripped out. > > I've got her in the water now, with the centerboard in full down position, and the rope is > completely separated from the board/winch/cleat which should be holding the board up. > > We're going to haul her out at high tide today (2:45 pm) and have a look at it, but I'm wondering > what can be done. Will I need to replace the whole centeboard? Can I drill a new hole and attach > the rope to it? This is an older boat (1975) and I'm afraid the whole board is rotten. Has anyone > seen/heard/read of a problem like this? > > Fair Winds, > > Donald Miller > "Coquette" #66 > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Yahoo! Sports - live college hoops coverage > http://sports.yahoo.com/ > > _______________________________________________ > http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats
